"Here We Go Again" Part 4: New Welling As Superman Rumors?

[Prison Mike]

I don't think Routh was so bad. I blame Singer and the writers for Superman Returns. To be totally fair, Welling has had his share of wooden acting over the course of the series too.

 

[DrMylesOBoogie]

I don't think Routh was so bad. I blame Singer and the writers for Superman Returns. To be totally fair, Welling has had his share of wooden acting over the course of the series too.

I always think thats a cop-out when people write that. I've never found it with him. I'm sure he's missed the mark at times but with the amount he's shot it's impossible not too. He's always been natural, charming and charismatic even from the pilot. Routh seems like a shy guy and can't seem break out of it even onscreen. He's an actor totally blocked by his own personality.

 

[Prison Mike]

Don't get me wrong. I think Welling is a pretty good actor. I just don't think it's fair to bring down one actor for the other. Both have had their share of missteps. Smallville was Welling's first major acting gig as was Superman Returns for Brandon Routh. I just don't get why people are willing to forgive one but not the other?

 

[Tony Stark]

I don't think Routh was so bad. I blame Singer and the writers for Superman Returns. To be totally fair, Welling has had his share of wooden acting over the course of the series too.

Agreed. Routh and Spacey were about the only good things in Superman Returns.

Superman Returns is probably one of the strangest movies (let alone superhero movies) I've seen. I don't even know what to think of it anymore. It's two hours and 20 minutes of absolutely nothing. There's no real conflict, no real threat. The characters are wooden, and don't really do anything.

If someone asks you for a summary of Superman Returns, I'd be at a loss for words to explain it, "um Superman returns from Krypton where he went to at some point we don't know for who knows how long for some unknown reason but he's back and then comes back where people don't want him around, so he stalks people, including Lois, and then has to lift a mountain of Kryptonite out of the ocean, and then dies, but not really, and then he stops stalking people."

 

[Prison Mike]

Yeah, the movie is just a bunch of scenes strung together. The only thing I would watch over and over again from that movie is the airplane scene. I enjoy it.

 

[elgaz]

Superman Returns is a film full of climatic moments - Superman returning to Earth, Lex stabbing him, his subsequent fall and near death in the ocean, then lifting New Krypton, then falling to earth, then his near death (again) in the hospital.

There problem is there is no buildup to each moment.

He's returning to Earth? Really? We hardly knew he was gone, and by removing the scenes detailing his visit to New Krypton they effectively removed any kind of understanding the viewer may have had of just why he was gone for 5 years.

Don't get me wrong; I saw the film in the cinema when it was released and really, really liked it. But in hindsight I think I was bowled over by the limited good points (the airplane save, the few 'action' scenes, etc) and the fact that we finally had a new Superman movie with modern effects after a long time waiting. Subsequent viewings have shown up the many flaws in the story, the style and the execution.

One of my major gripes is also the near-complete lack of resolution at the end of the film. New Krypton is still there out in space, growing. Lex is still free, though temporarily trapped on a small island. Superman still has a kid, who still lives with Richard and Lois. And what happened to Metroplis? The entire structure of the city was strongly affected by the continent growing next to it, yet nothing more is mentioned about it in the film.

The only real progression we get is that Superman realises the kid is his and Lois accepts the 'world needs Superman' - which we all knew anyway.

 

[Zorex]

Superman Returns is a film full of climatic moments - Superman returning to Earth, Lex stabbing him, his subsequent fall and near death in the ocean, then lifting New Krypton, then falling to earth, then his near death (again) in the hospital.

There problem is there is no buildup to each moment.

He's returning to Earth? Really? We hardly knew he was gone, and by removing the scenes detailing his visit to New Krypton they effectively removed any kind of understanding the viewer may have had of just why he was gone for 5 years.

Don't get me wrong; I saw the film in the cinema when it was released and really, really liked it. But in hindsight I think I was bowled over by the limited good points (the airplane save, the few 'action' scenes, etc) and the fact that we finally had a new Superman movie with modern effects after a long time waiting. Subsequent viewings have shown up the many flaws in the story, the style and the execution.

One of my major gripes is also the near-complete lack of resolution at the end of the film. New Krypton is still there out in space, growing. Lex is still free, though temporarily trapped on a small island. Superman still has a kid, who still lives with Richard and Lois. And what happened to Metroplis? The entire structure of the city was strongly affected by the continent growing next to it, yet nothing more is mentioned about it in the film.

The only real progression we get is that Superman realises the kid is his and Lois accepts the 'world needs Superman' - which we all knew anyway.

