Superman Returns Rate Brandon Routh's Performance

[Yve]

Brandon Routh as Superman: i will say this, he did a good job, commendable even. but it just wasnt great, it wasnt even Chris Reeve level (which alas he will have to endure the comparisson a little while longer. this should be expected specially now that the movie has just come out). as i have mentioned years before when he was first cast, Routh lacked the powerful PRESENCE that Reeve had as Superman. i wouldnt say he lacked "grace" because Routh does have it plenty, its just very different with what Reeve had. Reeve's Superman had the kind of presence that would make you fall on your knees, Routh's Superman has the kind of presence that would make you want to sit down and talk about life.

I agree. I think it's because physically, Reeve is slightly bigger, and well, more manish looking than Routh. I'm not saying Routh is a girly-man or anything, but when compared to Reeve's physique, Routh is more slinder; His jaw is narrower, the lips fuller, etc. If you compare the two physically, Routh comes off looking younger and more boyish. Overall, Reeve had a more dominating presence because of those masculine physical traits. But in any event, I loved Brandon's performance. I can't imagine anyone else even coming close to nailing Superman as well as he did in this day and age.

 

[Darkred]

I live in the UK so i still havent seen the movie, but just wanted to say that although the movie is getting a little bit of criticism it's nice that brandon is getting decent feedback. I really feared for him a while back.

 

[superpal2]

another poll on routh?

well, his performance is as good as reeve.

 

[Steelsheen]

^^ this is the orginal poll post-movie viewing dude.

 

[The Guard]

His Superman was solid. His Clark was just kind of there, but had some nice/funny moments. If his "Kal-El" was the one who collapsed in his mother's arms and stood staring blankly before he had a flashback...uh...not much to go on, really.

This was my number one concern going into the film. Whether he could act or not. Well, he can, but to paraphrase Ron Howard on THE SIMPSONS, "Not well".

I cannot deny that Brandon Routh looks and sounds like a young Superman would. He has a great voice, a great build, good screen presence, and most of the best Superman moments were really just him posing, or giving the camera a certain, very subtle look. In this regard, he "embodied" my favorite versions of Superman more than I ever felt Reeve did. Technically speaking, I have no huge problems with his performance. He was decent. But he wasn't "very good", or "great", and he did nothing particularly impressive with any of his lines. He relied on what little natural charisma he has. He's just not the caliber of actor that almost anyone else in this cast was, and it showed in pretty much every scene. He left me wanting more in terms of emotion quite a few times (the scene with Ma Kent on the farm, the rooftop with Lois, and his struggle with new Krypton as he tried to lift it). I did enjoy his romantic flight scene with Lois, and the resolution scene with Jason (possibly just because of the dialogue and music), and for the most part, he was solid, but didn't impress me. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. I did. I enjoyed it immensely,. There were some fantastic moments that just screamed "Superman" (But I credit the writers for writing certain sequences, Singer for shooting them masterfully, and God, for making Routh look and sound like Superman, not Routh's acting ability). He's as much Superman material as anyone could have been in terms of his basic build and appearance and voice. However, I left the movie feeling like I had when I watched DAREDEVIL. Ben Affleck made a pretty good Matt Murdock/Daredevil, but there could have been more to his actual performance. I feel the same about Brandon Routh. But at least his Superman/Clark Kent felt "real". But I wanted more emotion from Superman. And I didn't feel I got it. And if an actor leaves me going "You know, he should have given a LOT more to that scene", he didn't do his job very well. I mean, some things are just ACTING 101. If a scene requires emotion, you emote. You react emotionally to lines that are supposed to emotionally touch your character. Staring blankly and relying on being attractive and Bryan Singer's camerawork...is not acting.

He didn't touch Reeve's performance (which I never thought was amazing), Dean Cain did far more with his lines than Routh did. Routh's lucky as hell he looks and sounds like a lot of people imagine Superman would, because that essentially saved his performance in SUPERMAN RETURNS. I get the feeling the cut sequences might have had something to do with his lack of acting ability and general lack of charisma when nothing is being said to him regarding romance. I don't think thirty minutes of blankly staring at Krypton would have been terribly impressive.

