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Man of Steel (film)
Man of Steel banner
Released June 14, 2013
Directed by Zack Snyder
Written by Christopher Nolan
David S. Goyer
Music by Hans Zimmer
Duration 147 minutes
Studio Warner Bros. Pictures
Rated PG-13
Budget $225,000,000
Revenue $668,045,518

Man of Steel is a film based on the origins of Superman. Directed by Zack Snyder, produced by Christopher Nolan, and starring Henry Cavill as the title character, the film was released on June 14, 2013. It served as a launchpad for the DC Extended Universe, a shared cinematic universe based on the DC properties and serves as one of many worlds of the Multiverse according to The Flash movie .[1]

Man of Steel was followed up by Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and the 2017 theatrical cut and 2021 director's cut of Justice League. Together, MoS, BvS and ZSJL constitute the "Snyder DC Trilogy", also nicknamed the "DC Snyderverse".


Cast[]

Thumb-henrycavill
Henry Cavill
as Superman
Thumb-amyadams
Amy Adams
as Lois Lane
Thumb-laurencefishburne
Laurence Fishburne
as Perry White
Thumb-michaelshannon
Michael Shannon
as General Zod
Thumb-antjetraue
Antje Traue
as Faora
Thumb-russellcrowe
Russell Crowe
as Jor-El
Thumb-ayeleturer
Ayelet Zurer
as Lara Lor-Van
Thumb-dianelane
Diane Lane
as Martha Kent
Thumb-kevincostner
Kevin Costner
as Jonathan Kent
Thumb-harrylennix
Harry Lennix as
General Swanwick
Thumb-christophermeloni
Christopher Meloni as
Colonel Hardy
Thumb-richardschiff
Richard Schiff
as Emil Hamilton

Additional cast[]

  • Dylan Sprayberry as 13 year old Clark Kent
  • Jadin Gould as 13 year old Lana Lang
  • Cooper Timberline as 9 year old Clark Kent
  • Robert Gerdisch as Whitney Fordham

Plot[]

On the planet Krypton, Lara Lor-Van gives birth to a son named Kal-El with the help of her husband Jor-El. Later, Jor travels to Kandor on his pet H'Raka where he stands in front of the Kryptonian Law Council, warning them the planet is about to collapse because of the council's decision to harvest the planet's core to serve their civilization's depleted energy reserves. They dismiss his claims but before Jor-El can do anything else, General Zod overthrows the council in a violent coup, instigating a civil war. Concerned, Jor breaches the Genesis Chamber and steals the Growth Codex, the repository from which all Kryptonians are artificially conceived and genetically engineered for predetermined roles in society; Kal-El is is the first naturally conceived and born Kryptonian in centuries. After returning home, Jor graphs the atomized particles of the Codex onto Kal-El's red blood cells and then creates a Command Key. After saying their final goodbyes, Jor and Lara put Kal and the key into a rocketship that will take him to Earth, a far-off planet inhabited by a species that physically resemble Kryptonians and orbits a yellow sun, which Jor states will give Kal exceptional abilities. Zod discovers their plan and attacks Jor. A fight ensues, with Zod stabbing and killing Jor, while Lara launches Kal-El's ship to Earth. The ship safely escapes Krypton's atmosphere while the Sapphire Guards intercept the coup's forces and arrest Zod. Zod and his followers are put on trial for murder and treason and are sentenced to the Phantom Zone. As he's being taken away, Zod rants out the Council and vows to Lara, who is in attendance, that he will find Kal and take back the Codex. Zod and his followers are then put into stasis and brought aboard the Black Zero, a gigantic Kryptonian ship that is then placed into the Phantom Zone. Lara later returns home, and as Krypton explodes, she prays for Kal to make a better world. Kal-El's rocket lands in the field of farmers Jonathan and Martha Kent in Smallville, Kansas.

