Man of Steel

Filmmaker Zack Snyder's Man of Steel re-envisions Superman for the 21st century. The origin story begins on the disintegrating planet Krypton, where—in hopes of saving his species—renegade scientist Jor-El (Russell Crowe) places his newborn son Kal-El in a space capsule launched towards Earth, infuriating General Zod (Michael Shannon). Kal-El is adopted and named Clark by Jonathan (Kevin Costner) and Martha Kent (Diane Lane), who counsel the lad to control his incredible powers, knowing that chaos would erupt if people realized that an alien was living in Smallville, KS. As he grows up, Clark's (Henry Cavill) subterfuge isolates him from his peers, turning him into a drifter who hides from the world. Eventually, however, intrepid newspaper reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams) learns the truth, but when she tries to “scoop” the story, her editor (Laurence Fishburne) refuses to publish it. So Lois leaks it on the Internet, not realizing the consequences. Before long, megalomaniacal General Zod and his troops invade Earth, forcing Kal-El/Clark Kent to make some fundamental choices. Although Man of Steel is sometimes too frenetic, the awesome, eye-popping action will satisfy fans of the world's most iconic superhero. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the production featurettes “Strong Characters, Legendary Roles” (26 min.), “All-Out Action” (26 min.), and “Krypton Decoded” with costar Dylan Sprayberry (7 min.), as well as trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are a “Journey of Discovery” feature-length viewing option with director Zack Snyder, the behind-the-scenes featurettes “Planet Krypton” (17 min.) and “New Zealand: Home of Middle-Earth” (7 min.), a companion animated short (2 min.), and bonus DVD and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a solid reboot of the legendary superhero franchise.] (S. Granger)