Superman Returns (2006) -vs- Superman: The Movie (1978)

The Smackdown. These are two very high profile features that re-started the Superman franchise on the big-screen when released. Both starred unknown actors in the title role and looked to the Lex Luthor villain to provide the big-name star. Both achieved technical mastery for their times. And, oddly enough, both star Marlon Brando as the father of Superman! In both cases, the hype was strong enough and my curiosity intense enough that I saw them at the first possible second I could get a look in a theater. Which one re-boots the Man of Steel most effectively?

The Challenger. This new film "Superman Returns", directed by Bryan Singer, mostly knows what it wants to do and that is to keep it real (as much as a Superman story can be). The story, the acting and the characters are all as grounded as is possible in a super-hero movie. This is a fan-boy's dream. I say this as a fan-boy whose first comicbook was a Superman... who loved George Reeves... who got the privilege of working on the first season of "Lois & Clark"... and who has watched most episodes of "Smallville." I guess you don't even mind that Lois is a brilliant reporter and can't tell that Clark is Superman -- but it was slightly more of a problem than usual in this film because both Clark and Superman disappear for five years and then re-appear in Metropolis on the same day, and nobody says boo about it. This just goes with the concept, I know we spent time debating it on "Lois & Clark" and ultimately just decided to ignore it. And I don't want to post a spoiler but there's a whole new direction in the mythology now, based on the ending to this film.

The Defending Champion. The Richard Donner directed "Superman" starred Christopher Reeve and was famous for the ad campaign: "You'll believe a man can fly." On a personal level, this was actually the first movie I ever wrote a film review for. As a young kid, I'd always run home from school to watch syndicated re-runs of the "Superman" TV series and the feature just blew that away in terms of characterization, special effects, and story. But I also remember, at the time, being a little put off by the two wildly different tones that were held together in this film. At the beginning, when Kal-el fell to Earth and was adopted by the Kents and grew into young manhood in Smallville had the exact tone I was looking for. Mythological, respectful and making it real. But there was an entirely different tone with Lex Luthor, for example, who was cartoony and over-the-top, and a lot of the Metropolis material was played for laughs. Reeve's Clark Kent was certainly a friendly, lovable guy, but he was not as real as Brandon Routh plays him.

The Scorecard. "Superman Returns" would not have existed as it does without "Superman" showing the way almost three decades ago. Still, its tonal leap forward is very much in step with the times. It's kind of the "Batman Begins" of the film franchise, only it doesn't start the story over with an origin, it just leaps (in a single bound, no less) toward an entirely different chapter. Brandon Routh, by the way, never looked right to me when I first got a glimpse of him, and the costume looked wrong, too. I think I was wrong in that judgment because he's great, even if his Clark is still too retro for me. Kevin Spacey does better than Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, but not by much. I say if this franchise is starting up again, it's still time to give Lex a rest. Enough already, I'm done with him and the scene-chewing way that actors want to play him.

The Decision. I'll always dearly love what Christopher Reeve brought to that role, and respect him as an actor and a man, of course. But "Superman Returns" is closer by several steps to the movie I would have made had someone laid a couple hundred million on me and told me to go crazy. Clearly flawed, it's still the best Superman film that's ever been made and stands out as another important achievement in the world of comicbook characters brought to the big-screen. There's "Spider-Man 2", "Batman Begins" and now "Superman Returns" -- they are the big three of these films, but this week belongs to the new man in tights.

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