Not too long ago, I wrote a fun little post about how sports would be changed in the world of Marvel comics. It showed how the existence of superpowered humans and other factors prevalent in the four-color world would have a major impact on sports and athletics in general.
I thought I would continue that theme, but this time illustrating how the legal system would be affected in such a world. The forces of law & order (the concept, not the show,) face enough challenges in our world, one can only imagine the extra burdens placed upon the legal system in a universe with superheroes.
Oh, and since I focused on Marvel last time, I figured I'd use the DC universe this go around, just in the interest of equal time.
To begin with, let's look at the legalities of superheroes themselves: Part of the charm of most super heroes (at least the more street-level, 'beat up crooks' types,) is that they serve justice even when the law doesn't allow for such things. Much has been made about Batman frequently being viewed as a criminal by the police, and indeed, it is often held up as a testament to James Gordon's brilliance that he was the only cop with the wisdom to reach out to the Dark Knight for his quasi-official help. They are heroic vigilantes, and we never question their right to take the law into their own hands and protect us from evil, as long as they wear a costume.
But let's look at how they protect us. When Superman or Wonder Woman defend the White House from Darkseid's parademons or Doctor Fate and Zatanna banish an elder demon's eldritch horde, everyone cheers when the last evil minion disappears in a boom tube/puff of brimstone. But what about domestic threats? If Green Lantern foils an armed robbery by ski-masked thugs, can said thugs sue for damages from his glowing green fists?
Those are American citizens, criminals though they might be, and as such are entitled to certain inalienable (we'll discuss how that term works in a world with real aliens another time,) rights. Being the guardian of Sector 2814 gives GL no civil authority to arrest them, even if they are in the act of committing a crime. If they suffer injuries during the act, from whom can they seek redress?
There are legal precedents for private citizens working to stop crimes and apprehend criminals, but they do not account for individuals repeatedly charging into tense situations involving armed assailants. Having these civilians at the crime scene could jeopardize the legal cases against the "alleged" criminals. If the police storm in to the bank and find a half a dozen men tied up courtesy of our hero, what can they be charged with? Being in a bank during a robbery?
Likewise, if Blue Beetle (either one,) stops some thieves fleeing a jewelry store, beats them up and leaves them tied to a lamp post (Spidey style,) along with the loot, who can serve as eyewitness? A costumed vigilante isn't going to show up in court to testify, he'd have to reveal his identity, which would negate the whole point of concealing it in the first place. And even if the prosecution used such testimony, if the witness' identity could not be verified (he is wearing a mask after all,) the whole case will no doubt be tossed.
And even if they are on security cameras, can any subsequent arrest be valid? The involvement of an outsider (who does all the work, frankly,) surely disrupts the normal procedure, and could easily form the basis of a strong defense by any attorney.
Even if the legal system adapts to having criminals apprehended by masked vigilantes, what about the villains themselves? Most of them run around masked as well. If the Flash pursues an 'alleged' freeze gun wielding bank rober, who happened to be wearing a blue fur-lined parka and snow-blind goggles, and a few minutes later he delivers one Leonard Snart, alias Captain Cold, is there any real proof that Mr. Snart is in fact guilty of the crime? Is there not reasonable doubt of his identity because of the mask? (hey, lots of people have freeze guns these days...)
You see, that's the big sticking point: reasonable doubt. In a world with paranormal and supernatural powers, what couldn't be reasonable doubt? Mr. Snart has previously had violent clashes with the speedster known as the Flash (and does anybody even know if that is the same guy in that suit?) thus establishing bad blood between them, who's to say that the Flash didn't just put that uniform on Leonard using super speed just to frame him? A clever lawyer could do wonders with such a defense, there's a whole bar full of brightly costumed loonies to alibi Snart, and the Flash can't even swear in to testify in his own defense.
But that is just the tip of the iceberg (no pun intended.) The very existence of shapechangers can establish reasonable doubt. Let's say you're no super villain, you're just a small-time crook who's run afoul of the Martian Manhunter. You get busted because eyewitnesses place you at the scene of the robbery. Your lawyer concocts a tale of how you were actually at home during the time of the robbery, and this is all just a frame-up by the green menace. Remember that the burden of proof is on the prosecution, and is there any way to prove that J'onn J'onzz didn't use his shape-changing powers to impersonate you? At least one person on that jury is likely to be afraid of aliens (and does he even have a green card?) and there's your hung jury.
