Vs. Superman: First Blood

Carlito Kent

You can't blame my initial apprehension when this production still first emerged online. At first glance, the picture looked geared at a more action-oriented direction in which Superman Returns was sorely lacking in. In addition, the image gave fans their first look at a pretty decent looking costume. On the other hand, a closer look exhibited a slight hitch with Superman's facial features that raised two questions: why is his hair slicked (way too much) back 'Vatos Locos' style and, is that a beefed up Latino looking Hayden Christiansen that's had one too many trips to one of those tanning spray joints.


Look, if Hayden Christiansen is involved (I was clearly aware Henry Cavill got the part, just making a point) then I'm out. His acting (and don't tell me it's just Lucas' dreadful writing) has already butchered a little known Star Wars character called Darth Vader (fault number one goes to Jake Lloyd in Episode I, damn little bitch). Hayden's performance is known to fuck up almost every movie he's featured in as the leading man. Off the top of my head, the recently atrocious Vanishing on 7th Street and the laughable Jumper. His facial expressions are limited to pouting, frowning, and bitching. Many know me to be an avid admirer of all things Canadian; most especially the talented actors they contribute. Sad to say, this talentless hack indeed hails from Canada. Recently, Hayden has provided me the courtesy of rekindling his career in a bunch of unknown B-movies I have no interest in, or has given up on Hollywood entirely (and no I did not research whether this is accurate or not because I could give two shits about the guy).

Just a while back, Warner finally released the teaser for the Man of Steel. This was attached to the American release of The Dark Knight Rises, which of course was not previewed in the Philippine screening. The first trailer is what it is. Many are griping that the one shown at this years Comic-con was better (well duh! it's a fucking convention for God's sake). Let's just be thankful that Warner was able to piece together a pretty serviceable trailer.

The preview accomplishes what it sets out to do, which is to tease. Christopher Nolan returns to another beloved DC franchise. His and writer David Goyer's reality-based touches are apprarently everywhere. There are scenes of a young Clark striving to find his place in the world as he drifts from one place to the next. My first glimpse of Cavill's portrayal of an inexperienced Clark comes as a relief. I had such high praise for Brandon Routh's version of Kent but, never felt he was able to fully capture the heroics of Superman successfully. Cavill appears to be a better fit for both personas.The film is an origin story, (you can read my views on reboots here) so the voice-over of Jor-El/Jonathan Kent provides a fitting sense of poignancy. A nice touch with Clark as he hitch hikes 'John Rambo' style in one scene. It would be hilarious (mind you I'm not being serious here, but it wouldn't hurt if there was a director's cut of this) if the reboot took an absurd direction by having an unlucky small town Sheriff and his fellow officers unluckily draw first blood against Krypton's last son.

There are two versions for the trailer: Pa Kent or Jor-El voice over. Both are identical visually. I opted for the Jor-El version because Ridley Scott's Robin Hood owns Bryan Adam's Robin Hood any day (don't remember the director for Costner's Robin Hood and was lazy to search, but I do recall that lame Bryan Adam's song they played endlessly on the radio, damn I'm old). Don't mind the MSN and Capital One logos. Hit the trailer below!