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Man of Steel (film)
Man of Steel banner
Released June 14, 2013
Directed by Zack Snyder
Written by Christopher Nolan
David S. Goyer
Music by Hans Zimmer
Duration 147 minutes
Studio Warner Bros. Pictures
Rated PG-13
Budget $225,000,000
Revenue $668,045,518

Man of Steel is a film based on the origins of Superman. Directed by Zack Snyder, produced by Christopher Nolan, and starring Henry Cavill as the title character, the film was released on June 14, 2013.


Cast

Thumb-henrycavill
Henry Cavill
as Superman
Thumb-amyadams
Amy Adams
as Lois Lane
Thumb-laurencefishburne
Laurence Fishburne
as Perry White
Thumb-michaelshannon
Michael Shannon
as General Zod
Thumb-antjetraue
Antje Traue
as Faora (Antje Traue)Faora
Thumb-russellcrowe
Russell Crowe
as Jor-El
Thumb-ayeleturer
Ayelet Zurer
as Lara Lor-Van
Thumb-dianelane
Diane Lane
as Martha Ladd
Thumb-kevincostner
Kevin Costner
as Jonathan Kent
Thumb-harrylennix
Harry Lennix as
General Swanwick
Thumb-christophermeloni
Christopher Meloni as
Colonel Hardy
Thumb-richardschiff
Richard Schiff
as Emil Hamilton

Additional cast

  • Dylan Sprayberry as 13 year old Clark Kent
  • Jadin Gould as 13 year old Lana Lang
  • Cooper Timberline as 9 year old Clark Kent
  • Robert Gerdisch as Whitney Fordham

Plot

On the planet Krypton, Lara Lor-Van has just given birth to Kal-El with the help of her husband Jor-El. Jor-El travels to Kandor on his pet H'Raka where he stands in front of the Kryptonian Law Council telling them the planet is to explode because of the council's decision to harvest the planet's core to serve the depleted energy reserves of the planet. They dismiss his claims but General Zod takes note informs Jor-El he is going to overthrow the council. A concerned Jor-El steals the Growth Codex (the source of the artificially-produced masses of genetically-specialized citizens of Krypton) and graphs the atomized particles onto Kal-El's red blood cells. Kal-El is revealed as the first naturally-born kryptonian in centuries. His parents then put the Command Key and their son into a ship. Zod discovers their plan and attacks Jor-El. Jor-El battles Zod who kills Jor-El while Lara launches Kal-El's ship to Earth. The Sapphire Guards save Kal-El's ship from being shot down and arrest Zod. Zod and his followers are imprisoned and sent to the Phantom Zone before the planet Krypton explodes. Kal-El lands in the field of Jonathan and Martha Kent.

Kal-El, now known as Clark Kent and an adult, is now working on a crab boat when an Oil Rig in the distance is on fire. Jumping overboard and swimming over, he begins to help people get to safety as the Coast Guard arrive to get people to safety. When a piece of rigging threatens to fall on them, Clark holds it up long enough for them to get clear before an explosion sends Clark flying into the water. While unconscious, Clark remembers back to being 9 when his Super Hearing and X-Ray Vision first manifested at school and Martha helped him control his powers.

Returning ashore, Clark steals some clothes and skips town, seeing a school bus on the way reminding him of when he was 13 and was bullied by boys in his class. The school bus they were on crashed over a bridge and Clark saved it from drowning. Revealing his powers to Lana Lang and Pete Ross. Back home Jonathan revealed to Clark the reason for his powers by showing Clark his ship in the barn and giving him the Command Key.

Clark is now working in a highway bar where he overhears some men talking about the military looking for an alien ship under the ice of Ellesmere Island. An argument breaks out soon after, and Clark destroys the truck belonging to the man responsible before skipping town in the direction of the alien ship.

