Please, no "Superman Begins"

[myway]

This whole reboot thing is getting way out of hand. SR had its problems, but the last thing we need imo is another origin story; and a "dark" one at that. BB was good and necessary because we never really saw Batman's origins on the big screen. Superman's origins make up the first 40 min of S:TM so we'd really just be getting a remake with a full on reboot. At this point in the Superman franchise, his character is well established, as is Lois, Lex etc; he's primed for a showdown with a Supervillain. Don't supporters of a reboot realize that in order for the movie to be anything but a string of Superman money shots, a reboot is going to have to spend siginficant time reintroducing everything? Now that everybody's ga-ga over TDK, they think we need to give Superman a "Begins" movie of his own so that he can fight a supervillain; totally unnecessary. Of course the Mods will think that this has nothing to do with the reboot and will move it to a board which noone reads unless I spell everything out, so let me say this: is there anyway to salvage the backstory of previous Superman movies while appeasing people who were unhappy with SR?

[NeoRanger]

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

[Crook]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

Yep. People need to get out of this fanboy mindset. YOU may know Superman's origin top-to-bottom perfectly. But there are plenty of people that at best, only have a vague sense of his actual genesis.

It's been a long while since mainstream has been exposed to such a story (and no, I don't count niche audiences like Smallville and STAS). A modern retelling, from the beginning is absolutely necessary to re-establish these characters for a new era.

[Brian Braddock]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

So people born in 1978 have a genetic disorder that stops them from purchasing or renting a DVD?

How is it possible, as a Superman fan, not to have seen Superman: the movie?

[Kahoot]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

Really? God dude, rent a DVD once in a while. Hell it's Superman, buy a DVD once in a while. We can even get Superman: The Movie on Blu-Ray, go buy that if you want. It might not be a cinema but it's Blu-Ray so it's Hi-Def.

I'm all for a rebot but they don't need to focus too much on the origin, it's superman and everyone knows the basics. All we need for an Origin is the opening from Smallville when Ma and Pa Kent find him, a 2 min montage showing him age and use powers, then maybethe opening of Lois and Clack when he first get his job and put the hand print in the front of the bus.

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

I was alive in 78 but I still want to see an updated origin story told on the big screen.

I think there is so much that can be done with the Superman origin that has not been done yet. I'm positive that SM:TM isn't the end all be all of SUPERMAN!

[mjbull23]

I don't know what the grand plan is for the next Superman movie. One thing I do know is that this is a great time to be a Superman fanboy. Particularly here on the internet forums, where fear, rumors, lies and action are all about to collide in the coming months.

Some of you are apprehensive, others are downright stressed, maybe even panicking, as for me...I find it extremely entertaining.

I think a reboot would be fine, but If the origins are retold, Id rather that the movie only dedicate a 20-30 min max time allotment for that.

This next Supes flick has to come right out of the gate and imediately set the tone for the rest of the movie. So if your going to start at the beggining, then show me how volatile, and unstable the political and ecological climate on krypton was. What drove Jor El to such extreme measures that he felt he had to send his infant son into the vastness of space. What did he see that terrified him so much? That filled him with such foreboding doom certainty.

Lots of character conflict, and here's something else I rarely see mentioned, but howabout a fight sequence showing Jor El squaring off against one or two counsel members (Kryptonian fisticuffs).

Do they fight differently than humans do? How do they interact with each other as a society? Are their motivatons different than humans?...I want some insight into Kryptonian Civilizaion. But again....20-30 mns max. This next movie has a lot of ground to cover, and I don't want the entire first half of the film bogged down with a retelling of the origin.

[Nirvana]

Originally Posted by mjbull23

I don't know what the grand plan is for the next Superman movie. One thing I do know is that this is a great time to be a Superman fanboy. Particularly here on the internet forums, where fear, rumors, lies and action are all about to collide in the coming months.

Some of you are apprehensive, others are downright stressed, maybe even panicking, as for me...I find it extremely entertaining.

QFT.

[ClarkLuther55]

I completely disagree with the OP. A "Superman Begins" is absolutely necessary if Superman is to become beloved by a whole new generation. "Everyone already knows Superman's origin" is a common catchphrase, but I'm not so sure anymore. Fewer people under 20 nowadays have watched the Donner movies. Bruce Timm's animated series from the 1990s, seen as "recent" by people here, is before the time of a twelve year old today (the show ended and went off the air when that kid was 4).

For many people, especially the young demographic who a superhero movie should try to grab, Superman Returns was their FIRST exposure to the character. They didn't know anything about him, yet the movie started off by telling everyone that they already missed the character's greatest adventures, everything that made him Superman. That alienates newcomers right there. It alienated ME, and I'm familiar with the character. However I wanted to see a new big screen Superman for MY generation, reinterpreted to fit current styles but still remaining faithful to the source. Instead we got a sequel to the Donner movies, in a weirdo post-Superman story that came across more like a bookend to the series than a new beginning.

BB was a success because it reintroduced Batman right from the beginning and made him cool. People were brought on board for the journey. SR was a disappointment because it was made primarily to satisfy Singer's fanboy love for Donner's old movies. People just didn't connect to Brandon Routh's Superman as much as they did to Bale's Batman, because they were left on the outside.

[BULLITT]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

Reading helps. Reading + images = Comic(s) - 'Seeing'.