Good actors can show conflicting emotions, can show you their struggle as it occurs inside them. I felt that Routh didn't, for the most part. Would I have rather have seen Josh Hartnett? Hell no. Would I have rather have seen Jim Cavieziel? You bet your ass. I hope someone teaches Routh how to emote before he's called on to do any truly heavy emotion work in SUPERMAN FOREVER.

 

[Steelsheen]

His Superman was solid. His Clark was just kind of there, but had some nice/funny moments. If his "Kal-El" was the one who collapsed in his mother's arms and stood staring blankly before he had a flashback...uh...not much to go on, really.

its actually the scene between him and Martha in the living room. the part where he says "That place is a graveyard. I'm all that's left". lots of folks were really hoping that there are more Kal-El scenes (reading the newspapers from the past 5 years, burying the ship, even the begining sequence of him at Krypton). but that blame we lay at Singer's feet. i thought Routh did pretty good, a peek at how well he would've owned the Kal-El role since no one has done "Kal-El" before.

i agree with you that Routh hasnt reached Reeve-level acting/ presence, and honestly i'm not really expecting it from him, since their "charisma" is just different; Reeve is nealy god-like in his presence as Superman, Routh is more down-to-earth. what i'm really looking for is for Routh to feel at home with this role. i'm willing to cut him some slack, this is his first big movie, the first consistent acting job he's had since god-knows-when, and you must admit, he didnt suck.

 

[Darth Elektra]

I loved Brandon Routh! I thought he was perfect for Superman.

 

[nosebleed.]

Would I have rather have seen Jim Cavieziel? You bet your ass. I hope someone teaches Routh how to emote before he's called on to do any truly heavy emotion work in SUPERMAN FOREVER.

I agree with the JC comment. I will throw this in though. This was the boy's first major motion picture...he will grow into his acting ability and confidence with the next movie. ESPECIALLY if they let Singer helm it...it will be like working with an old pal. Hopefully we'll see him smile more and show he is actually having fun with the role...that's when we'll truly see a shining star playing Superman.

 

[Nightwing1977]

I agree with the JC comment. I will throw this in though. This was the boy's first major motion picture...he will grow into his acting ability and confidence with the next movie. ESPECIALLY if they let Singer helm it...it will be like working with an old pal. Hopefully we'll see him smile more and show he is actually having fun with the role...that's when we'll truly see a shining star playing Superman.

Yeah. It his first major big role. With him doing more movies before a SR sequel come, I think Routh will get better. All actors has to start somewhere & will get better once they do more & more acting. Give Routh a chance.

 

[Kane]

Why would Superman have security and confidence when he lost the one thing that meant the most to him on this Earth?

Brandon played it perfectly just how the character was intended to be played in this film.

 

[ChrisBaleBatman]

Aren't Superman and Kal-El the same one, though? What's the difference?

 

[The Guard]

its actually the scene between him and Martha in the living room. the part where he says "That place is a graveyard. I'm all that's left". lots of folks were really hoping that there are more Kal-El scenes (reading the newspapers from the past 5 years, burying the ship, even the begining sequence of him at Krypton). but that blame we lay at Singer's feet. i thought Routh did pretty good, a peek at how well he would've owned the Kal-El role since no one has done "Kal-El" before.

Actually, I think Tim Daly did Kal-El on STAS and JUSTICE LEAGUE. So did Dean Cain in LOIS AND CLARK. I was hoping Routh would give a little bit more emotion in that scene, given it's obvious importance to the thematics of the story, and was disappointed when he didn't. Didn't see much coming through. He seemed more intent on remembering his lines and relating details than emotionally reacting to the situation.

"I'm all that's left" is not a line one should deadpan with no emoting.

i agree with you that Routh hasnt reached Reeve-level acting/ presence, and honestly i'm not really expecting it from him, since their "charisma" is just different; Reeve is nealy god-like in his presence as Superman, Routh is more down-to-earth. what i'm really looking for is for Routh to feel at home with this role. i'm willing to cut him some slack, this is his first big movie, the first consistent acting job he's had since god-knows-when, and you must admit, he didnt suck.