Lois Lane arrives via chopper to cover the alien ship and has her bags carried by Clark who is now working there. The operation led by Colonel Hardy who is working with Emil Hamilton. Emil is not pleased to see Lois there and tries to get her away. Clark, away from the military, burrows through the ice with his heat vision before being attacked by the ship's defenses. Lois sees this and follows him, but is also attacked by the defenses. Clark saves her and reveals his powers to her. He takes her outside before returning and activating a projection of his real father Jor-El, who informs Clark of his name and purpose on Earth. The ship then launches from the ice and rests on a nearby mountaintop before Jor-El reveals the history of Krypton before Clark finds a suit, which he puts on and goes outside learning to fly before zooming off into the sky.

General Zod and his minions, in space searching for Kryptonian survivors and retrieve an ancient Terraforming Generator before they pick up the ship's signal and track it to Earth.

Lois returns to Metropolis to tell her editor Perry White she is dropping her story on the alien ship and is given 2 weeks leave. She uses it to begin investigating Clark's life and his history of saves over the years, including talking with a grown Pete Ross before turning up at the Kent Farm where Clark recently returned home. Lois visits his father's grave where he arrives and tells her the story of how he died helping people during a tornado and died keeping Clark's abilities a secret.

Zod arrives in Earth's orbit and transmits a message across the world to every electronic device requesting Kal-El to be handed over. Clark sees this and visits the priest at the church who advises him on what he must do. Clark decides that he can't put humanity at risk.

He flies to Edwards Air Force Base where he surrenders himself. Lois talks her way into getting access to him before Kal tells them he is not their enemy. He soon meets on the desert with Zod's ship where he is greeted by Faora Hu-Ul who requests that Lois come too, whom Kal slips the Command Key. Lois is given a visor to help her breathe and the atmosphere aboard Black Zero interrupts Kal's powers. He is strapped down and meets General Zod who wants Kal to join him to rebuild Krypton on Earth. Zod has the Jax-Ur project images into their minds and probes their thoughts before he takes his forces in search of the Codex. The Jor-El AI which Lois activates helps her escape into a pod which jettisons to earth. Kal escapes after Jor-El changes the atmosphere and has final words with his father before saving Lois. Zod and his forces confront Martha before Kal tackles Zod away damaging his visor, allowing all his senses to come at once subduing Zod. Kal then battles Faora & Nam-Ek in Smallville while the military attack but are no match for the aliens. Kal defends the military forces and civilians before managing to subdue the two as they gather their leader and retreat back to Black Zero while Kal flies to check his mother is okay.

Zod orders the release of the Terraforming Generator which lands in the Indian Ocean as they pilot Black Zero above Metropolis, before activating the gravity beam which begins destroying the city. Kal-El flies to the pacific and begins attacking the Generator which has defenses and attacks back. After great effort, he destroys the generator as Zod is in the arctic and stealing the scout ship.

Kal-El then flies to Metropolis and lands in the ship before bringing it down, crashing through skyscrapers into the ground of Metropolis. The military are deployed to take out Black Zero but the gravity beam effects their instruments and missiles. Lois and Hardy are aboard a C-17 with Kal-El's ship which he gave to them to use against Black Zero. Faora arrives on the plane and throws Lois out who is captured in mid air by Kal-El.

Hardy sacrifices himself by flying the plane into Black Zero, creating a temporary portal to the Phantom Zone which sucks everything inside, including Black Zero and the plane Hardy and Faora are on. After Kal-El puts Lois down next to Perry and Jenny, they kiss. Kal-El then leaves to confront an enraged Zod who vows to kill all the humans in revenge. The two then have a devastating battle across Metropolis, destroying several buildings and cars in the process. Zod then rips off his armor and learns to fly as the two continue to battle an even fort contest. The two land inside Metropolis Central Station where Zod opens his heat vision on civilians. Kal-El grapples with Zod trying to avert his heat vision before having no choice but to snap Zod's neck, killing him. Horrified at what he did, Kal-El screams out in agony as Lois arrives to console a deeply hurt Kal-El.

Some time later, Superman continues to earn the U.S. government's trust, although evading their efforts to uncover his secret identity.

