LET'S START WITH THE CAST...

Brandon Routh is flat-out channeling Christopher Reeves (RIP). He looks and acts so much like Reeves its astonishing.

The Clark Kent that we know and love from the first 2 superman films, so perfectly embodied by Reeves, is preserved with every single nuance. Routh looks perfect as both Kent and Superman and he plays the duality of these characters as if he was born to do it. From the bumbling goofiness of kent to the solidarity, charm and charisma of Superman, Singer done good by finding a no-name actor and letting him give it his all.

Routh is a bit young for the role but i guess it gives him room to grow over the next few years in the the inevitable sequels.

Lois lane. Im not the hugest Kate Bosworth fan but she's just fine in the role. Again, shes a tad young and I must say this was the hardest thing to shake, i was so used to seeing Margot Kidder play Lois Lane as a "woman" while Kate Bosworth plays Lois more as a "young mother". But she definitely won me over by the end of the movie.

She gets beaten up several times (with no bruises afterwards mind you) and even saves Superman at one point, so she really has a strong beefed up role. I guess the most important thing that works is the chemistry between Lois and Superman, once i saw that i accepted Bosworth in the role.

Lois Lane's son. HES EXCELLENT. Wow, i wanted to see a whole movie of just this kid. And i dont like movies with kids typically. The kid (I couldnt find his name on IMDB) plays the role like the kid in THE SHINING. No joke, hes quite and almost creepy at times. Creepy because we KNOW he's Superman's son and he has massive powers but we only get to see a hint of it. Overall a great performance and he's sure to have a bigger role in the sequels.

Spacey. Luthor. Perfect. Perfect casting, its a no brainer. Again, Spacey plays the role similar to Hackman but he really infuses his own wit and sinisterism. Lex Luthor's opening scene starts the movie off very very dark as he manipulates a rich old lady to leave him her will on her death bed. In fact the first 20 minutes of SR stays dark and follows Lex as he finds Supe's hideout and hatches his plan. The first time you see Superman doin' his thing is about 30 minutes into the movie but with a 2 hour 20 minute run time you hardly notice.

This movie is EPIC. Thank god. Thats what i loved about this movie, Singer gave Luthor a ton of screen time so just as the movie gets a little soft it kicks back to Spacey and everything becomes diabolical again. Spacey's Luthor is extremely smart, always 2 steps ahead of everyone else, and as the movie progresses he becomes more and more evil. Well he's never THAT evil but hes willing to kill billions of people in order to forge his own continent built from kryptonite.

Parker Posey was pretty good but not great. Her relationship with Lex Luthor was like a brother/sister thing and they had a few hilarious scenes together, but they were clearly plutonic. I would have liked to see a touch of sexual chemistry or something. Also she looks terrible in her role, i assume on purpose because her hair was all frizzy and she basically scowled the whole movie. But she did fine with what she was given, especially the scene where her car's brakes give out and Superman saves her. She then proceeds to hit on Supes, thats one of her only solo scenes.

Singer loves putting James Marsden in love triangles. Marsden (X-mens Cyclops) gets a ton of screen time in this movie and does a solid job. He plays Lois Lane's fiance and he believes the kid is his, although he suspects that Lois slept with superman about 5 years ago. And the kid is 5. The math is there.

Whats great about Marsdens role is that he's a good guy and a family man and he loves Lois sincerely and hes jealous of Supes because he know Lois still has feelings for him. Singer could have easily made Marsden an asshole so that we say "Dump him Lois and get with Superman" but because Richard White is a realistic character we sympathsize with him giving the love triangle depth and believability.

Frank Langella as Perry White is great because he plays a subtle yet slightly slimy character unlike the over the top editor from Spiderman. You get the feeling Perry really cares about his newspaper and wants massive stories but hes not "out to get" Superman.

The break-out supporting role has to go to Sam Huntington as Jimmy Olsen. He takes a dweeby character like Olsen and injects so much humor and funny body language i just loved every scene he's in. At one point he eats a burrito and its hilarious just watching him chew a burrito. Its also alluded to the fact that Jimmy has a man-crush on Clark.

THE BACKSTORY/PLOT SYNOPSIS:

Singer keeps the back story vague: Superman foiled Lex Luther 5 years ago but Lex got out of his double life sentence because Superman never showed up at the trial as the star witness. Supes missed the trial, never said "bye" to Lois Lane, and flew to what scientists believed to be fragments of Krypton, even though Krypton was blown up in Superman 1. Yeah that one's a head-scratcher, i never fully understood that but again, the back story was vague.

Anyways, 5 years have passed and Lois has moved on, She has a son and a fiance and all the while they and the rest of the world assumes Superman is gone for good. Lex is out of jail and has a new world domination scheme with his crew of thugs including Parker Posey and Kal Penn (from Harold or Kumar).

Superman realizes, after his 5 year journey to and fro Krypton, that he must return to earth and resume his life.