Nicely put. My experience with the film has been similar. I was so caught up in having a new Superman movie that I had a tough time accepting the film for what it was, including all of its flaws. There are aspects of it that I still really like, and others that still frustrate and disappoint me. Everything you pointed out, I agree with.

Routh isn't one of the things I dislike. He could have used more experience, sure, and I'm not going to be proclaiming him to be an all-around great actor, but I liked him in the role. I'd be happy to see either him or Welling take on the role in the JLA movie. That would make having to stomach the movie (and its separateness from any recent DC live-action features) a bit better, I imagine.

 

[elgaz]

I agree, I've never disliked Routh in the role the way some people have. As a relative acting newbie who had never played the lead in a TV show or film before, he did a good job - especially on a franchise which has the scale and audience that Superman commands.

Did he own the role like Reeve? Not really, but a lot of that was to do with Bryan Singer deliberately crafting a film which is essentially a sequel to the Donner films - whatever actor he cast for Superman was always going to be greatly restricted in his portrayal by the material which his character was based on. Nonetheless I'd loved to have seen Routh in a sequel or a reboot, with a different tone and a better script, playing a less emotionally conflicted Superman. Oh, and with a different director. He may have come off better, but we'll never know for sure.

I still don't see Routh as a leading man for blockbuster films, but I could definitely see him in a regular TV role. Maybe now that Smallville is ending he could take the lead on a Superman series a few years down the line

 

[Zack Snyder]

I think it's mostly the SV diehards who never got over the Routh casting in the first place. They would look silly doing the same with Cavill so many are being more low key on the new/ new Superman. Welling played Clark on a tv series, it wouldn't have worked for big screen so enjoy what you had and move on. Outside of SV diehards most people thought Routh did great for what he was in.

 

[KalKai]

I don't think SV diehards ever needed to get over anyone, because Routh has come and go so fast, and Cavill could experience the same fate. The new Superman can fail as much as the previous Superman.

There is nothing to be low key about, it's called not caring enough. Back in those days it was vastly different.

I can also talk for most people and say the complete opposite of what you're saying.

 

[SpideyVille]

Routh did one hell of a Reeve impression. For that reason alone I feel is why he got the part. And that's how I felt before I even started watching SV and became a "Diehard fan" or a "Welling fan".

 

[MydnightPhoenix]

I've seen clips of Brandon in Dylan Dog and Scott Pilgrim and I am starting to doubt if he is a good actor. He has the same voice no matter what is happening in the scene. A lot of people said Superman was wooden in SR, and that was definitely due to the fact that they gave him like 10 lines in 2hrs, but also might have been because of Brandon himself.

 

[Webhead2006]

I thought routh was so terrible. He had no persona/charm and he was very wooden and I didn't see anything good about him at all.

 

[triplet]

Agreed. Routh and Spacey were about the only good things in Superman Returns.

Superman Returns is probably one of the strangest movies (let alone superhero movies) I've seen. I don't even know what to think of it anymore. It's two hours and 20 minutes of absolutely nothing. There's no real conflict, no real threat. The characters are wooden, and don't really do anything.

If someone asks you for a summary of Superman Returns, I'd be at a loss for words to explain it, "um Superman returns from Krypton where he went to at some point we don't know for who knows how long for some unknown reason but he's back and then comes back where people don't want him around, so he stalks people, including Lois, and then has to lift a mountain of Kryptonite out of the ocean, and then dies, but not really, and then he stops stalking people."

This pretty much explains my major beef with the film.

Everyone was wooden. Even Kate Bosworth, who is known to really do a good job acting, sorta sleep walked through it.

But there wasn't much that actually happened on screen that was worth anything...

They all talked about stuff. That's good for a more intellectual film like Singer's very good The Usual Suspects. Yeah, that film had some action but there was also a hell of a lot of talking.

I saw a good quote on twitter the other day, which fits probably any action film:

If you have two characters sitting at the kitchen table talking, one of them better be holding a gun.

There has to be some menace, some real danger, when you have a bad guy doing bad things.

What was Lex's goal? A real estate scam?

Really? Was that really worth killing tens of thousands over? That might have worked in 1978 back when Lex Luthor was a characature, but in today's world that doesn't really work quite so well.

Movies and TV have become far more sophisticated, even action films and kids' movies show more sophistication than that. There has to be real peril, something really worth killing someone over, for the menace to be believable.

That movie lacked any sense of real rising stakes and the plot was contrived and lacked any real emotional depth. Meh.

I hated it from the first time I saw it and it wasn't because Tom wasn't in it. No, when I heard about what the plans were there was a point when I was glad Tom wasn't going to be in it. What a terrible script...

While there was some nice things about it, the production design, cimatography and special effects were all outstanding, but the story was such a downer.

