TMOS Reviews Thread - Non Spoiler Review and Discussion - Part 3

[BatmanFanboy]

I love Snyder but the man is way too over indulgent, which is what a lot of people are taking issue with for MOS. I personally love that fact, but not everyone is going to. He gets about the right amount of praise I would say. For every great performance is Watchmen there was a terrible one.

 

[G.Godfrey]

Those who need to chill, chill. No matter how much most of us hoped that MOS would dazzle, the fact is (as I and others have pointed out in the past) it was always going to have an uphill battle with the critics for many reasons.

For sure it's not a perfect film, but half of the negative reviews are negative simply for the fact that it's supposedly too serious and clearly not meeting what they think a Superman film should be. Remind me again why a blockbuster can't be a piece of serious drama/action, why does everything have to have comedy? That's not to say all negative reviews are worthless. I am not a blinded fanboy. Quite a few negative reviews (which aren't really badly negative) are good and state proper reasons for the criticism that are actually relevant to the film at hand instead of complaining on how this isn't the Donnerverse or how Cavill never cracks a smile even though we know for a fact that he does, several times. What kind of a top critic makes such an error? The one who expects Superman to constantly walk around smiling no matter the circumstance he's in I guess.

Point is, wait about two to three weeks before getting depressed. Why until that time? Well, by then we'll know what the PUBLIC thinks of the film and how good the WOM will be. And that's what matters. What the people think. Over at Yahoo there is a negative MOS article about how the reviews are mixed. I was surprised at the comments. Most often the comments on yahoo tend to bash MOS, this time dozens of people stood up, proclaiming that the critics are less reliable than the local weatherman. And no, these aren't fanboys.

If the majority of the GA loves the film and the BO reflects that, we'll get that fast tracked sequel in 2015 and I would bet right now that MOS is going to be looked back in a few years as one of the most critically underrated film of it's type which got more slack than it deserved.

And if not, well, life goes on.

 

[TheFlamingCoco]

http://www.followingthenerd.com/movies/movie-review-ftn-reviews-man-of-steel/
This is a blog, not a critic, but still. 4/5

 

[Motown Marvel]

No, that's also inaccurate.

uh huh, okay.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

Not necessarily, people to this day still hold Michael Keaton's Batman to a higher standard than Christian Bale's, in spite of the fact that he still played a pretty damn good Batman.

Tell me who these people are? You? I have literally never read that anywhere, and I go on a lot of boards.

Anyway, I watched Superman a year ago or something, and Superman II a couple of days ago to get rdy, and it looks really dated, it's fun, and cheesy as hell, but how could someone like this better than MOS, I just dont know, but I'm kind of a "modern age is better" fellow.

 

[InJustice]

Oh, give me a break. So Zack Snyder is some ignored genius now?

That's not what he was saying. He's saying that because people herald Zack Snyder's visual abilities, it overshadows his other capabilities as a director. It overshadows to the point where the general audience/Snyder detractors/critics for whatever reason don't see it in his projects. However, just because it overshadows his other capabilities doesn't mean that the film lacks heart, plot etc.

That was merely his point. (At least what I interpreted from it)

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Oh, give me a break. So Zack Snyder is some ignored genius now?

I'll wait to see the film before I judge it, but I'd be lying if I thought Zack Snyder has ever directed a decent film.

I thought 300 was decent in a basic, fun on a rainy day kind of way.

 

[Jaspertian1105]

Not necessarily, people to this day still hold Michael Keaton's Batman to a higher standard than Christian Bale's, in spite of the fact that he still played a pretty damn good Batman

Yeah i love how he played the character, so good that you even overlook his appearance, that wasnt very imposing, but still he did a great job.

 

[Bruce Malone]

I think the issue is that Superman needs his "Batman begins" moment to establish that he is a legitimate character that deserves respect and i think this film sort of needed the critical reception that Begins got to get there.

This was supposed to be a statement film to the public and critics.

 

[G.Godfrey]

Looks like this is another Zack Snyder film where the acting is good but people choose to ignore it, the plot and character development is all there but people don't expect it so they don't see it, and the action is amazing but for some reason that is a bad thing.

If this were a film by any another director I would be very worried about the direction these reviews are taking.

I'll wait to see the film before I judge it, but I'd be lying if I thought Zack Snyder has ever directed a decent film.

Well, IMO (and many others) DOTD and Watchmen are a bit more than decent. The owl movie and 300 are decent.

 

[TheFlamingCoco]

People have pretty much 3 complaints about it.

1. It's too serious. (Possibly?)
2. There's more a lot action than character development. (Disturbingly likely)
3. It doesn't fit the Superman they're used to seeing. (It's a reboot, so this is likely illegitimate)

So, at least a third of these reviews were inevitable and probably unfair. Cut those out, and that's about a B as far as the critics go (so far)

 

[JP]

I thought 300 was decent in a basic, fun on a rainy day kind of way.