Thus... SUPERMAN RETURNS

As Superman returns he gets entangled in a love triangle while trying to stop Lex Luthor from "creating a new continent on earth made out of kryptonite" which, if pulled off, would really suck for Supes.

CINEMATOGRAPHY / SETS:

Flat out gorgeous. The farm where Clark grew up was shot at dawn and dusk in natural light, it reminded me of the scenes of the secluded house the aliens steal the kid from in CLOSE ENCOUNTERS.

In fact much of SR reminds me of the great filmmaking genre period from 1977-1982 (Mad Max, Roadwarrior, Wrath of Kahn, Superman, Blade Runner, The Thing, Alien, Empire Strikes Back, Close Encounters etc.) I guess i say this because the sets are enormous and are lit meticulously with ambient light making them look and feel authentic. Singer keeps the camera moving dolly-style from shot to shot, but the camera moves and zooms at a subtle speed that enhances each scene instead of overpowering the actors performances. More "M. Night" than "Michael Bay".

His camera angles are creative and interesting and he shoots wide angle a great deal while cutting back and forth between close ups. A nice mix of stylized shots overall with a gang of beautiful establishing shots in almost every scene like the "mailbox shot" from the trailer.

Notable sets were THE DAILY PLANET offices, Lex's Yacht Headquarters and the island that Lex builds in the 3rd act.

Oh and the sky.

Singer uses the sky and space as a set. We see Superman constantly flying up above the earth's atmosphere to either replenish his strength from the sun or to just calm himself or should i say "center" himself. These scenes are beautiful and rather spiritual and they let the movie breath in between the action.

The entire movie is paced expertly.

THE SCORE:

Near perfect. John Ottman proves he's a team player by incorporating John Williams score with his own. Very smart idea, it totally works, adds nostalgia and helps several scenes to be goose-bump inducing.

THE DIRECTOR:

Why did Singer do such a good job? Its all in the details.

SR is filled with love and that love is translated into the small touches. Lex's wig collection. James Marsdens questioning whether Clark could be Superman and then laughing at the mere thought. The creative usage of Superman's X-Ray vision to scan Lois' body for internal bleeding.

The excellent usage of Supermans "super-hearing" to eavesdrop. Superman's son's asthma which seems to be a "cover up" of his super powers soon to unfold.

The Kryptonite "shank" that nearly kills the invincible one. Lois Lane's computer password. The tattoo on the back of one of the thugs head. I could go on for ever, the film is filled to the brim with clever and well thought out details and plot points that made me realize how much care Singer put into this film.

THE SCRIPT:

The dialogue is well written with no corny one liners. none i can think of at least. Even when Lois and Clark discuss their relationship the dialogue becomes "tender" but never over the top. The best thing i can say is how funny this movie is.

Lex and Jimmy Olsen get the brunt of the funny stuff, those 2 characters have the most fun with their roles. The Brando (RIP) dialogue adds weight and dimension to Superman's past and it helps keep SR cohesive with Superman 1 & 2 (lets pretend the other sequels never happened).

THE TITLE SEQUENCE:

Could not have been better. It was like the begining of CONTACT where the camera starts out billions of light years away and follows radio waves beck to earth while passing planets and going through asteroid fields.

But in SR we got Krypton blowing up (Again?) and we get Supermans POV as he flies through the Universe back to earth. And the fonts and titles are virtually the same as Superman 1 and 2 as is the score. I will be leaving this sequence on loop when i get it on DVD.

Its really cool.

THERES ONE SPECIFIC SCENE THAT IS SO COOL:

Ever wonder what would happen if a bad guy put a gun to Superman's eye socket at point blank range and shot a bullet into Superman's eye? Wait till you see that scene.

SO WHAT DOESNT WORK IN THE MOVIE?

Not much.

The third act has this massive continent being formed from the ocean out of Kryptonite and its kind of a strange concept and some action scenes based on this plot device get a little conveluded.

I mean Superman almost dies TWICE and at one point theres a groaner of a rescue from Lois Lane. But it still works.

I would have liked to see Clark "tranform" into Superman a few times, i think they only did it once and it was in an elevator and not even a phone booth. Oh and there are a few "tacked on endings" but they arent long, they sort of wrap up the movie. Honestly im knit picking here.

THE INSTANT CLASSIC

Well i've written about all i can write.

I know my claim that this is an "instant classic" might seem like im overly praising this film but i truly believe i am giving it the respect it deserves. Mr. Singer, hats off to you as you now have solidified yourself as one of the best in the world of big-budget by utilizing CGI to propel the plot and not as a crutch.

I pray to the Executive Gods that you make LOGANS RUN. Nothing against Ratner, he's been getting overly bashed lately, but i really wish you got to wrap up the X-man trilogy yourself.

This movie feels like an instant classic because Singer maintained so many of the Donner elements that have been embedded in our brains as fond memories; from the score to the title sequence to Brando's cameo to Routh embodying Reeves and Spacey's nod to Hackman.

Enjoy.

-DEREK WILDSTAR

Thanks, Derek! Appreciate the effort!

