(spoiler notice)
What is one thing that can consistently damage a movie?
Answer: put a kid in it.
I really enjoyed Superman. I really did. And I even liked the kid. But when they made Superman the father, I was pissed. The ramifications can ruin Superman. (SB and I discussed this, and we’re of the same opinion. The same sorts of things bug us, such as Gordon driving the Batmobile *weary sigh* )
The most obvious issue with a baby conceived by Lois and Superman is biological. I’m fairly sure I don’t need to go further than… they are entirely different species.
Let us now address story consequences. Superman is a messianic figure, a fictional ideal. To make him a father is to make him sexually active. To reproduce is human, but the point of an ideal is to be more than human, above human. Being a father knocks him down to human level.
Ok, so now that he is a father, what does that mean? Well, it means that he has two choices. 1) Superman must dedicate his life to his son rather than saving the world. 2) Superman is an absentee father. Neither a good option. And if you go with the first option, then Superman breaks up Lois’s engagement to Richard, and Superman becomes a homewrecker.
So why can’t Lois have just went on with her life during Superman’s 5-year absence? Why can’t she have had a baby with her fiancé? Why can’t Superman remain a paragon? And why can’t James Marsden get a role where the woman with whom he has a relationship actually wants him?
Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed the movie very much. It just had one flaw. The casting was very good. The energy, mood, spirit of it was just right. I recommend that you all see it.