[[A]]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

Wow. Just.. wow.

[not_a_victim]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

I've never seen Superman's origin. I wasn't alive in 1978.

You never heard of these wonderful things called "televisions", "VHS tapes", or "DVDs"?

[NeoRanger]

^^ You kind of missed my point. I've seen the movie, I've seen the Adventures of Superman, I've seen L&C, Smallville, TAS and read a buttload of comic books from all three origin eras, plus stand-alones.

What I've never done is walk into a theater and watch a Superman film I can call my own. Watching Returns was like going to my dad's high school reunion in his place. What do I have to say with these old guys?

[Nightwing1983]

Originally Posted by NeoRanger

^^ You kind of missed my point. I've seen the movie, I've seen the Adventures of Superman, I've seen L&C, Smallville, TAS and read a buttload of comic books from all three origin eras, plus stand-alones.

What I've never done is walk into a theater and watch a Superman film I can call my own. Watching Returns was like going to my dad's high school reunion in his place. What do I have to say with these old guys?

So for you to be able to "call it your own" means that can't be a sequel to something that was made before you were born?

I'm not fond of this mentality.

[NotFadeAway]

Originally Posted by Nightwing1983

So for you to be able to "call it your own" means that can't be a sequel to something that was made before you were born?

I'm not fond of this mentality.

Well, I think thats the mentality that alot of fans who happen to follow newer Superman stories are taking. It's time for our live action film.

[Nightwing1983]

Originally Posted by NotFadeAway

Well, I think thats the mentality that alot of fans who happen to follow newer Superman stories are taking. It's time for our live action film.

I get that; I just don't have much trouble seeing something as "mine" just because it came before I was around.

[mego joe]

Originally Posted by Nightwing1983

I get that; I just don't have much trouble seeing something as "mine" just because it came before I was around.

I'm from the S:TM generation and SR did not feel like my movie either.

[kalelkilla]

I think they need to do the "Begins" treatment to be honest...they need to ground some things in reality as best they can. The comics arc of Birthright by Mark Millar and Superman for All Seasons by Jeph Loeb are great Origin stories that don't rehash what is established in '78...they just expand on it...They have to make Superman more relatable, and the best way to do that is to is to take the audience places that no one really knows about and show how Superman came about...showing us how human he really is and the things he emotionally struggles with...

[Brian Braddock]

Ah, now I've got what you mean, NR.

Although, I have to say, I didnt miss your point as you didnt make it in the 1st place. I took you on what you stated.

You only said that you'd never seen Superman's origin. You made no indication about that being confined to a theatrical format.

[dark_b]

just place superman in a real world. no flying pigs and no flying cars. a normal working city of tomorrow. and a flying man.

[FilmNerdJamie]

The planet Krypton explodes, but before so Jor-El (a kind and wise scientist) and his wife place their infant son in a spaceship where it escapes and crash lands on Earth. There the child is discovered by Jonathon Kent (a kind and wise farmer) and his wife, an older childless couple, who take the baby and raise him as their own where they bestoy upon him morals and values. Eventually, he grows up to discover his true heritage as Earth's protector and becomes Superman.

^That is the basics of Superman's origin. There's no need of re-treading that territory for 30-60 minutes (again) because it's common knowledge to us nerds and regular folks.

If anything, Superman (along with James Bond) is the only film franchise where the filmmakers could easily make each installment stand alone.

[matrix_ghost]

I kinda agree that the origin has been done. We all know Clark's/Superman origin.
At the same time i do feel that Donner's movie , while good as an origin movie , is very dated. Especially all the parts with Krypton just don't age well. Maybe updating certain parts with today's technology would be better ?

Or expand the origin in stuff we haven't seen.

[OwlBoy]

Originally Posted by matrix_ghost

Or expand the origin in stuff we haven't seen.

What like having Starman coming from the future to tell Jor-El where Earth is?

Although I don't recall ever seeing Jor-El address the Science Council in live-action.

[Crook]

Originally Posted by FilmNerdJamie

The planet Krypton explodes, but before so Jor-El (a kind and wise scientist) and his wife place their infant son in a spaceship where it escapes and crash lands on Earth. There the child is discovered by Jonathon Kent (a kind and wise farmer) and his wife, an older childless couple, who take the baby and raise him as their own where they bestoy upon him morals and values. Eventually, he grows up to discover his true heritage as Earth's protector and becomes Superman.

^That is the basics of Superman's origin. There's no need of re-treading that territory for 30-60 minutes (again) because it's common knowledge to us nerds and regular folks.

So? It's exactly what you said it is. Basic. You'll settle for basic? Again, the modern cinematic audience doesn't have their own Superman franchise to work with. You need a jumpoff point to establish the universe.

It would make little sense to jump in the middle of things, and assume everyone is on the same wavelength in terms of knowledge on the story and characters.

[FilmNerdJamie]

Originally Posted by Crook

So? It's exactly what you said it is. Basic. You'll settle for basic? Again, the modern cinematic audience doesn't have their own Superman franchise to work with. You need a jumpoff point to establish the universe.

It would make little sense to jump in the middle of things, and assume everyone is on the same wavelength in terms of knowledge on the story and characters.

Actually it would make little sense to retread on territory people already know like the "basics" of Superman's origin story.