DNA evidence proves it was really you who did the deed? Why that could have been planted there microscopically by Ray Palmer as the Atom. Or transmogrified on an atomic level by Firestorm, or placed there magically by Zatanna.
Even if they caught you red-handed, and apprehended you in the act with no super beings anywhere in sight, what about mind control? Once again, just the fact that people with the ability to control others' actions are a legally established reality would utterly destroy the concept of reasonable doubt. And what about clones? Or alternate dimensional versions of yourself? There are at least a dozen viable versions of "it wasn't me" defenses that would work in this world.
Superheroes have this happen all the time; the public sees them commit heinous crimes, but later the hero clears his or her good name by proving they were under mental domination by a vampire, it was really their Bizarro twin, or a clone, or one of the many robot duplicates they themselves created which had gone rogue (Superman has done all of these.) The public and the law enforcement community accept this explanation, the real perpetrators are destroyed or carted off to jail and all is well. Every criminal in the DCU has a potential defense there, and not only Lex Luthor (who has used this exact defense like a dozen times,) but also lowly Carl Blaszkiewicz, local plumbing contractor arrested for excessive parking violations.
And those are just the crimes that already appear on the books. Think about how we would have to change the very criminal code to account for the new crimes that would exist. Let's say that one of those mind controlling villains mentioned above (let's say Gorilla Grodd,) is actually caught red handed (red-brained?) in the act of controlling a hero's mind and ordering him to commit crimes (let's say robbery.)
With what exactly can the sinister simian be charged? A case could perhaps be made on the charge of robbery, but how would the use of an unwilling accomplice affect the situation? And what if it didn't commit a crime, but merely used this opportunity to humiliate the hero? If Grodd forces his nemesis the Flash to strut around town nude, is there any charge that the civil authorities could bring against him? Surely one cannot be charged with 'indecent exposure by proxy?' Flash would have a shot at a suit for public defamation (if it was a really cold day,) but that would require revealing his real identity (Barry Allen) in court, which would be a terrible idea, since the DCF would be at his doorstep the next day, since Wally was under 18 when Barry made him Kid Flash and exposed him to all sorts of child endangerment.
But mind control isn't the only thing a brain can do in the DCU. What if Psimon walks calmly into a Starbucks and straight up murders the barista with a psychic blast because she put to much foam in his latte? How will the legal codes need to be altered to account for weapons that can't simply be tagged and sealed up in an evidence bag? If the Atomic Skull (I know, I know,) fries a citizen with a blast of radiation from his hands, can he be tried with a deadly weapon? I mean if I sat on your head you'd die too, but my ass is not classified as a deadly weapon (although I am aware of a number of petitions to that effect.)
And if such allowances are made, that can swing both ways. If Superman turns and smiles at a random passerby, can that be construed as a threat? Everyone knows he's packing some serious firepower behind his baby blues, and he just point both barrels at citizen. And if he puts on a pair of shades, does he need to get a concealed carry permit? Does the NRA cover lasers? Or for that matter, exploding boomerangs?
What about those who never commit crimes personally, but create those who do? If Professor T.O. Morrow creates an android with ice powers (Red Hailstorm?) and unleashes it to do his bidding, stealing money and equipment for its maker, of course he can be arrested and charged with the crimes. But what if he serves his time and reforms, spending his days building toasters but his creation continues living the thug life (it really did choose him.) Is Morrow still on the hook for every crime Red Hailstorm commits? And what if the android is granted legal status like his older brother in the Justice League? If Red Tornado turns evil (which happens like every other week; seriously, don't let robots on your team!) can the government come after Morrow for his crimes, too?
Now imagine if Wonder Woman battles Ares in downtown D.C., and in the process of the fight your home and all your possessions are destroyed. Can your insurance company refuse to pay, citing it as an 'act of god?' (that capital G becomes very important at that point.) If you sentence the time traveler Per Degaton to six months in jail, if he manages to warp forward the six months, is he allowed to just walk out, time served? And what about the legal hassles of heroes and villains dying and coming back to life? Do they need a new social security number, and do past charges against them still stick?
So if you live in the DC universe, it may be all well and good that you have the unparalelled might of the Justice League, but your Justice System is pretty much fucked.