If the kids hadn't been in the theatre with me, I would have walked out about halfway through when I realized I didn't give a crap what happened to anyone in the film, there was just zero emotional investment in any character for me. The person I liked the most was Richard and he was barely in it.

I never walk out, ever, it would have been a first, but I wouldn't have regretted doing it. I had better things to do with my time.

 

[Migu-EL]

I think it's mostly the SV diehards who never got over the Routh casting in the first place. They would look silly doing the same with Cavill so many are being more low key on the new/ new Superman. Welling played Clark on a tv series, it wouldn't have worked for big screen so enjoy what you had and move on. Outside of SV diehards most people thought Routh did great for what he was in.

Not true... I talked to plenty of people who thought that Routh didnt pull Superman off properly and none of them even watch Smallville. So for you to say mostly the "Smallville diehards" had a problem with the Routh casting, is inaccurate. Don't let your hatered for Smallville blind you enough to make an excuse that only those fans thought Routh was the wrong man to put on the tights.

 

[Zack Snyder]

Actually I don't hate SV. You obviously aren't familiar with my posts. I'm not fanatical like some in the forum is all so have some objective opinions. It's funny how most people outside of the forum on the internet seem to like Routh, and didn't blame him for SR being a subpar Superman film. Then the people who are diehard fans of SV seem to hate Routh and make comments that he didn't do as good of a job as he actually did. Be a little objective.

 

[MydnightPhoenix]

I watch Smallville, or I did I'm done with S10; but I definitely did not want Tom Welling in a Superman movie. But I still don't think Brandon might share responsibility for how Superman was portrayed in the film.

 

[Pagan]

Superman Returns was a sequel to something that happened 30 yrs before it. The audience was thrown into it with the characters already established and a lot of things had happened in the interim. Lois got knocked up and had a kid. Supes had been on a pilgrimage. I kept wanting to go back and catch the missing episodes.

 

[Migu-EL]

Actually I don't hate SV. You obviously aren't familiar with my posts. I'm not fanatical like some in the forum is all so have some objective opinions. It's funny how most people outside of the forum on the internet seem to like Routh, and didn't blame him for SR being a subpar Superman film. Then the people who are diehard fans of SV seem to hate Routh and make comments that he didn't do as good of a job as he actually did. Be a little objective.

He wasnt the sole reason for that movie being subpar.. but he didnt knock it out the park either. He just wasnt a believable Superman in my and many other people's opinion. The main thing that was wrong with that movie was the storyline.. With a better storyline, Routh probably would of done an ok job.. but he wouldnt of owned the character because of his lack of presence. What's really funny is you state that most people on the internet outside of this forum like Routh as Superman like its a known fact, if so what research do you have to back that up?

 

[Micromind]

Not true... I talked to plenty of people who thought that Routh didnt pull Superman off properly and none of them even watch Smallville. So for you to say mostly the "Smallville diehards" had a problem with the Routh casting, is inaccurate. Don't let your hatered for Smallville blind you enough to make an excuse that only those fans thought Routh was the wrong man to put on the tights.

That is, your opinion and you are entitled to it, similarly I know many people that were OK with Routh and were of the opinion that he can do a better job in the sequel, many are still baffled by WB's decision to reboot Superman and casting of Henry Cavill ( Though I am fine and support Cavill.)

And I think that Tom Welling did fine in Smallville, though he is not a outstanding actor (and neither is Routh.) but he was good in whatever was required.

 

[Webhead2006]

Sure I talked to folks who liked sr but like others have said there is many who also didn't like the film/routh. Its everyones own opinions on it. But the film did create a big division in fanbase.

 

[Migu-EL]

That is, your opinion and you are entitled to it, similarly I know many people that were OK with Routh and were of the opinion that he can do a better job in the sequel, many are still baffled by WB's decision to reboot Superman and casting of Henry Cavill ( Though I am fine and support Cavill.)

And I think that Tom Welling did fine in Smallville, though he is not a outstanding actor (and neither is Routh.) but he was good in whatever was required.

True... My point was that it's not only the die-hard Smallville fans that disliked Routh's Superman. Like I said earlier.. I didnt hate Routh as Superman, but I didnt find him telling myself that he was this generations Superman... Hopefully Cavill can carry that torch.

 

[Matt]

I'm closing this thread as its essentially become the "Bash Routh Thread," and clearly Tom Welling is not playing Superman in the upcoming film, so its moot.

I do have to warn you guys. If you wander out of your forum once the show is over and attempt to start anti-Cavill/anti-Routh movements, the Smallville forum will be deleted and if you persist in attempting to start fanboy wars, you will be banned. Keep that in mind as we move this forum into the Superman boards come the fall.