Thirty-three years later, Kal-El, now known as Clark Kent, is working on a crab boat when they receive a distress signal that an oil rig in the distance is on fire. Jumping overboard and swimming over, he begins to help people get to safety as the Coast Guard arrive to evacuate the employees. When a piece of rigging threatens to fall on them, Clark holds it up with his superhuman strength long enough for them to get clear before an explosion sends Clark flying into the water. While drifting unconscious, Clark remembers an incident from when he was 9 years old. His super hearing and x-ray vision first started manifesting while he was in class one day. Overwhelmed by the experience, he ran away and hid himself in the janitor's closet, refusing to come out until Martha helped him control his powers with breathing and meditation exercises.

Returning ashore, Clark steals some clothes and skips town, seeing a school bus on the way, reminding him of a day from when he was 13 and the school bus he was on blew out a tire and ran off over a bridge and into the river. Clark, using his super strength, pushed the bus out of the river and stopped it from sinking, revealing his powers to Lana Lang and Pete Ross in the process. Pete's mother later told the Kents about Clark's astonishing feat, but the elder Kents denied that there was anything special about their son. Later, Jonathan stressed to Clark the importance of keeping his powers secret for fear of Clark's safety, telling him that people are afraid of what they don't understand. When Clark pressed him for answers, Jonathan revealed the Kryptonian space pod Clark arrived to them on, which he kept hidden under a barn. He gave Clark the Command Key and encouraged him to find out his true origins and why he was sent to Earth while reassuring him he's still his son.

Clark is now working in a highway bar where he overhears some men talking about the military looking for a strange object under the ice near the Arctic. Meanwhile, a patron starts sexually harassing a waitress. Clark comes to her defense, and later, destroys the truck belonging to the man responsible before skipping town in the direction of the alien ship.

Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane arrives via chopper to report on the object under the ice and has her bags carried by Clark, who is posing as a worker there. The operation is led by US Air Force Colonel Nathan Hardy, who is working with Dr. Emil Hamilton of DARPA. Hamilton is not pleased to see Lois there and tries to get her away, but her clearance allows her to stay. They reveal that imaging has turned up a massive object that's nearly 20,000 years old. Later that night, Clark, away from the military, burrows through the ice with his heat vision. Lois spots and follows him. The object turns out to be a large alien spacecraft. Aboard the ship, Clark is accosted by a robot sentry until he inserts the Command Key into a port, activating the ship's systems. Lois is then attacked by the sentry when she tries to take a picture of it, getting wounded in the process. Clark saves her and cauterizes her wound with his heat vision. He then takes her outside where she can be found before the ship takes off and flies away.

Lois writes an article about what she saw in the Arctic, but her editor, Perry White, refuses to publish it on the grounds that he's worried what kinds of ramifications this story would have on the world. She then has blogger Glenn Woodburn "leak" the story on the Internet.

The ship settles on Ellesmere Island and Clark is greeted by a holographic projection of Jor-El, who tells Clark the full story of his origins, his birth name and why he was sent to Earth. Jor-El reveals that in the distant past, Krypton was once a flourishing civilization and sought to expand themselves in the vastness of space a long time before human civilization even started; the ship Clark found was one of hundreds lost in the void. However, these grandiose projects died out once artificial breeding was established and when they didn't manage to find new resources, and by the time of Kal's birth, their society was a shell of its past glory. Believing that Krypton's artificial breeding and genetic engineering policies led to this downfall with Kryptonians losing the ability to choose their own lives, Jor and Lara conceived Kal to rebel against this system and sent him to Earth to not just escape Krypton's end but to forge his own path. Jor believes humanity has the potential to become as great as Krypton was at its height with Kal's guidance as he can embody the best of both worlds, gifting him a formal Kryptonian suit emblazoned with the House of El's coat of arms - a symbol meant to represent hope. After donning the suit and taking Jor's words of encouragement to keep pushing the limits of his abilities, Clark, after a stumble, is successfully able to fly.

Lois begins investigating Clark's life and his history of saving and helping people over the years, including talking with a grown-up Pete before turning up at the Kent Farm. Lois visits Jonathan's grave where Clark arrives and tells her the story of how Jonathan died helping people during a tornado and sacrificed himself to keep Clark's abilities a secret. The topic is especially painful for Clark, as he and Jonathan had an argument before the tornado struck and he never got the chance to apologize for what he'd said in the heat of the moment. Lois promises not to publish the story to honor Jonathan's sacrifice. Clark returns home and reunites with Martha, excitedly telling her what he's found out while reassuring her nothing between them has changed.