Monday, June 30, 2014
Friday, June 20, 2014
What The Next Superman Reboot Movie Needs Less Of:
*Note: This post was begun some time ago, before the announcement of the pending Superman/Batman film.
The two biggest drags on any Superman film are, in order: Superman and Clark Kent.
Now let me start by saying I am not one of those Superhaters, who feel the character is out of step with the modern world, and devoid of any value to today's comic readers and moviegoers. And there sure is a whole lot of hate out there for the big blue boy scout.
For the record, I love Superman, and believe that he is still a culturally relevant character, with plenty of stories left to tell. I feel any writer worth his or her salt can take the character and tell compelling, interesting stories that can resonate with audiences today, just as Siegel and Shuster's original stories did back in 1938.
However…
While new writers come on board the various Superman comics all the time, each bringing a new take on the classic character, they don't then retell his origin story. Beyond the several reboots the company has done over the years, new writers simply pick up where others have left off, maintaining the basic story: infant Kal El is sent to Earth to save him from the destruction of his home world, Krypton. Once here, the energy of our yellow sun gives him powers above and beyond those of mortal men, blah blah, locomotive, blah blah, speeding bullet, blah blah blah, mild-mannered reporter, lather, rinse, repeat. We all know the story, so comic writers don't feel the need to retell it each new story.
Why then do filmmakers?
It is a certainty that films and comics are different media, and each requires a different approach. But this is Superman for Christ's sake! Surely every corner of the globe has heard his story by now? Every new Superman movie has to go over this same material; retread old ground in the hopes of finding some new aspect that will make it worth watching the same origin story over again.
The most recent one tried to expand upon the story of Jor El and doomed Krypton, fleshing out that part of the story over what seemed like half the movie. And to what effect? By dividing up so much time between the two El men, the film dragged, giving us a film that was one part bland dystopian sci fi, one part mawkish Bill Bixby-era Incredible Hulk pastiche, with a splash of destruction porn in lieu of the supervillain-fighting action that people want to see.
You know, a Superman movie.
In comics, you have decades of stories on which to draw and build, and thousands of characters with which to interact. In a film, you have two to three hours tops, so you need to tell a compelling story, and tell it fast. Audiences want characters worth identifying with, and they don't want to have to sit through half the film before they meet the actual hero. Luke was shown to be a whiny little bitch in the first twenty minutes of Star Wars, but once his aunt and uncle get flash fried, he mans up quick and makes with the stormtrooper-blasting, princess-saving, chasm-swinging and Death Star-exploding action without further delay (or whining.)
Movie Supermen these days seem unable to do that for some reason. We spend so much time on him getting to Earth, then more time with him discovering his powers, then some angst over accepting his destiny, some soul-searching, etc. And when does he get to fight the villain? Will there even be a villain who is both interesting and a credible threat to a man of steel?
Perhaps the problem for film makers is that the character is hard to identify with in films. I mean, if Superman is bulletproof and brimming with power, what can threaten him? The comics have tons of top tier threats to ruin Supes' day, from ultra-powerful androids, nihilistic alien overlords and 5th dimensional imps to megalomaniacal super geniuses in kryptonite-powered battle suits.
But filmmakers seem loath to go for such "over-the-top" action, since audiences clearly do not want to see such goofy, comic book style cartoonish action. That's why "The Avengers" bombed so badly at the box office, remember?
So instead, we get a man of steel in our own, 'realistic' world, wherein he is unidentifiable to audiences because he is a god amongst us mortals. So many go the other way, focusing on Clark Kent as the main identity. Obviously audiences can identify more with him, as a man raised by humans, dealing with human trials and temptations.
But that guy is boring. Again, stripped of all those years of continuity, Clark Kent is just not all that interesting in a two-hour film.
Filmmakers have to balance the tale of Jor and Lara El sending their child to Earth, Ma and Pa Kent finding him and training him, Clark joining the world and making tough choices, and then find some time to make a suitable villain and get in some good punching action, which doesn't arrive until the end of the film. It's a tough job.
So how do we fix it?
I thought about some story ideas, from beginning in media res with battles against robots and such, with the story told in flashback, to simply ignoring the backstory entirely (which would be a great way to do a Justice League film; just ditch backstories and getting right to the formation of the league.)
