Big Blue Messiah

"Superman Returns" was supposed to blow.

In the 19 years since the last "Superman" debacle, various story treatments had Superman being killed by a mutated Lex Luthor, refigured as a neurotic afraid of his own powers or from a Krypton that didn't explode. Thankfully, the comic book gods saw fit to boot such misfits as Nicolas Cage and Brett Ratner. Instead, Bryan Singer got the gig.

Singer, as fellow comic nerds know, is the guy who did such a masterful job on the first two "X-Men" films. But could he make the switch from Marvel to DC? "X-Men" is all about outcasts and prejudice. "Superman" is more elemental, more pure -- still about alienation, to be sure, but the hero is celebrated rather than reviled.

Fortunately, Singer gets that. Only, maybe he gets it a little too well.

In Singer's vision, the Man of Steel has a bit of a messiah complex. Or maybe Singer himself, or screenwriters Michael Dougherty and Dan Wells, do. The Superman-as-Jesus metaphor is wrapped around the film tighter than Supes' codpiece. (Wow, that might be a little inappropriate. Oh well, it's late.)

That idea's nothing new, though it's more likely that Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster had the immigration experiences of Jews in mind more than a Son of God pastiche. But my word, does Singer lay it on a bit thick with countless images of Superman floating with his arms outstretched, a pivotal scene that might as well have taken place on Calvary, and much ado about fathers entrusting their sons with the future of humanity.

I had no idea when I made an offhand joke to my friend Sue during the previews about "The Nativity" being a prequel to "The Passion of the Christ" that we were about to see "PotC's" sequel, replete with more resurrection imagery than your average Easter pageant.

It works, heavy-handedly as it's sometimes done. Singer gets how to make comic book heroes relevant on film, just as he gets how to translate 2-D action into glorious 3-D special effects. The cast, which I'll deal with later, is almost great, with a few reservations.

More later.

Back again

So much for regular posting, huh? Some evil force infected my home computer, and I've been unable to get it fixed like I hoped. But now, I have a new laptop for work, so I'm connected at home again. God, I love my job.

Yes, six weeks into the new gig and I'm still happy, happy, happy. It's so different from my last job. Not just the work itself -- which, duh. It's also so much more of a healthy atmosphere; I didn't even realize how bad the old place really was til I actually left.

My life has changed so much in the last six weeks. I have free time now that I don't have to do so much -- especially movie watching. Until Thursday, I hadn't even gone to a movie in almost two months. I finally broke down and went to see "United 93" at the bargain theater the night before it left town. (Harrowing film, by the way, but definitely glad to have seen it.) I'll go see another movie Tuesday when "Superman Returns" opens in an outing with some co-workers and others.

Yes, I'm hanging out with co-workers. I haven't done that much since my friend Beth left the paper last year. General dissatisfaction with my environment? Mostly. Overload of stress? Certainly. A commentary on those I used to work with? Not really, but I certainly have a lot more in common with the people at my new job.