The Black Zero arrives in Earth's orbit and transmits a message across the world to every electronic device, demanding Kal-El hand himself over to them within 24 hours or Earth will suffer the consequences. Lois is forcibly taken in by the FBI after Woodburn outs her as knowing Kal-El while Clark visits a priest at the local church for advice on what he must do. The priest, Father Leone, tells Clark to take a leap of faith. Clark recalls another childhood incident in which he was being bullied by some classmates who tried to goad him into fighting back, even as he refused; later, Jonathan told him that he would grow up to change the world and that it's up to him to decide what kind of man he wants to become.

Donning his Kryptonian suit, Clark flies to Edwards Air Force Base where he surrenders himself to General Calvin Swanwick and Colonel Hardy's forces on the condition that Lois be freed. Lois interviews Clark on his origins and notes that the House of El crest looks like the letter "S", giving her an idea for an alias Clark can use. In the middle of the desert, Zod's ship lands, where they are greeted by Faora Hu-Ul, who demands that Lois come along too. Despite Hardy's protests, Lois obliges and as they're being brought aboard the Black Zero, Kal slips her the Command Key. Lois is given a visor to help her breathe, as the atmospheric composition aboard Black Zero is toxic to humans and Kal collapses, weakened and coughing up blood due to having adapted to Earth's atmosphere. He is strapped down to a table in his weakened state and meets General Zod in a mental projection. Zod explains that after he and his followers escaped the Phantom Zone and repurposed the Black Zero's Phantom Zone projector into a hyperdrive, they searched through abandoned Kryptonian outposts for supplies and other possible survivors. Due to Clark's activation of the old Kryptonian ship, they picked up the signal it put out and tracked it to Earth. Zod offers Kal the chance to bring Krypton back. However, Zod plans to use Earth as the foundation, which will wipe out all of humanity. Kal refuses to go along with this. Zod then reveals he killed Jor-El and then leaves to search for the Codex.

Meanwhile, Lois activates the Command Key. The Jor-El AI takes over the Black Zero's systems, changing the atmosphere to give Clark his powers back. He also helps Lois escape the ship, giving her instructions on how to send the invaders back to the Phantom Zone. She boards an escape pod, which gets damaged by one of Zod's followers. Kal escapes and has final words with his father, who encourages him to save Lois and all of humanity. He flies out and saves Lois before her pod burns up and crashes.

On the Kent Farm, Zod and his forces confront Martha, demanding to know where the Codex is. Clark arrives and tackles Zod, punching him in a rage as they fly across Smallville before crash-landing in the town center. Zod's helmet is damaged and his senses are overwhelmed as he is exposed to Earth's environment. Clark taunts the weakened general and is blasted by an arriving Kryptonian vessel. Zod is escorted away while Faora and Nam-Ek remain behind to battle Kal in a destructive confrontation throughout Smallville. The US military, led by Hardy, also arrive and engage all three Kryptonians; Faora easily dispatches all of the human soldiers while Kal is able to send Nam-Ek crashing into a nearby train yard. Clark then tackles Faora just as she's about to fight Hardy one-on-one, only to be hit by a train thrown by Nam-Ek and sent crashing into a nearby store. A missile hits Faora, knocking her out, and Nam-Ek departs with her. Kal emerges from the ruins before Hardy and his soldiers and Hardy declares that Kal is not the enemy. Kal thanks the colonel and flies off to the Kent Farm to check on Martha. Lois arrives with information on how to defeat Zod and his men.

Back aboard the Black Zero, Zod learns from Jax-Ur that Jor-El infused the Codex into Kal's cells; after Jax-Ur confirms that Kal does not need to be alive in order for the Codex to be extracted, Zod orders for the World Engine, a machine used by the old Kryptonian space explorers to terraform planets, to be deployed. The World Engine detaches from the Black Zero and lands in the Indian Ocean while the Black Zero positions itself over Metropolis. As the World Engine begins its terraforming process, Dr. Hamilton realizes what is happening and warns that once the Engine has finished its work, there won't be a human race left. Kal-El (now christened "Superman"), Lois, and Hardy arrive with Kal-El's ship in tow, explaining to Swanwick and Hamilton that both the Black Zero and Kal-El's spacecraft are powered by a Phantom drive and that causing the two to collide will create a singularity that will suck Zod and his soldiers back into the Phantom Zone. Swanwick assents to the plan, and Superman flies off to the Indian Ocean to destroy the World Engine.