These would all be great for fans of comic book action, but would be a poor draw for 'serious' filmmakers who want to do a serious study of the character. And then I hit upon the ultimate idea for a Superman movie. A truly engaging film, that makes an audience really ask new questions about characters they thought they knew. One that was completely faithful to the visions of Siegel & Shuster and the other luminaries that have added to the Kryptonian mythos over the years, and yet still remained a compelling tale of humanity.
And all we have to do is take Superman and Clark Kent out of the spotlight. The next Superman movie should not have either of them as protagonists.
Hear me out: Superman is ridiculously powerful, on that we can all agree. And that can be a problem, because he's as powerful as a force of nature. So why not treat him like one? Keep Superman, the nigh-omnipotent being of mystery, and Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter, in the background. Focus instead on the two characters inextricably linked with the man of steel's destiny, and with whose experiences audiences can truly identify.
Instead of telling the dual stories of Clark Kent and Kal El, the next Superman film should focus on Lois Lane and Lex Luthor.
Consider this story:
We begin at LexCorp's Aerospace Division, where Lex's latest spaceplane prototype is returning from its maiden voyage. This is a big deal, and all the media outlets are there. Lois Lane is there, granted an exclusive interview with the great man himself on this auspicious day.
Lex, we learn, is the paragon of humanity; he is the wealthiest man in the world, and complete owner of the largest multinational corporation in existence. The source of this success is his genius mind, and unparalleled ability at scientific innovation and invention. He has developed his body to the peak of human perfection; mastering several martial arts and honing nearly every physical skill. But in addition, he is a great philanthropist, helping people around the world with donations and the power of his inventions. In short, he is the superman; the ultimate achievement of mankind, and the envy of all men. Powerful and beloved worldwide, he seeks to conquer space simply because there is nothing left on Earth from him left to conquer. And of course, he has an absolutely amazing head of hair.
Lois has been granted this interview because of her own excellent reputation for ferreting out the truth, no matter how well hidden. She is the top investigative journalist in the world, and like Lex, lacks for challenges. Lex chose her specifically, taking on her probative questions like a challenge, knowing he has nothing to fear. For Lois's part, she finds the whole situation dreary, and desperately longs for a real mystery to pursue.
But then, tragedy. The spaceplane begins to wobble on approach; the thousands of spectators who have gathered for the landing are in jeopardy. Lex springs instantly into action, a grin on his face. He immediately calls emergency services and begins mobilizing his security forces to evacuate the crowds. It is apparent that he revels in this opportunity to show how cool he is under pressure. Lois meanwhile, is at least pleased to have a more interesting angle on the story.
But then, everything changes in an instant; the single inciting incident that alters the lives of both our protagonists. As the spaceplane is about to plummet towards the ground, a streak of blue and red appears from the sky and saves the aircraft, effortlessly lowering it to the ground safely, and then flying off in a flutter of red cape. The entire world witnesses this event.
And the story begins.
Or rather, both stories begin. Our film divides its time between Lex and Lois as they go along their own separate character development arcs. They both start at that single point (the inciting incident for those keeping track at home,) with the two of them standing, mouths agape at the window of Lex's office, with the reflection of the mystery man flying away on the surface of the glass.
For Lois, this marks the beginning of her obsession with tracking down this mystery man. He is the ultimate story, and only the greatest reporter ever could hope to uncover the truth. It s she who coins the term Superman as his 'nom de hero,' and she begins to doggedly pursue him throughout Metropolis. Trailing behind her is the new cub reporter Clark Kent, who is hired on after Lois begins pursuing Superman, and who sort of surreptitiously tries to steer her away, but she never even looks him in the eye, pouring al her attention onto finding out the identity of Superman (this is called irony.)
Eventually she takes drastic steps and throws herself off the Daily Planet building to force him to save her. She then uses the rescue to interview him, which he agrees to do if she will stop hounding him everywhere, and showing up at every dangerous event in metropolis in the hopes of cornering him (we see her come close to death several times along the way.)
In this interview, he gives her all the basic info; alien from a dying planet, sent here by his parents raised by kind and loving parents and all that jazz, all while moving around so that she never has a clear view of him (when he is carrying her in his arms, she has the wind in her eyes.) More importantly, the audience is never given a very clear view of his face, or all of him in any one shot, 'Jaws'-style to maintain the mystery.
