It was better than I expected but keep in mind I expected very little.
Henry Cavill was pretty good as Superman-- I still don't like a brit playing America's biggest pulp hero, but at least he played a Superman who wasn't some mamby pamby boy man as the last Superman was.
The Good-
The effects were solid-- I don't like CGI but these were at least watchable.
They varied the origin story a bit-- in terms of how they told it-- and for most of us that's a good thing because we know the story of the doomed planet Krypton with its one scientist who tries to warn them sending his son to Earth where he's raised by Ma and Pa Kent in Kansas learning how to adapt to his super powers.
And they covered the struggles he'd have with these powers, ex ray vision, heat vision, flight in a really great manner.
Amy Adams as Lois Lane-- for the first time in the history of the live action you have a strong female character who doesn't look like she'll end up homeless with no teeth in someone's backyard (Sorry Margot).
Michael Shannon as General Zod-- he didn't have the gravitas of Terence Stamp in the '78 movie, but he seemed like a real threat.
No more goofiness, one of the things I absolutely HATE about every other version of Superman is the "gosh he can lift a car-- gosh he can stand on the side of a building, etc" goofy reaction that the average person has-- this time the Earth see's him as a threat-- and he only reluctantly "comes out" as Superman when Zod comes a calling for him.
Diane Lane as Ma Kent-- usually a character who is played as a combination Aunt May and a doddering old crone, this time she's a much stronger character-- and she should be, she's Superman's mom.
No bumbling Clark Kent-- no real Clark Kent at all.
The Bad-
The story was predictable.
The dialogue was really weak, why can't Hollywood hire real writers anymore?
The costume-- I hate the dark look of it-- why can't the cape be bright red?
No Jimmy Olsen?? C'mon!
Kal-El starts as a greenhorn on THE DEADLIEST CATCH? How much imagination did that take? The screenwriter likely just looked up at his TV screen for that bit of inspiration.
It's TOO LONG by about 45 minutes-- and it could have been so easy to cut-- why do we have to have endless scenes of establishing shots? The exhaust dripping off a truck's tailpipe? Learn how to edit!
But overall-- not a bad movie.
