MAN OF STEEL - Grading & Discussion

[Dr.H]

It made perfect sense to me. Just because you don't like something doesn't make it "poor screenwriting."

I think it is poor screenwriting(at least to me). It isn't just because I don't like what they've done. An example of screenwriting that I don't like is Zod killing Jor El or Jonathan Kent's scene about letting those people die to keep things a secret--I didn't like those scenes or those changes but I still wouldn't say they weren't poor screenwriting at all and even acknowledge them as effective. However this is a different animal all together.
With all that disaster and destruction going(which admit it was there just to make things look cooler) I never really rooted for Supes like I should have, at the end they're is no resonating acknowledgement of any damage and the tone of the film unwarrantably shifts lighthearted for the ending to avoid a somber finale to the film. SHOW ME some instance of Superman taking strides to protect someone and not him just brashly launching at Zod and cruising through buildings like they are just play sets or something. It wasn't just poor screenwriting, it was lazy screenwriting. If your counterargument is that 'Well dumbass he couldn't he was in a life and death battle he has enough trouble holding his own against Zod as it is.'' Then I would just say at least showcase that Superman has an ounce of worry about the damage and even give him throwaway line to Zod about taking this fight somewhere else then Zod simply rejects the offer-- keeping to his word about killing every human. You could easily have conveyed the gravity of the situation and how it weighed on Supes just through those lines alone. It's not scriptwriting rocket science.

With this, I hope Goyer writes every fucking DC Comics movie from here on out.

Well be my guess. However I do think we would be working Goyer to death writing everything wouldn't we? Well, in that case I might be a tad bit cautious seeing every DC film(unless hey have a talented writer-director). I got nothing against Goyer as a screenwriter I just think he works best with another writer or assisting with scripts rather then working on a script singularly.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Nerys, over used is a better term, particularly as they have played him as a dime store novel evil genius every time. IMO, your use may vary. Look, I cringed when they said Zod was going to be the villain in this one, due to Superman II, but, they did him right. If Lex is done, I just ask to make him more "real" like the other characters.

Mostly I was using a Hackman Luthor quote for hopefully comic effect.

 

[Trekker4747]

Which sort of begs the question.... If Kryptonians had been breed to be birthed by the robots from The Matrix why were they given the ability to breed in the first place? What does Jor-El need a penis for and what does Lara need a vagina for? Hell, what are men and women needed for at that point? If you can just make whatever/whomever you want and don't need people to actually get-down to make people; gender and biological procreation is useless.

 

[Samurai8472]

I knew I recognised the Miscellaneous Crew!

And the craft services team!

Lol

 

[Booji]

Something I forgot to mention in my review... the use of the song "Seasons" by Chris Cornell! I haven't listened to that song in a couple years and forgot how awesome it is lyrically and musically.... and when used it fit perfectly with the scene. I was totally jamming out at that part. Carry on...

 

[Shazam!]

I hated that bit. Really took me out of the movie. I thought I was watching Singles or something.

 

[davejames]

As far as the destruction goes, I wonder if it's another situation like in ROTJ, where the script only called for blowing up the shield generator, but the FX guys went completely overboard and blew up the entire freakin forest. Lol

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Which sort of begs the question.... If Kryptonians had been breed to be birthed by the robots from The Matrix why were they given the ability to breed in the first place?

I think this is a good question.

What does Jor-El need a penis for and what does Lara need a vagina for? Hell, what are men and women needed for at that point?

We know so little, but from the dynamic comic sculpture history lesson that Jor-El showed us, I got a suggestion that there are still families, but that the Krypto-stork brings the babies. Could sex be practiced, but just not for procreation?

 

[davejames]

How was scientist Jor-El kicking so much ass and killing the legions of bad guys? He even managed to fight off Zod, who should realistically be the deadliest man on the planet if he was bred for war and to be a General and the Defender of Krypton. It was poor/lazy writing to me.

Well even without being bred for it, it's possible all Kryptonians are just naturally very strong and good at fighting.

Or maybe, given the fact he already decided to break taboo and have a natural child, Jor-El's "programming" was a bit off and different from the others.