I agree with the JC comment. I will throw this in though. This was the boy's first major motion picture...he will grow into his acting ability and confidence with the next movie. ESPECIALLY if they let Singer helm it...it will be like working with an old pal. Hopefully we'll see him smile more and show he is actually having fun with the role...that's when we'll truly see a shining star playing Superman.

Yeah. It his first major big role. With him doing more movies before a SR sequel come, I think Routh will get better. All actors has to start somewhere & will get better once they do more & more acting. Give Routh a chance.

So, having fun with a role and smiling makes you a shining star? Guess Arnold did a hell of a job as Mr. Freeze, then. Funny, I thought it was ACTING ABILITY and making a role absolutely believeable and relatable that did that.

Ok, so it's his first big role. That doesn't change the fact that it just wasn't that impressive a performance. Neither, I'm sure was Tom Hanks first role (I know it wasn't), but I'm not going to just cut him slack on his first huge role because it was his first. Brandon Routh is an actor. As an actor, you either know how to act, or you don't. He clearly doesn't have the grasp on the craft that he could/should. It's not like he's never acted before, be it in community theatre, short films, or what have you. They didn't pull a non-actor off the street and try to make him into Superman. Or did they?

 

[gdw]

I honestly feel he was not given enough chance to shine. I liked everything i saw, but i need to see the full cut to truely feel his Kal-El performance as those were the scenes mostly cut.

 

[The Sage]

I thought Routh was solid. He was good, not great. His line deliveries were on and off, though IMO I thought his facial expressions were consistent throughout even if his lines weren't.

I really need to see the movie again (it's been nearly a week). His Superman, enjoyed him better than his Clark, which I thought was spot on. I'm sure a lot of people felt it was just like Reeve's but I didn't think it was. While Reeve's was a nerdy clutz, Routh's was a nerdy goof. And moreso, he blended into the background even more than Reeve's did, which is partially the purporse of Clark Kent.

His Superman, while not as commanding as Reeve's had a gentleness I hadn't seen before in the character.

His Kal-El, we didn't see much so I can't properly gauge him until the DVD.

Although I'm sure Guard has made some interesting arguments, I really don't feel like going back and reading them, or even doing another page by page argument like we did with Bale's acting and movie content with BB last year. So good luck with everyone who takes him on.

 

[The Sage]

And someone get Kane some meds. He's bordering on Spiderfreddie territory with his over-optimism and excitedness.

 

[The Guard]

If you feel he was solid, or good, but not great, we don't especially disagree. I liked a lot of the natural things Routh brought to the role. I enjoyed watching him, for the most part. But I think there's room for improvement.

 

[The Sage]

If you feel he was solid, or good, but not great, we don't especially disagree. I liked a lot of the natural things Routh brought to the role. I enjoyed watching him, for the most part. But I think there's room for improvement.

Oh definitely. Routh has a lot of untapped potential, plus he has passion for the role, which I feel came through in his performance and made up for what he was lacking.

 

[Village_Idiot]

I thought Routh's performance was fine , a little boring maybe , but that had more to do with the writing and Singers directing then Routh's performance

 

[Thot]

Not entirely Routh's fault due to poor script, story etc., but his Kent was rather dull and not different enough from Superman. Not really enough time as Kal-El to rate, and his Superman was fair/good, but rather wooden. Again, a crappy script, plot, etc. didn't help him. He deserves better. I believe he'll be in the next Superman film and hopefully will get a chance to really shine.

 

[CrypticOne]

Brandon Routh was a great actor for all these parts. He surprised me, but I think he will be a great Supes for films too come.

 

[Logan Reynolds]

Spectacular as all 3!

 

[Nightwing1977]

But I think there's room for improvement.

No doubt he will improve when they do the sequel. And give him more lines too.

 

[FOG3]

Originally posted by Village_Idiot
I thought Routh's performance was fine , a little boring maybe , but that had more to do with the writing and Singers directing then Routh's performance

My sentiments exactly.

 

[keatonisbatman]

Congratulations Brandon Routh.

He is Superman.

No one could have done better.

 

[ec86]

Brandon is so amazing. In all of the three characters he was super. His voice carries so much, it's absolutely amazing.