Kal's ship is loaded aboard a military plane that heads to Metropolis, where the Black Zero, working in tandem with the World Engine, is causing massive destruction in the city. Zod heads to Ellesmere Island, where he hones his heightened senses before entering the scout ship and installing his own command key, giving himself control of the craft. Jor-El appears and tries to talk Zod out of going through with his plan, but Zod cruelly rebuffs his former friend and deletes his program from the ship's systems before taking the controls and flying to Metropolis. Superman battles the World Engine's defensive measures despite the toxic atmosphere it is generating, then gathers his strength and flies straight into the Engine, destroying it.

Superman then flies to Metropolis and lands in the scout ship, rejecting Zod's pleas that damaging the ship will ruin the chance to rebuild Krypton, arguing back that Krypton had its chance. Superman uses his heat vision to damage the genesis chamber, flooding the ship and causing it to crash through skyscrapers into the ground of Metropolis. The military are deployed to take out the Black Zero but the gravity beam throws their missiles off course. Lois, Dr. Hamilton, and Colonel Hardy are aboard a C-17 with Kal-El's ship, which he gave to them to use against the Black Zero. Faora arrives on the plane and takes the soldiers onboard out, but is unable to stop Hardy as he flies the plane into Black Zero, creating a portal to the Phantom Zone which sucks everything inside, including the ship, Zod's followers, and Hardy, Hamilton, and Faora. Lois falls out, but is saved as Superman catches her in mid-air. After he puts Lois down next to Perry, Steve, and Jenny, they share a kiss. Superman then leaves to confront an enraged Zod, who vows to kill all the humans in revenge as his purpose in life (to protect Krypton and its people) has been taken from him. The two then have a devastating battle across Metropolis, destroying several buildings and cars in the process. Zod then rips off his armor and learns to fly as the two continue to battle an even fort contest. After their fight takes them up into space, they then land inside Metropolis Central Station where Zod opens his heat vision on civilians. Superman grapples with Zod, trying to avert his heat vision before having no other choice but to snap Zod's neck, killing him. Horrified at what he did, Superman screams out in agony as Lois arrives to console a deeply hurt Kal-El.

Some time later, Superman downs a U.S. military drone, to the consternation of Army General Calvin Swanwick. Superman reassures him he's not an enemy of American interests or of humanity's, but he does not want anyone spying on him. Swanwick begrudgingly agrees.

Returning to Smallville to speak with his mother Martha, the two peacefully think back to the 9 year old Clark playing in the garden and running around with a red cape on his back, a sign of things to come and the potential Jonathan always saw in him. Martha then asks what Clark's going to do when he's not saving the world, and Clark tells her he has to get a job where he can keep his head to the ground and no one will get suspicious when he wants to go to dangerous places.

In a rebuilding Metropolis, Clark is on his bike and arrives at the Daily Planet. As he enters the elevator, he puts on his eyeglasses so nobody would recognize him as the alien hero 'Superman'. He is greeted by Lois Lane, who welcomes him to the Planet.

Themes[]

Controlling idea - the role of the powerful - trust of and allying with those who are weaker or destroying the environment for the benefit of the powerful.

This theme plays out early in the film as the council justifies using Krypton's core to fulfill energy requirements by saying there is a lack, while Jor-El retort that they have betrayed the people and hastened their doom. Zod uses a similar justification to overthrow the council. However, Jor-El challenges his desire to assume power as another form of tyrannical rule after Zod expresses his intention to carry out a degree of genocide. Shortly there after, as Superman's parents consider sending him to Earth they notice that he will be seen as a god on Earth and worry at how he will use his power.

