How I would film a Superman reboot.

[Argus Skyhawk]

If I were to film the next Superman movie--assuming that a continuation of the Donnerverse is no longer on the table--I would make a period piece set in the 30's or 40's. I would give it a stylistic look reminiscent of the Fleischer cartoons.

The movie would portray Clark Kent as the disguise, not Superman.

Although no other superheroes would be shown, there would be indications that other DC heroes do exist. A character might mention that she has relatives in Gotham City, or Lois Lane might be excited that she got to interview the millionaire Bruce Wayne last week. Other heroes would take no part in the plot, although they might have cameos in sequels.

Lex Luthor would also take no part in the plot, but there might be a brief reference to the fact that he exists and that Superman has occasional run-ins with him. Perhaps something like this:

Olsen: Gee, Clark, do you think Lex might be behind all this?
Kent: I doubt it, Jimmy. Superman says that this scheme just doesn't look like Luthor's handiwork.

 

[Mysterion]

I would make a period piece set in the 30's or 40's. I would give it a stylistic look reminiscent of the Fleischer cartoons.

I agree that this is the way to go. Even though the 1978 movie took place in the present, I think the flavor of the film was very much rooted in the 30s and 40s, and that worked very much in the movie's favor. I think also it's the reason the movie still looks good to my eye.

 

[Galactus]

So the good ole days when there were no minorities in power and only servants, women were 2nd class citizens, and it was a lily white male world.

That sounds like a great idea!

Ok Lapis maybe it is hard to make a good Superman movie.

 

[T'Baio]

The movie would portray Clark Kent as the disguise, not Superman.

That is how the movies have done it, so far.

As a matter of fact, as far as I know, Lois & Clark is the only iteration that hasn't done it that way, outside of certain eras of the comic I may not know about.

 

[Lapis Exilis]

So the good ole days when there were no minorities in power and only servants, women were 2nd class citizens, and it was a lily white male world.

That sounds like a great idea!

Ok Lapis maybe it is hard to make a good Superman movie.

See? What did I tell you?


More to the point, Argus - what's the story? Who's the villain? What happens? That's where things get really sticky.

(I'm not trying to torture you. Since Wonder Woman has been stuck in development hell FOREVER, I have tried once or twice to think through a treatment for that movie - and have gotten stuck every time. I'm tellin' you. It just ain't easy.)

 

[SalvorHardin]

If I were to film the next Superman movie--assuming that a continuation of the Donnerverse is no longer on the table--I would make a period piece set in the 30's or 40's.

No, I'll pass on that.

If we had to have a Superman movie set in a time other than our own, I'd rather see it set in the far future to be honest.

I completely agree with the no Luthor as part of the plot though.

 

[JacksonArcher]

OK, so over the past few days I've been mulling over my proposed reboot of the Superman franchise, and instead I've devised a trilogy of films with the assistance of a friend. The first installment would be called Superman: The Man of Steel, the second installment would be called Superman: The Man of Tomorrow and the third and final installment would be called Superman: The Last Son of Krypton. It would start out with a post-Crisis version of the character (Clark is the real person, and Superman is the facade) and eventually would mold with the pre-Crisis version (Clark/Superman by the end of the series would realize that he is both Clark Kent and Superman, and the more he becomes Superman -- the more he is Superman -- the more that facade, that performance, manifests itself as another identity).

Superman: The Man of Steel opens with Clark's war within, his struggle over what he wants to do, and then moves to the real world outside. Clark is not just globetrotting, he is a war correspondent as things begin. The conflict between people and our struggle with each other and nature is what disturbs Clark most of all. He doesn't like what he sees, is disappointed in humanity, and believes they need a symbol to bring them together and inspire. This will tie into later Kryptonian/Earth themes of war and peace. Clark wears a mask the first time, while operating in the war zone, but he pulls the mask off when he scares a victim he rescues, and the person he rescued is no longer scared, but comforted. And he realizes he has to be something other than a shadowy symbol. Subtle reference to Batman and their differences, but not overtly so.

Superman is not a mask, he's not a disguise, he's an emotional and pyschological outlet for Clark Kent's repressed desires and abilities over the years. Clark has a NEED to protect people, to do all he can do, almost to a fault. Clark never really got to be a kid, was repressed and careful to hide his abilities. That's why he acts like a big kid as Superman.

Superman will begin in the story as the angrier, sterner, and yes, more violent version as he was originally created, his righteous anger and black and white attitude driving him in this direction. He imposes his will on people at first, and his arc will be to evolve beyond that, to develop a gray area, and to learn that while he can inspire, humanity must find their own way.

 

[FPAlpha]

Though not that of a fan of Superman why not finally have something epic?

Have him fight someone in his weight class with contemporary SFX effects.. someone like Doomsday, Darkseid etc.