I can agree with that. To this day its the only film of his I can sit through and somewhat enjoy. If MoS ends up similar to that, I'd be perfectly fine.

 

[JAK®]

Oh, give me a break. So Zack Snyder is some ignored genius now?

I'll wait to see the film before I judge it, but I'd be lying if I thought Zack Snyder has ever directed a decent film.

'Ignored genius' is hyperbole. But in my experience most of the criticisms thrown his way don't apply to him.

Snyder does have flaws as a director. Poor pacing. Scenes that don't flow into each other. Jarring musical sequences. And most importantly, going too far when given complete control (see Sucker Punch)

But the most common reasons cited are action over plot, which Watchmen proves wrong. Bad acting, which is bizarre because he managed to get a good performance out of Gerard Butler. Style over substance is a common idiom that is often regurgitated when discussing him as a director, but the fact that his films are stylish does not mean that the substance isn't there.

 

[davejames]

While I realize it's possible for this to be the case in a bad way ala the end of Transformers 2,

The only way this is bad is if the action doesn't escalate as it goes on.

Besides - this makes up for the lack of action in Superman Returns.

- Jow

Well the problem with the action in the TF movies is that the story is so random and characters so one-dimensional that you can't take ANYTHING that happens very seriously, and the action just feels completely pointless.

If MOS does a good enough job setting things up with Clark and his characterization early on (which many fans seem to think it does), then it should be a lot easier to go along with the crazy, nonstop action in the second half.

 

[hopefuldreamer]

I don't get how inconsistent the reviews are... I mean, were some critics watching different version of the film to others?

There are critics who says that the film is too much action and spectacle, there are others saying it's too boring and serious. Some say Shannon is incredible, some say he's not. Some say Lois Lane is done badly, some say she's done great. Some say the story/characterisation/emotional aspects are lacking... some say that is the films strength.

I mean, films always have some critics who like it and some who don't. But it just seems so odd to have so much contradiction.

 

[Krumm]

1. It's too serious. (Possibly?)

Am I the only one that actually wants it to be serious? Those are my favorite Superman stories.

 

[Nvmyprixgt]

It's odd how so many reviews contradict eachother. Negative reviews say there is no character development and positive say the opposite

 

[Str8 Rippin]

Am I the only one that actually wants it to be serious? Those are my favorite Superman stories.

Nope. If its as serious as the Batman movies then I'm going to be pretty happy. Not as Dark, that's different, but as serious and I'd be pretty happy.

 

[JAK®]

It's odd how so many reviews contradict eachother. Negative reviews say there is no character development and positive say the opposite

The things you like are intelligent. The things you hate are dumb.

 

[FlawlessVictory]

Am I the only one that actually wants it to be serious? Those are my favorite Superman stories.

I want it to be serious as well. Let's see, a story about someone who lost a whole planet of his people and now the character is struggling to figure out who he is while fighting to save his new adopted planet. I would think that should be handled rather seriously. Perhaps these critics are too nostalgic and want that gee golly aww shucks Superman they grew up on. Not me.

 

[Dragon_316ca]

http://observer.com/2013/06/superba...ary-and-a-colossal-waste-of-talent-and-money/

Oh, that Rex Reed.

 

[Krumm]

I want it to be serious as well. Let's see, a story about someone who lost a whole planet of his people and now the character is struggling to figure out who he is while fighting to save his new adopted planet. I would think that should be handled rather seriously. Perhaps these critics are too nostalgic and want that gee golly aww shucks Superman they grew up on. Not me.

Yeah, if you look at the Donnor film, the front half is quite serious and then adopts a more light-hearted tone in the back half. I've always wished the tone of the beginning had carried through the rest of the film more consistently

 

[conan69]

http://www.movies.com/movie-news/man-of-steel-best-superman-movie/12497

http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/06/11/review-man-of-steel-never-takes-flight/

Crazy how 2 people can see a film so differently.

 

[Johnny DC]

I don't get how inconsistent the reviews are... I mean, were some critics watching different version of the film to others?

There are critics who says that the film is too much action and spectacle, there are others saying it's too boring and serious. Some say Shannon is incredible, some say he's not. Some say Lois Lane is done badly, some say she's done great. Some say the story/characterisation/emotional aspects are lacking... some say that is the films strength.

I mean, films always have some critics who like it and some who don't. But it just seems so odd to have so much contradiction.

I noticed the same thing. I'm not sure what to think. At the end of the day, I'm pretty confident I'll love the film, but my expectations have definitely gone down. Maybe that's a good thing.

 

[Ms. Marvel]

http://observer.com/2013/06/superba...ary-and-a-colossal-waste-of-talent-and-money/

Oh, that Rex Reed.