He tells her all this and leaves it up to her if she wants to reveal it, warning her that people may not like the truth. She vehemently defends the people's right to know, and that there can be no peace with secrets, blah blah blah, even though he insists some secrets should stay that way. After the interview, he asks her to use her media skills to try and find out if anyone died while she was interviewing him and taking him away from patrolling the city. He flies off leaving her to consider if her obsession with uncovering the truth is actually what is best for Metropolis and the world.
When she publishes her story, revealing his extraterrestrial origins, there is a big backlash against him, with many citizens expressing fear and outrage at his 'duplicity' in looking like regular humans Even though she continues to report on the great things he selflessly does for the citizens of Metropolis, people continue to post letters about him as an illegal alien and a menace to decent folk. In one scene she watches Superman return a child to her parents, when someone throws a bottle at his head.
Meanwhile...
Lex's story is a much darker one (and far more interesting.) Lex becomes a classic tragic hero, and we watch his inevitable descent into madness and ruin (spoiler alert.) When Superman saves the spaceplane, Lex sees the utter ruination of his entire sense of self. Lex spent his entire life climbing to the top; he was the absolute paragon of the human race, the top, A number one. And in a flash of red an blue, he becomes just another mudbound mortal. He is filled with unholy envy, driving him into a rage. Where Lois wants to expose Superman, Lex wants to destroy him. He must destroy him, in order to salve his ego with the only balm, supremacy.
So Lex puts all of his personal genius, and all the resources of his vast corporate empire to the sole task of discovering how Superman's powers work, and how to replicate them. Whatever the man of steel can do, Lex must be able to match it.
We see him combing through every piece of footage available of Superman in action, and working with scientists and inventors to mimic the various powers he exhibits. We see him hiring mercenaries to stage high profile crimes in order to engage Superman, equipping them with the latest experimental weapons in order to field test them, and collecting all the blood and skin samples for analysis (he figures out the alien thing before Lois breaks the story.
Using this information, he begins to develop his answer to this threat; using enhancement drugs, cybernetic implants and various weapons and gear to create his armored battlesuit, designed to make him the equal (or better) of Superman. When they are ready to test the suit interface, they point out that his fabulous hair will decrease the efficiency of the electrode leads, but only by a tiny margin, he shaves his head bald, showing us how obsessed he is with absolute perfection.
And all the while, he is working to undermine Superman's public image, planting stories and editorials stressing how dangerous this being could be, and painting him first as a lawless vigilante, and after his origin in made public, a dangerous alien invader.
Finally, after Lex has perfected his suit, and learned all he thinks he needs to defeat Superman, he needs to bring him to the place he has set up as the perfect ambush site. For that, he needs bait, and since Supes has already shown he will fly to Lois Lane's rescue, he decides to kidnap her.
But Lois meanwhile, has finally broken the biggest story in history, she has discovered Superman's secret identity, that of mild-mannered Clark Kent. Even after seeing all the harm that her last story did to Superman, she knows that the truth must be made public, because people have a right to know (even if this particular individual and his parents will undoubtedly suffer for it.) She is typing the story when Lex captures her, and never even realizes the value of what is sitting on her computer screen.
So the big awesome fight happens, and it is both big and awesome, and will not involve destroying half of Metropolis and a death toll in the hundreds of thousands, thank you very much. But it will be televised, showing the megalomaniac Lex Luthor all 'roided up and in his armored death suit mercilessly pummeling the sinister alien. Lois (and maybe Jimmy) has the camera going the whole time, and provides a running commentary. We see the public reactions go from cheering Lex to praying that Superman will get up and win.
And of course he does.
He summons the will to do so when Lex threatens Lois (or perhaps a random citizen caught in the crossfire,) and defeats Lex, stripping the high tech armor from him and leaving him alive, in police custody, before limping off into the night, permanently imprinted a hero in the minds of the people.
Of course Lois does not run the story, and we see her bring some chicken soup to her coworker Clark, who calls in the next morning with 'a really bad case of the flu,' studiously not looking at his hastily covered up bruises, and saying the gesture is nothing, since they all have to look out for one another.
We end with Lex being led into the prison yard (he did kidnap a lady remember,) his awesome battlesuit replaced by orange prison togs. All the prisoners look up at the new fish brought in, and as he passes, they all nod respectfully, saying "Mr. Luthor."
And one prisoner looks at him and says reassuringly, "Don't worry, Mr. Luthor; you'll get him next time."
And Lex Luthor smiles.