I want him to really lay on the hurt and be hurt himself.. i don't want a psychological piece. I want an entertaining summer blockbuster and Supes putting someone through all the walls of Metropolis.

Maybe Michael Bay has time to direct? *ducks from a hail of rocks thrown*

 

[T'Baio]

Actually, if he could lay off the editing, I always thought Michael Bay would be a great choice for Superman. Who does action and the celebration of Truth, Justice and the American Way better than Bay?

Then again, I thought he'd be great at giant robots fighting, too, so what do I know?

 

[Galactus]

See? What did I tell you?

Ok you were right, at least with this crowd. I just don't think today's sci-fi/fantasy fan gets Superman because they really don't share his beliefs. Neither do the people in Idiotwood because they are just stupid. Joe Public on the street gets Superman but that same person probably is not able to get that movie made.

I have said this many times. I have a Superman trilogy already inked. I have no doubt it would be successful. It also will never see the light of day. Such is life.

Oh and I have a Wonder Woman done too, ready to go. Same thing applies for that.

 

[JacksonArcher]

Everyone has their own vision for how a Superman movie will work, and most likely everyone thinks their version could be and will be successful -- including me -- but we'll likely never know for sure. Almost nothing is absolute.

Also, I have a fear that WB will cave into fans' demands of an "all out slugfest" of a Superman movie and then those very fans that campaigned for that will complain that it lacks depth or substance. Just wait.

Superman is more than just throwing a punch.

 

[Galactus]

Yeah he is a good guy that will throw a punch. I think comic fans have just had too much Batman to understand that some of us want the fantastic. If you read the other thread about Marvel vs DC, the people that like DC like it because it is not realistic and the people have fantastic powers for the most part. Even Batman really is super-human with his intelligence, wisdom, and will power. All of these are far and above human beings.

People that get Superman, like him because he is larger than life. There is no one else like him. He has demigod powers yet has more compassion and kindness than the average human. He is a man that has everything, yet he does everything to help everyone. He has the morals to just be a plain guy, when he could just as easily be the multi-billionaire Bruce Wayne is.

The problem is that people want to make a Superman movie, but they want to give it a twist to change something they don't quite like or can understand. It is not complicated. Just make a Superman character that the majority of people will say that is Superman, and you have your movie. You are not going to make everyone happy. I am sure there are Batman fans that dislike Begins and Dark Knight, but that didn't stop most people from loving it.

 

[JacksonArcher]

There has to be more than just Superman throwing punches for two hours, though. I'm all for an action adventure story. Filled with tons of excitment and thrills. But there has to be some substance behind it or else it's just going to be another Michael Bay movie.

People complainted mostly about Superman Returns because it was a rehash of the same 'ole same 'ole, and that's the thing: characters need to evolve and change in stories or else they remain stagnate and boring. I'm more interested in seeing transformations. Seeing someone change throughout a story. I'm also interested in seeing how Superman became that nice guy who throws punches. He wasn't made that way. He wasn't born that way. Eventually circumstances and events in his life lead him to becoming that person and that's what I'm most interested in seeing.

I think the JJ Abrams Star Trek approach -- a fresh spin on established characters -- is exactly what a new Superman movie needs to feel fresh and relevant.

 

[Galactus]

Actually no, people complain about Returns for two reasons. One he didn't punch anything and two he didn't act like Superman. I remember a co-worker at the time, she was as far as you can get from a sci-fi fan. Soror who never read a comic book in her life, but she knew who Superman is and she knew that the guy in Returns was not Superman. She is exactly the kind of person I am talking about.

Say what you will, I know Michael Bay could make a Superman movie that would make money, the majority of people would love, and probably a few die hard fans. I am sure he is not the only one. You are making this a lot harder than it needs to be. Every movie doesn't have to be the same and they don't all have to be that heavy.

 

[JacksonArcher]

That's not the only two reasons. There are several others. And using one person's opinion is hardly definitive.

Look, I just want a good movie, and I know a two hour slugfest is not a good movie. I don't think I'm reaching for anything "too heavy" because at the end of the day it's really about the characters that matter, and no matter how many punches Superman throws it won't affect that.

And after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Michael Bay getting Superman would probably be one of the worse things that could happen. He's such a middle of the road, industralist hack like Brett Ratner or McG. Need someone to direct your summer blockbuster, just dial 1-800-MICHEAL-BAY! Seriously, there are so many better choices out there. Superman deserves better.

 

[Aragorn]

Quentin Tarantino directs... Superman!

Starring Robert Forster as Perry White, Samuel L. Jackson as Lex Luthor, Liam Neeson as Brainiac and in typical Quentin fashion of digging up has-beens and giving them second chances... Jason Priestley as Superman and Shannon Elizabeth as Lois.