Returning to Smallville to speak with his mother Martha, the two peacefully think back to the 9 year old Clark playing in the garden and running around with a red cape on his back.

In a devastated Metropolis, Clark is on his bike and arrives at the Daily Planet. As he enters the elevator, he puts on his eyeglasses so nobody would recognize him as the alien hero who was dubbed 'Superman'; and is greeted by Lois Lane.

Themes

Controlling idea - the role of the powerful - trust of and allying with those who are weaker or destroying the environment for the benefit of the powerful.

This theme plays out early in the film as the council justifies using Krypton's core to fulfill energy requirements by saying there is a lack, while Jor-El retort that they have betrayed the people and hastened their doom. Zod uses a similar justification to overthrow the council. However, Jor-El challenges his desire to assume power as another form of tyrannical rule after Zod expresses his intention to carry out a degree of genocide. Shortly there after, as Superman's parents consider sending him to Earth they notice that he will be seen as a god on Earth and worry at how he will use his power.

Similarly, later in the movie, Zod reappears to terraform and conquer Earth as the new home of the kryptonian people. This gravitic and atomospheric transformation of the planet will destroy all human life on Earth. The relationship between Zod's kryptonian transformation of Earth is sharply constrasted with Superman's relationship to the military leadership. Superman says that the government cannot control him but that they are not enemies. They work together in the end to protect the planet from the kryptonians.

Possible Noncanonical Elements

Genetic engineering and biotechnological basis of kryptonian science/powers - Biotech, nanotech, and mass manipulation almost entirely replace earlier forms of kryptonian crystal technology (like Sunstone Crystal) in other Superman movies while preserving the yellow sun radiation explanations that serve as the justification for Superman's and other kryptonians' powers on Earth.

Sensitivity to kryptonian atmosphere & absence of kryptonite - The time frame for Superman to adapt to Earth's atmosphere and choking up blood when exposed to kryptonian atmosphere shows that the atmosphere may be inherently toxic for both humans and non-humans largely fits with earlier Superman depictions. However, his Earth mother's depiction of him having difficulty breathing as a child, although similar to the asthmatic issue of the half-kryptonian boy, Jason White, from Superman Returns, may be a departure from earlier depictions. The difficulty breathing may not be directly related to being introduced into the new Earth atmosphere, but instead biotechnical-genetic based in growing up on Earth as kryptonian. Zod was expecting adapting to Earth's atmosphere to take decades for which he instead opted to transform the planet to have a kryptonian atmosphere.

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Trivia

(From DC Movies Wiki)