And THAT is how you make a kick-ass Superman movie. No origin story, no pontification on the nature of responsibility, no dreary dead dad flashbacks, just a good, solid story.
And no fucking Ben Affleck.
The two biggest drags on any Superman film are, in order: Superman and Clark Kent.
Now let me start by saying I am not one of those Superhaters, who feel the character is out of step with the modern world, and devoid of any value to today's comic readers and moviegoers. And there sure is a whole lot of hate out there for the big blue boy scout.
For the record, I love Superman, and believe that he is still a culturally relevant character, with plenty of stories left to tell. I feel any writer worth his or her salt can take the character and tell compelling, interesting stories that can resonate with audiences today, just as Siegel and Shuster's original stories did back in 1938.
However…
While new writers come on board the various Superman comics all the time, each bringing a new take on the classic character, they don't then retell his origin story. Beyond the several reboots the company has done over the years, new writers simply pick up where others have left off, maintaining the basic story: infant Kal El is sent to Earth to save him from the destruction of his home world, Krypton. Once here, the energy of our yellow sun gives him powers above and beyond those of mortal men, blah blah, locomotive, blah blah, speeding bullet, blah blah blah, mild-mannered reporter, lather, rinse, repeat. We all know the story, so comic writers don't feel the need to retell it each new story.
Why then do filmmakers?
It is a certainty that films and comics are different media, and each requires a different approach. But this is Superman for Christ's sake! Surely every corner of the globe has heard his story by now? Every new Superman movie has to go over this same material; retread old ground in the hopes of finding some new aspect that will make it worth watching the same origin story over again.
The most recent one tried to expand upon the story of Jor El and doomed Krypton, fleshing out that part of the story over what seemed like half the movie. And to what effect? By dividing up so much time between the two El men, the film dragged, giving us a film that was one part bland dystopian sci fi, one part mawkish Bill Bixby-era Incredible Hulk pastiche, with a splash of destruction porn in lieu of the supervillain-fighting action that people want to see.
You know, a Superman movie.
In comics, you have decades of stories on which to draw and build, and thousands of characters with which to interact. In a film, you have two to three hours tops, so you need to tell a compelling story, and tell it fast. Audiences want characters worth identifying with, and they don't want to have to sit through half the film before they meet the actual hero. Luke was shown to be a whiny little bitch in the first twenty minutes of Star Wars, but once his aunt and uncle get flash fried, he mans up quick and makes with the stormtrooper-blasting, princess-saving, chasm-swinging and Death Star-exploding action without further delay (or whining.)
Movie Supermen these days seem unable to do that for some reason. We spend so much time on him getting to Earth, then more time with him discovering his powers, then some angst over accepting his destiny, some soul-searching, etc. And when does he get to fight the villain? Will there even be a villain who is both interesting and a credible threat to a man of steel?
Perhaps the problem for film makers is that the character is hard to identify with in films. I mean, if Superman is bulletproof and brimming with power, what can threaten him? The comics have tons of top tier threats to ruin Supes' day, from ultra-powerful androids, nihilistic alien overlords and 5th dimensional imps to megalomaniacal super geniuses in kryptonite-powered battle suits.
But filmmakers seem loath to go for such "over-the-top" action, since audiences clearly do not want to see such goofy, comic book style cartoonish action. That's why "The Avengers" bombed so badly at the box office, remember?
So instead, we get a man of steel in our own, 'realistic' world, wherein he is unidentifiable to audiences because he is a god amongst us mortals. So many go the other way, focusing on Clark Kent as the main identity. Obviously audiences can identify more with him, as a man raised by humans, dealing with human trials and temptations.
But that guy is boring. Again, stripped of all those years of continuity, Clark Kent is just not all that interesting in a two-hour film.
Filmmakers have to balance the tale of Jor and Lara El sending their child to Earth, Ma and Pa Kent finding him and training him, Clark joining the world and making tough choices, and then find some time to make a suitable villain and get in some good punching action, which doesn't arrive until the end of the film. It's a tough job.
So how do we fix it?
I thought about some story ideas, from beginning in media res with battles against robots and such, with the story told in flashback, to simply ignoring the backstory entirely (which would be a great way to do a Justice League film; just ditch backstories and getting right to the formation of the league.)