Which sort of begs the question.... If Kryptonians had been breed to be birthed by the robots from The Matrix why were they given the ability to breed in the first place? What does Jor-El need a penis for and what does Lara need a vagina for? Hell, what are men and women needed for at that point? If you can just make whatever/whomever you want and don't need people to actually get-down to make people; gender and biological procreation is useless.

They may not need any sexual organs, but I imagine when they came up with this technology, that was something they decided they still VERY much wanted to keep.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Well, deciding to keep fucking would clearly be a major dilemma for the Kryptonians, since like human beings they only have sex for purposes of procreation.

 

[Samurai8472]

What i'm looking back on after the movie has sunk in is the relatively calm/nonchalant way people return to normalcy.


At least 20 blocks and 700 billion dollars in damage.

Then Lombardi asks Lois if she wants to go to a baseball game

Seems weird to ask that

Is there even a baseball stadium left? LOL

 

[sojourner]

We also don't know how much time as passed when that scene takes place. I would guess at least a month, could be 6 months.

 

[DEWLine]

Didn't look like there was a sports stadium of any sort in the affected areas.

Wanting a map of the city as designed by the animators for those battle scenes, personally.

 

[DEWLine]

I remember Ian Tracey mostly from his work on Da Vinci's Inquest and Intelligence, two of the better crime dramas made up here in Canada in recent decades. It threw me more than a bit to see Tracey - Penikett, too, come to think of it - near the bottom of the full-cast list billing in this one...but, Hollywood, right?

 

[BillJ]

What i'm looking back on after the movie has sunk in is the relatively calm/nonchalant way people return to normalcy.


At least 20 blocks and 700 billion dollars in damage.

Then Lombardi asks Lois if she wants to go to a baseball game

Seems weird to ask that

Is there even a baseball stadium left? LOL

Comments like these really confuse me.

 

[DEWLine]

I wonder if any of the non-Canadian actors learned our secret handshake.

Do our actors have one?

(Well, if it's secret, I shouldn't know about it until/unless I become an actor anyway!)

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Something that has been bothering me.

Kyptonians in MOS are bred for specific roles.
Scientists will be the best scientists possible.
Soldiers will be the best soldiers possible.

What the hell is Jor-El bred for exactly? Being a superhero?

How was scientist Jor-El kicking so much ass and killing the legions of bad guys? He even managed to fight off Zod, who should realistically be the deadliest man on the planet if he was bred for war and to be a General and the Defender of Krypton. It was poor/lazy writing to me.

Jor-El and Lara were procreating naturally and developing spaceflight in defiance of their world's laws. You don't think he might have prepared for the consequences of that eventually becoming public knowledge by learning some Kryptonian Karate and using his scientific know-how to develop a more badass power armor suit and weapons?

Which sort of begs the question.... If Kryptonians had been breed to be birthed by the robots from The Matrix why were they given the ability to breed in the first place? What does Jor-El need a penis for and what does Lara need a vagina for? Hell, what are men and women needed for at that point? If you can just make whatever/whomever you want and don't need people to actually get-down to make people; gender and biological procreation is useless.

Seriously? Did you just ask why people would want to have sex other than for making babies? They still have friends and marriages and relationships on Krypton. Not everything is programmed in.

The decision to stop natural procreation was a fairly recent one (relative to Kryptonian history) and related to overpopulation concerns. Why would they neuter themselves? What if the population stabilized and they wanted to return to the old way of doing things?

 

[CorporalCaptain]

The decision to stop natural procreation was a fairly recent one (relative to Kryptonian history) and related to overpopulation concerns. Why would they neuter themselves? What if the population stabilized and they wanted to return to the old way of doing things?

I believe that something consistent with everything we saw, that wasn't addressed, and that would probably be quite reasonable, would be that Kryptonians were sterile due to the presence of some contraceptive in their systems. As the preeminent scientist, perhaps Jor-El then counteracted that in himself and Lara?

 

[Dark Gilligan]

I liked Lois Lane's portrayal (except for the "are we measuring our dicks?" line. It totally went against character).

Not out of character in the least. It's exactly what the 1930s Lois might have said if given the chance. Think classic Kathryn Hepburn, or Rosalind Russell in the newspaper film "His Girl Friday". That's Lois.

 

[TheSeeker]

I thought it was very in character as well.