First Reviews Suggest Hit for Man of Steel

Actor Henry Cavill, who plays Superman in "Man of Steel," has been criticized for his lack of warmth in the role. (Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

It has been touted as a more serious take on the “man in tights” Superman story, and early reviews suggest that Zach Snyder’s Man of Steel could be a hit. 

The film, which comes out in most cinemas this weekend, promises audiences huge action set-pieces, underpinned by a story of an alien struggling to fit in on Earth.

Man of Steel was produced by Christopher Nolan, the director of The Dark Knight trilogy, and written by David S. Goyer, writer of The Dark Knight trilogy. 

So far, it has a 70 percent rating on the Rotten Tomatoes movie review website. While critics praise the intense action, they say that actor Henry Cavill’s Superman is far too serious.

“While Man of Steel won’t outdo The Avengers in terms of dialogue-snappiness and sheer laughs, it certainly tops it when it comes to spectacle,” wrote Dan Jolin of Empire magazine. “[The film] aches for more depth and warmth and humor, but this is spectacular sci-fi–huge, operatic, melodramatic, impressive. It feels the right Superman origin story for our era, and teases what would be a welcome new super-franchise.”

The Guardian newspaper said part of the problem was a lack of chemistry between characters Lois Lane (played by Amy Adams) and Clark Kent. The Guardian gave the film only three stars.

“Though Man of Steel bounds from one epic set-piece to another, you’re left with the nagging feeling that you just can’t work out what the central twosome see in each other,” stated The Guardian review. 

Entertainment Weekly’s Chris Nashawaty said the pair’s “stabs at sub-sitcom humor fall flat,” adding that the film was not saved even by the grand spectacle of the action scenes. 

“Never has a race to save the fate of humankind seemed so tedious,” he wrote.

Drew McWeeny, from Hitflix, said the film rated highly when compared to other superhero franchises. 

“I am blown away by the sheer scale of it,” he wrote. “Marvel’s biggest film so far, The Avengers, looks like a charming episode of the Bill Bixby Incredible Hulk by comparison, and while size doesn’t always make something better, if you want to sell the idea that these are godlike beings battling, then the only way to truly sell that idea is to show what they would do to our planet in the process. 

“No one has ever staged superhero action like this. No one.”