These would all be great for fans of comic book action, but would be a poor draw for 'serious' filmmakers who want to do a serious study of the character. And then I hit upon the ultimate idea for a Superman movie. A truly engaging film, that makes an audience really ask new questions about characters they thought they knew. One that was completely faithful to the visions of Siegel & Shuster and the other luminaries that have added to the Kryptonian mythos over the years, and yet still remained a compelling tale of humanity.
And all we have to do is take Superman and Clark Kent out of the spotlight. The next Superman movie should not have either of them as protagonists.
Hear me out: Superman is ridiculously powerful, on that we can all agree. And that can be a problem, because he's as powerful as a force of nature. So why not treat him like one? Keep Superman, the nigh-omnipotent being of mystery, and Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter, in the background. Focus instead on the two characters inextricably linked with the man of steel's destiny, and with whose experiences audiences can truly identify.
Instead of telling the dual stories of Clark Kent and Kal El, the next Superman film should focus on Lois Lane and Lex Luthor.
Consider this story:
We begin at LexCorp's Aerospace Division, where Lex's latest spaceplane prototype is returning from its maiden voyage. This is a big deal, and all the media outlets are there. Lois Lane is there, granted an exclusive interview with the great man himself on this auspicious day.
Lex, we learn, is the paragon of humanity; he is the wealthiest man in the world, and complete owner of the largest multinational corporation in existence. The source of this success is his genius mind, and unparalleled ability at scientific innovation and invention. He has developed his body to the peak of human perfection; mastering several martial arts and honing nearly every physical skill. But in addition, he is a great philanthropist, helping people around the world with donations and the power of his inventions. In short, he is the superman; the ultimate achievement of mankind, and the envy of all men. Powerful and beloved worldwide, he seeks to conquer space simply because there is nothing left on Earth from him left to conquer. And of course, he has an absolutely amazing head of hair.
Lois has been granted this interview because of her own excellent reputation for ferreting out the truth, no matter how well hidden. She is the top investigative journalist in the world, and like Lex, lacks for challenges. Lex chose her specifically, taking on her probative questions like a challenge, knowing he has nothing to fear. For Lois's part, she finds the whole situation dreary, and desperately longs for a real mystery to pursue.
But then, tragedy. The spaceplane begins to wobble on approach; the thousands of spectators who have gathered for the landing are in jeopardy. Lex springs instantly into action, a grin on his face. He immediately calls emergency services and begins mobilizing his security forces to evacuate the crowds. It is apparent that he revels in this opportunity to show how cool he is under pressure. Lois meanwhile, is at least pleased to have a more interesting angle on the story.
But then, everything changes in an instant; the single inciting incident that alters the lives of both our protagonists. As the spaceplane is about to plummet towards the ground, a streak of blue and red appears from the sky and saves the aircraft, effortlessly lowering it to the ground safely, and then flying off in a flutter of red cape. The entire world witnesses this event.
And the story begins.
Or rather, both stories begin. Our film divides its time between Lex and Lois as they go along their own separate character development arcs. They both start at that single point (the inciting incident for those keeping track at home,) with the two of them standing, mouths agape at the window of Lex's office, with the reflection of the mystery man flying away on the surface of the glass.
For Lois, this marks the beginning of her obsession with tracking down this mystery man. He is the ultimate story, and only the greatest reporter ever could hope to uncover the truth. It s she who coins the term Superman as his 'nom de hero,' and she begins to doggedly pursue him throughout Metropolis. Trailing behind her is the new cub reporter Clark Kent, who is hired on after Lois begins pursuing Superman, and who sort of surreptitiously tries to steer her away, but she never even looks him in the eye, pouring al her attention onto finding out the identity of Superman (this is called irony.)
Eventually she takes drastic steps and throws herself off the Daily Planet building to force him to save her. She then uses the rescue to interview him, which he agrees to do if she will stop hounding him everywhere, and showing up at every dangerous event in metropolis in the hopes of cornering him (we see her come close to death several times along the way.)
In this interview, he gives her all the basic info; alien from a dying planet, sent here by his parents raised by kind and loving parents and all that jazz, all while moving around so that she never has a clear view of him (when he is carrying her in his arms, she has the wind in her eyes.) More importantly, the audience is never given a very clear view of his face, or all of him in any one shot, 'Jaws'-style to maintain the mystery.