I'm sure they'll be many more reviews to come. This film is getting amazingly positive word-of-mouth; I'm curious about the inevitable dissenting opinions...

Harry here - This time with the FONZ's review, who's too cool for school - I'll lend a comment noted below...

Hey, Harry, I'm a faithful reader from NYC.

Snuck into a press screening of Superman Returns today (Wednesday).

First of all I've always been a Marvel guy growing up, not really into DC, but I did enjoy the first two Superman flicks, and like the rest of the planet hated the rest.

But being a Bryan Singer fan since Suspects, I was expecting a lot from RETURNS.

To keep things simple.

The cast was great. Routh does the best Chris Reeve Impression ever. Bosworth blows away Kidder. And Spacey is Spacey, he eats up Lex.

The movie is stunning - just by looking at it - you can see every dollar on the screen.

the two biggest sete pieces - Sup saves Lois and a bunch of folks on experimental Airplane/Shuttle launch. It's unbelievable and impossible to describe, it was really well done.

The 2nd set piece, in the final reel, Metropolis nearly crumbles to the ground.

And now the bad news (SPOILERS) the script is DUMB!

Lex steals crystals from the fortress of solitude - that mixed with water creates a large land mass that will flood the entire country. Cool huh, not so much.

And worst of all...the subplot...by now everyone knows that the movie opens up after a 5 year superman sabatical, and during that time Lois has hooked up with a guy and has a kid...but here's the twist (YAWN) the kid is actually Superman's! So unless there was a Tom Cruise like immaculate conception that means that Sup and Lois go it on....ewww.

Um, yeah - they kinda got it on in SUPERMAN 2 at the Fortress of Solitude.

So there you have it, 2 and 1/2 hours of promotional sponsorships, special effects, and a really goofy plot.

If you choose to use my review, you can call me the FONZ from NY.

Thanks!

Hey folks - here's another, from rare contributor, Nole. I'm beginning to get excited...

Hi Harry,

Been a long time -- its Nole (sparingly posted in the past on films like Spiderman and LOTR) with a quick review of Superman Returns.

Saw it at a screening earlier today in Manhattan, and

....

IT ROCKS!!!

Bryan Singer proves once and for all that he is Hollywood's go-to guy for bringing our childhood heroes to life on the screen.

From the beginning the audience understands immediately that this film will take place in a timeline that falls right in line with the first 2 Superman films -- Singer goes to great pains to be respectful of the previous Super films .. from the credits to a few sly remarks referencing the earlier movies to the use of Brando footage (not exactly sure if its recycled stuff from the original movie or stuff that Donner shot and never used. Been awhile since I've seen it) .. and especially with the music.

The characters in the film are given time to develop. Brandon Routh is a lot better than I thought he would be .. he's confident when he's wearing the suit .. and his attempt to be the bumbling Clark Kent is amusing without being too dorky. The kid done good -- and he is eerily similar to the late Christopher Reeve, right down to the curl in his hair when he's wearing the cape and tights.

It took me awhile to get used to Kate Bosworth but she won me over .. especially in scenes with her young son and her husband (played by James Marsden, who has way more screen time here than he received in X-Men:TLS).

I'm doing my best to stay spoiler-free .. but I don't think its a secret that a big part of the film is about Lois coming to terms with the love of her life (supes) returning to her life after she had given up on him.

Their interaction is very effective -- and Marsden is excellent in what would usually be a thankless role as the average Joe faced with the ultimate competition for his girl's love.

As for Lex Luthor .. well, whoever first suggested Kevin Spacey for this role should be commended. Brilliant! I'm one of those guys that loves Gene Hackman but thought he played what should be a brilliant criminal genius as a buffoon .. but Spacey toes the line very well.

He's bald and bitter, full of hate for Superman and with an insane plan to get back on top. Parker Posey gets the best one-liners in the film as Lex's squeeze .. and joining the Luthor gang is Kumar!!! Couldn't buy him as a baddie because I could only picture him on the prowl for belly-busters but fun to see him nonetheless.

As for the plot .. its heavy on characterization and makes you wait for the incredible Holy Crap scenes .. but when they come, you won't be disappointed.

The plane crash scene they show briefly in the trailer? Amazing. Spectacular. One of the coolest scenes i've seen in a movie in years -- up there with the mansion raid in X2 .. the Spiderman 2 train fight and any other Holy S%&# moments you can think of.

The main disappointment is that Superman doesn't do much fighting .. his heroics are mainly saving. Which is fine except that with modern comics movies showing great fight scenes, it would have been nice for the writers to have figured out a way to show Supes kickin' butt -- however, i can't complain about the way we see Superman showing off his powers.

Singer really puts him in iconic situations .. and along the way we get to see the Man of Steel in some poses that will be very familiar to comic fans.

Overall .. I have to say that this film shows what kept X3 from being a great film -- Singer. There's no doubt in my mind he is the main reason this movie works -- you can see it right there on the screen.

Hope you guys enjoy the film as much as I did ..

Later,

Nole