Similarly, later in the movie, Zod reappears to terraform and conquer Earth as the new home of the kryptonian people. This gravitic and atomospheric transformation of the planet will destroy all human life on Earth. The relationship between Zod's kryptonian transformation of Earth is sharply constrasted with Superman's relationship to the military leadership. Superman says that the government cannot control him but that they are not enemies, similarly to earliest depictions of Superman where, although he wasn't strange to use lethal force against criminals and evil-doers, he never engaged in combat with police nor (friendly) military even when they were shooting him or throwing bombs at him. They work together in the end to protect the planet from the kryptonians.

Possible Noncanonical Elements[]

Genetic engineering and biotechnological basis of Kryptonian science/powers - Biotech, nanotech, and mass manipulation almost entirely replace earlier forms of Kryptonian crystal technology (like Sunstone Crystal) in other Superman movies while preserving the yellow sun radiation explanations that serve as the justification for Superman's and other Kryptonians' powers on Earth. Noncanonical to previous movies, but to the comics, particularly post-The Man of Steel relaunch era.

Sensitivity to Kryptonian atmosphere and absence of Kryptonite - The time frame for Superman to adapt to Earth's atmosphere and choking up blood when exposed to Kryptonian atmosphere shows that the atmosphere may be inherently toxic for both humans and non-humans largely fits with earlier Superman depictions. However, his Earth mother's description of him having difficulty breathing as a child, although similar to the asthmatic issue of the half-Kryptonian boy, Jason White, from Superman Returns, may be a departure from earlier depictions. The difficulty breathing may not be directly related to being introduced into the new Earth atmosphere, but instead biotechnical-genetic based in growing up on Earth as a Kryptonian. Zod was expecting adapting to Earth's atmosphere to take decades for which he instead opted to transform the planet to have a Kryptonian atmosphere. Zod was desrcibing general population's adaptation, from birth.

Posters[]


Images[]

Trivia[]

(From DC Movies Wiki)

