News has been circulating faster than a speeding bullet that Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures have chosen their director to helm the new Superman reboot. Zack Snyder clinched the top job earlier this week, beating out a slew of directors who were in the running to re-invigorate the franchise. Christopher Nolan has been overseeing the development of the movie with the studios convinced by the success of his modern day Batman character that he and his team are the right people to revive the character in a modern context. The main reason for the studios to get the production rolling is the issue of copyright which requires a film to be in production by 2011 or risk losing control or face further litigation by the heirs of Superman co-creator Jerome Siegel.
At one point Jonathon Nolan who co-writes most of his brother’s films was seen to be a contender to helm the film and is currently prepping a new TV series with JJ Abrams. Director Tony Scott was also on the list as was Darren Aronofsky whose making waves with his ballet psycho drama Black Swan which sparked word that star Natalie Portman could be the new Lois Lane. Most recently Robert Zemeckis the accomplished Back to The Future director made news that he would be returning to live action film-making with a time travel flick which also saw his name thrown into the hat.
The final decision would’ve rested largely with Nolans’ producing team and the studios who are obviously impressed with Zack Snyder’s cinematic credits which show his narrative flair. He made his directorial debut with the Dawn of the Dead remake and followed that with his blockbuster spartan flick, 300. His most recent film Legend of the Guardians is currently #2 in cinemas and is his next film Sucker Punch which is in post production stars Vanessa Hudgens and Emily Browning and is a dark tale that veers into a surreal reality when a group of young girls are trapped in a mental institution.
Zack Snyder turned the world of superheroes upside down with his movie Watchmen that told the story of a group of aging and outlawed heroes in an alternate 1985, using his trademark visual style and dark humor. It made many comic book fans and movie goers take a closer look at a genre that has become diluted by studio flicks that despite impressive CGI, lack the comic’s original tone. The writers have indicated that as with Batman’s reboot they will strive to find the origin of the Superman character the way it was originally envisaged. Zack Snyder was interviewed by MTV shortly after being announced as director and here’s what he said:
Chris and David — have created an amazing story and the “Why Superman?” question is definitely being looked at with care. That’s all I could hope for as a director — that those guys have already gone a long way to making him, addressing the “Why?” of Superman, and toward understanding him. … Everyone always says “Why Superman?” Why is he relevant? Who is he now?
The story is being kept under tight wraps though initial reports indicate the Clark Kent character struggles to find his identity and travels the globe before embracing his destiny. Further talk suggests that the new film may use elements of the popular reboot comic Superman: Birthright which reworks much of the back-story from the Kryptonian beginnings to the Kents who are much younger and more vigil, encouraging Clark’s transition to his superhero persona.
As for bad guys General Zod is rumored to be on the list as the only real connection to the home-world and a match in super powers, as well as the Brainiac super computer villain and the diabolical earth bound nemesis Lex Luthor.
The difficulties with these comic-book bad guys and the mythos in general is the seemingly endless revisions that have taken place over the decades with different writers and artists re-inventing the origins in a bid to attract more fans or update the aging characters. The world of Superman in both TV and movies are a similar paradigm which is bound to the eras in which they were made, the original 1977 flick was a statement of the sensibilities and issues facing that era and much of the translation of the mythos was an attempt to ground the characters in the world of that time.
With the Nolan team now securing the visionary Snyder and an approach to story telling which not only aims to reintroduce audiences to a timeless character but strives to update him in today’s context, it will be a film worth the wait. Judging from the combined talents we can be sure that the new film will be a re-energized extension and a new beginning to which countless fans around the globe will be holding their collective breaths in anticipation.
Superman: The Man of Steel will fly into cinemas in 2012.
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