  • In the words of Warner Bros. President Alan F. Horn, "I thought Superman Returns (2006) was a very successful movie, but I think it should have done $500 million worldwide. We should have had perhaps a little more action to satisfy the young male crowd." $175 million is the maximum budget the studio is aiming for The Man of Steel.
  • Comic book writer Mark Millar planned a trilogy of films, running to eight hours, which would chronicle the life story of Superman. He had pitched a sequel idea while Bryan Singer was still attached, but due to his association with Marvel Comics, was turned down. However, once a reboot was announced, Millar pitched his trilogy idea to Warner Bros, where it was subsequently turned down.
  • The president of Legendary Pictures Thomas Tull said that "Superman needs a powerful antagonist, a worthy opponent." Tull also wants to evoke Superman as an "angry God."
  • David Goyer, James McTeigue, Jonathan Nolan and Chris Columbus were all linked with Directing the movie.
  • Darren Aronofsky, Duncan Jones, Ben Affleck, Tony Scott, Matt Reeves and Jonathan Liebesman were considered to direct the movie. Zack Snyder was later chosen.
  • Actors Brandon Routh, Tom Welling, Joe Manganiello, Patrick Wilson, Erryn Arkin and Sam Worthington have all been rumored to star in the movie. The part of Superman ultimately went to Henry Cavill. Cavill was the front runner to play Superman in another Superman movie but Routh was cast instead.
  • Matthew Goode, Armie Hammer, Matt Bomer and Robin O'Donoghue were on the final shortlist for the lead role.
  • Natalie Portman, Anne Hathaway, Dianna Agron, Kristen Stewart, Malin Akerman, Rachel McAdams, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kristen Bell, Lake Bell and Jessica Biel were considered to play Lois Lane. Anne Hathaway went on to play Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises.
  • Before Diane Lane was cast, actresses considered for Martha Kent included Julianne Moore, Lisa Rinna, Jodie Foster, Bridget Fonda and Elisabeth Shue.
  • Amanda Seyfried auditioned for a role but was turned down.
  • Viggo Mortensen and Daniel Day-Lewis were considered to play General Zod.
  • Before Kevin Costner was cast as Jonathan Kent, Dennis Quaid, Bruce Greenwood, Michael Biehn and Kurt Russell were considered.
  • Prior to being cast as Lois, Amy Adams had two previous Superman connections. Adams played Jodi Melville in "Smallville" (2001); and her co-star from Enchanted (2007), James Marsden played Richard White in Superman Returns (2006).
  • Both director Bryan Singer and actor Brandon Routh expressed interest in reprising their positions from Superman Returns (2006) on this film; Singer had originally outlined several sequels to follow his story, and Routh was contracted as well. When Warner Bros. announced this film as a "clean reboot" from Singer's film, Routh still expressed interest in returning before Zack Snyder declared that this movie would have no ties to any previous cinematic incarnation of the character.
  • Due to his success with the Batman franchise Christopher Nolan was brought on to help develop the reboot of Superman along with screenwriter David S. Goyer. This was merely as a creative consultant, it was never intended for Nolan to direct. When Zack Snyder was later brought on as director, Nolan chose to hand all creative control over to Snyder and focus on The Dark Knight Rises (2012). According to Nolan's wife/producer Emma Thomas, "They Nolan and Goyer brought it to an appropriate screenplay and it's now Snyder's picture."
  • Sean Penn was offered a major role in the film but turned it down.
  • Kevin Costner's role was previously played by Glenn Ford. Both of them have been involved in competing projects about Wyatt Earp. Glenn was cast in Tombstone (1993), but had to drop out. Costner played the title role in Wyatt Earp (1994), which also cast him opposite Gene Hackman (the original Lex Luthor) as his father.
  • To prepare himself for the role of playing the Man of Steel, Henry Cavill went through a rigorous workout regime to achieve his Superman physique. The English actor gained approximately 20 pounds of muscle during his time of preparation, and in-between breaks onset, keep up with his much muscular frame by performing push ups and pull ups to pass the time. He wanted to look like the character seen in the iconic comics. Other ways that Cavill has altered his appearance was that he changed his natural brown hair color to a rich, jet black.
  • Man Of Steel will be out in cinemas on the 27th of June in Australia

Sources


Superman Films
Film Serials SupermanAtom Man vs. Superman
Theatrical Films Superman and the Mole-MenSuperman: The MovieSuperman IISuperman IIISuperman IV: The Quest for PeaceSuperman ReturnsMan of SteelBatman v Superman: Dawn of JusticeJustice LeagueZack Snyder's Justice LeagueSuperman: Legacy
Spin-off films SupergirlSteel
Made-for-TV/DVD films Superman: 50th Anniversary SpecialLook, Up in the Sky: The Amazing Story of SupermanSuperman II: The Richard Donner CutThe Death of "Superman Lives": What Happened?
Animated Films Superman: Brainiac AttacksSuperman: DoomsdaySuperman ⁄ Batman: Public EnemiesSuperman ⁄ Batman: ApocalypseSuperman ⁄ Shazam!: The Return of Black AdamAll-Star SupermanSuperman Versus the EliteBatman: The Dark Knight ReturnsSuperman: Unbound
Justice League Justice League: The New FrontierJustice League: Crisis on Two EarthsJustice League: DoomThe Lego MovieThe Flashpoint ParadoxJustice League: War
Shorts The Joker's PlayhouseSuperman 75th Anniversary

External links

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