  • In the words of Warner Bros. President Alan F. Horn, "I thought Superman Returns (2006) was a very successful movie, but I think it should have done $500 million worldwide. We should have had perhaps a little more action to satisfy the young male crowd." $175 million is the maximum budget the studio is aiming for The Man of Steel.
  • Comic book writer Mark Millar planned a trilogy of films, running to eight hours, which would chronicle the life story of Superman. He had pitched a sequel idea while Bryan Singer was still attached, but due to his association with Marvel Comics, was turned down. However, once a reboot was announced, Millar pitched his trilogy idea to Warner Bros, where it was subsequently turned down.
  • The president of Legendary Pictures Thomas Tull said that "Superman needs a powerful antagonist, a worthy opponent." Tull also wants to evoke Superman as an "angry God."
  • David Goyer, James McTeigue, Jonathan Nolan and Chris Columbus were all linked with directing the movie.
  • Darren Aronofsky, Duncan Jones, Ben Affleck, Tony Scott, Matt Reeves and Jonathan Liebesman were considered to direct the movie. Zack Snyder was later chosen.
  • Actors Brandon Routh, Tom Welling, Joe Manganiello, Patrick Wilson, Erryn Arkin and Sam Worthington had all been rumored to star in the movie. The part of Superman ultimately went to Henry Cavill. Cavill was previously cast in the aborted project Superman: Flyby and was among the frontrunners to play Superman in Superman Returns but Routh was cast instead.
  • Matthew Goode, Armie Hammer, Matt Bomer and Robin O'Donoghue were on the final shortlist for the lead role.
  • Natalie Portman, Anne Hathaway, Dianna Agron, Kristen Stewart, Malin Akerman, Rachel McAdams, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kristen Bell, Lake Bell and Jessica Biel were considered to play Lois Lane. Anne Hathaway went on to play Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises.
  • Before Diane Lane was cast, actresses considered for Martha Kent included Julianne Moore, Lisa Rinna, Jodie Foster, Bridget Fonda and Elisabeth Shue.
  • Amanda Seyfried auditioned for a role but was turned down.
  • Viggo Mortensen and Daniel Day-Lewis were considered to play General Zod.
  • Before Kevin Costner was cast as Jonathan Kent, Dennis Quaid, Bruce Greenwood, Michael Biehn and Kurt Russell were considered.
  • Prior to being cast as Lois, Amy Adams had two previous Superman connections. Adams played Jodi Melville in a first season episode of Smallville (2001); and her co-star from Enchanted (2007), James Marsden, played Richard White in Superman Returns (2006). Some of the other actors who participated both in Smallville and Man of Steel : Elizabeth Thai, Mackenzie Gray, Chad Krowchuk.
  • Both director Bryan Singer and actor Brandon Routh expressed interest in reprising their positions from Superman Returns (2006) on this film; Singer had originally outlined several sequels to follow his story, and Routh was contracted as well. When Warner Bros. announced this film as a "clean reboot" from Singer's film, Routh still expressed interest in returning before Zack Snyder declared that this movie would have no ties to any previous cinematic incarnation of the character.
  • Due to his success with The Dark Knight Trilogy franchise, Christopher Nolan was brought on to help develop the reboot of Superman along with screenwriter David S. Goyer. This was merely as a creative consultant, it was never intended for Nolan to direct. When Zack Snyder was later brought on as director, Nolan chose to hand all creative control over to Snyder and focus on The Dark Knight Rises (2012). According to Nolan's wife/producer Emma Thomas, "They Nolan and Goyer brought it to an appropriate screenplay and it's now Snyder's picture."
  • Sean Penn was offered a major role in the film but turned it down.
  • Kevin Costner's role was previously played by Glenn Ford. Both of them have been involved in competing projects about Wyatt Earp. Glenn was cast in Tombstone (1993), but had to drop out. Costner played the title role in Wyatt Earp (1994), which also cast him opposite Gene Hackman (the original Lex Luthor) as his father.
  • To prepare himself for the role of playing the Man of Steel, Henry Cavill went through a rigorous workout routine to achieve his Superman physique. The English actor gained approximately 20 pounds of muscle during his time of preparation, and in between breaks onset, keep up with his muscular frame by performing push ups and pull ups to pass the time. He refused to take steroids or have CGI enhancements on his physique. Cavill also dyed his natural brown hair color to black.
  • Aaron Smolinski who previously played Clark Kent as he arrived on planet Earth and was discovered by Kents in Superman: The Movie as well as Boy near the "Photographs" Photo Booth with his mother (played by Aaron's real life mother) in Superman III. In Man of Steel as a Communications Officer he can be seen standing near General Swanwick and between Dr Hamilton and Major Farris in the scene when Faora takes Lois from them. Arron is set to play Lex Luthor in the upcoming Superman : Solar (2023) unofficial non-profit fan film made by Superman fans.
  • In the final flashback of the film young Clark wears clothes that are similar to New52 initial Superman costume
  • Superman's and Jor-El's costumes cuffs aesthetic and design were based off 1936 Joe Shuster sketch.

Sources[]


Superman Films
Film Serials SupermanAtom Man vs. Superman
Theatrical Films Superman and the Mole-MenSuperman: The MovieSuperman IISuperman IIISuperman IV: The Quest for PeaceSuperman ReturnsMan of SteelBatman v Superman: Dawn of JusticeJustice LeagueZack Snyder's Justice LeagueSuperman: Legacy
Spin-off films SupergirlSteel
Made-for-TV/DVD films Superman: 50th Anniversary SpecialLook, Up in the Sky: The Amazing Story of SupermanSuperman II: The Richard Donner CutThe Death of "Superman Lives": What Happened?
Animated Films Superman: Brainiac AttacksSuperman: DoomsdaySuperman ⁄ Batman: Public EnemiesSuperman ⁄ Batman: ApocalypseSuperman ⁄ Shazam!: The Return of Black AdamAll-Star SupermanSuperman Versus the EliteBatman: The Dark Knight ReturnsSuperman: Unbound
Justice League Justice League: The New FrontierJustice League: Crisis on Two EarthsJustice League: DoomThe Lego MovieThe Flashpoint ParadoxJustice League: War
Shorts The Joker's PlayhouseSuperman 75th Anniversary

References[]

External links[]

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