 

[wamdue]

to be honest any Superman movie has to deal with the question, of why Superman even needs Clark & the Daily Planet anymore, seriously what does the Planet offer him apart from Lois & a pay slip?


I would start off with Superman stopping a disaster, for whom someone is to blame, after doing the life saving, he hangs around as Clark Kent using his super powers to find out who was to blame, and using wi-fi to send his article to the Daily Planet. (taking photos with a high tec camera hidden in is lens)

Superman having to show once a month at the office, goes in the next day, and finds new girl Lois Lane, whom Perry teams him up with, on a rather dull case, which thanks to Lois turns out to be a bigger story than he had first thought.

Lex is running for President, Superman knows that he is dodgy but as of yet has been unable to pin anything on him. Lex Corp having started work on a geothermal power station, Lex is riding high offer both green & cheap electricity to the people of Metropolis, but all is not as it seems.

It takes the collective wits of Clark Kent and his new partner Lois Lane to work out what Lex is up to, and Supermans strength to stop him, during this movie Superman learns to live in the world, as well as save him, and where before Superman was a mysterious figure, he embraces humanity and becomes a bigger part of earth culture.

 

[Gaith]

Superman: The Man of Steel opens with Clark's war within, his struggle over what he wants to do, and then moves to the real world outside. Clark is not just globetrotting, he is a war correspondent as things begin. The conflict between people and our struggle with each other and nature is what disturbs Clark most of all. He doesn't like what he sees, is disappointed in humanity, and believes they need a symbol to bring them together and inspire. This will tie into later Kryptonian/Earth themes of war and peace. Clark wears a mask the first time, while operating in the war zone, but he pulls the mask off when he scares a victim he rescues, and the person he rescued is no longer scared, but comforted. And he realizes he has to be something other than a shadowy symbol. Subtle reference to Batman and their differences, but not overtly so.

Superman is not a mask, he's not a disguise, he's an emotional and pyschological outlet for Clark Kent's repressed desires and abilities over the years. Clark has a NEED to protect people, to do all he can do, almost to a fault. Clark never really got to be a kid, was repressed and careful to hide his abilities. That's why he acts like a big kid as Superman.

I'm not sure I'm with you 100%, but I like your interest in breaking new ground (cinematically, at least - I don't read the comics), and I absolutely agree that Clark should go to a war zone. Hell, I'd be interested in seeing Clark join the US Army as a medic and be deployed to Iraq, where he'd both disarm and arrest terrorists and enforce the rules of war, protecting civilians from war crimes, etc. And as a counterpoint to the *ahem* scene in Inglourious Basterds, I'd get a kick out of seeing him handcuff bin Laden and let a pair of ordinary cops arrest him in front of the Lincoln Memorial. Now that'd be a first act!

As for the whole cape and, well, "Superman" thing, that's a bit trickier. One of the reasons I find the first two seasons of Smallville so effective (the good eps anyway) is that in subduing kryptonite-powered villains, Clark's really only closing a deficit of good caused by his own arrival. He's not just being a hero because he can, he's being a hero because he owes it to us. He also doesn't call attention to himself or his deeds the way "Superman" does.

Maybe to extrapolate that formula to the movies, villains could find debris containing Kryptonian technology and information data chips amongst the conventional "meteor rocks". That way, Clark could face credible adversaries to punch as well as give him something to brood over. One wouldn't want to overdo that aspect, of course, but I like the idea that his arrival on Earth wasn't an unalloyed blessing. Just as Spider-Man feels duty-bound to atone for humanity's sins, so too could Clark therefore atone for the sins of his own people as well as for the rest of us.

And, after a particularly strenuous (climactic) battle, which he could easily have sat out of with no one being the wiser, the world could decide to call him "Superman", and he could somewhat reluctantly go along with it. So, after battling baddies in more or less conventional clothing for the first movie (albeit with an emphasis on red and blue, a la Smallville), he maximise his symbolic value by donning the costume and cape after he becomes world-famous. In other words, span the whole formative period Smallville still hasn't finished, in one compact, fun film.

 

[Sephiroth]

I'd make Superman Superman, no 3/4ths of the movie being him brooding over Lois, no Superboy?!, Introduce Brainiac, after the action have Superman approach Batman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern, then next movie, Enter: The Justice League

 

[Argus Skyhawk]

So the good ole days when there were no minorities in power and only servants, women were 2nd class citizens, and it was a lily white male world.

You can't possibly think THAT is why I wanted a period piece!
Besides, in addition to the racism and sexism you've mentioned, the 30's and 40's also brought us the Great Depression and the Second World War, so I certainly don't think of them as good ole days. I just thought a stylistic period piece from the early days of Superman comics would be a fun setting, and would help distinguish it from previous incarnations.

Although society treated minorities and women as second class citizens at the time, there is no reason they could not be important characters in the movie, and I don't mean as servants or maids.