He tells her all this and leaves it up to her if she wants to reveal it, warning her that people may not like the truth. She vehemently defends the people's right to know, and that there can be no peace with secrets, blah blah blah, even though he insists some secrets should stay that way. After the interview, he asks her to use her media skills to try and find out if anyone died while she was interviewing him and taking him away from patrolling the city. He flies off leaving her to consider if her obsession with uncovering the truth is actually what is best for Metropolis and the world.
When she publishes her story, revealing his extraterrestrial origins, there is a big backlash against him, with many citizens expressing fear and outrage at his 'duplicity' in looking like regular humans Even though she continues to report on the great things he selflessly does for the citizens of Metropolis, people continue to post letters about him as an illegal alien and a menace to decent folk. In one scene she watches Superman return a child to her parents, when someone throws a bottle at his head.
Meanwhile...
Lex's story is a much darker one (and far more interesting.) Lex becomes a classic tragic hero, and we watch his inevitable descent into madness and ruin (spoiler alert.) When Superman saves the spaceplane, Lex sees the utter ruination of his entire sense of self. Lex spent his entire life climbing to the top; he was the absolute paragon of the human race, the top, A number one. And in a flash of red an blue, he becomes just another mudbound mortal. He is filled with unholy envy, driving him into a rage. Where Lois wants to expose Superman, Lex wants to destroy him. He must destroy him, in order to salve his ego with the only balm, supremacy.
So Lex puts all of his personal genius, and all the resources of his vast corporate empire to the sole task of discovering how Superman's powers work, and how to replicate them. Whatever the man of steel can do, Lex must be able to match it.
We see him combing through every piece of footage available of Superman in action, and working with scientists and inventors to mimic the various powers he exhibits. We see him hiring mercenaries to stage high profile crimes in order to engage Superman, equipping them with the latest experimental weapons in order to field test them, and collecting all the blood and skin samples for analysis (he figures out the alien thing before Lois breaks the story.
Using this information, he begins to develop his answer to this threat; using enhancement drugs, cybernetic implants and various weapons and gear to create his armored battlesuit, designed to make him the equal (or better) of Superman. When they are ready to test the suit interface, they point out that his fabulous hair will decrease the efficiency of the electrode leads, but only by a tiny margin, he shaves his head bald, showing us how obsessed he is with absolute perfection.
And all the while, he is working to undermine Superman's public image, planting stories and editorials stressing how dangerous this being could be, and painting him first as a lawless vigilante, and after his origin in made public, a dangerous alien invader.
Finally, after Lex has perfected his suit, and learned all he thinks he needs to defeat Superman, he needs to bring him to the place he has set up as the perfect ambush site. For that, he needs bait, and since Supes has already shown he will fly to Lois Lane's rescue, he decides to kidnap her.
But Lois meanwhile, has finally broken the biggest story in history, she has discovered Superman's secret identity, that of mild-mannered Clark Kent. Even after seeing all the harm that her last story did to Superman, she knows that the truth must be made public, because people have a right to know (even if this particular individual and his parents will undoubtedly suffer for it.) She is typing the story when Lex captures her, and never even realizes the value of what is sitting on her computer screen.
So the big awesome fight happens, and it is both big and awesome, and will not involve destroying half of Metropolis and a death toll in the hundreds of thousands, thank you very much. But it will be televised, showing the megalomaniac Lex Luthor all 'roided up and in his armored death suit mercilessly pummeling the sinister alien. Lois (and maybe Jimmy) has the camera going the whole time, and provides a running commentary. We see the public reactions go from cheering Lex to praying that Superman will get up and win.
And of course he does.
He summons the will to do so when Lex threatens Lois (or perhaps a random citizen caught in the crossfire,) and defeats Lex, stripping the high tech armor from him and leaving him alive, in police custody, before limping off into the night, permanently imprinted a hero in the minds of the people.
Of course Lois does not run the story, and we see her bring some chicken soup to her coworker Clark, who calls in the next morning with 'a really bad case of the flu,' studiously not looking at his hastily covered up bruises, and saying the gesture is nothing, since they all have to look out for one another.
We end with Lex being led into the prison yard (he did kidnap a lady remember,) his awesome battlesuit replaced by orange prison togs. All the prisoners look up at the new fish brought in, and as he passes, they all nod respectfully, saying "Mr. Luthor."
And one prisoner looks at him and says reassuringly, "Don't worry, Mr. Luthor; you'll get him next time."
And Lex Luthor smiles.
And THAT is how you make a kick-ass Superman movie. No origin story, no pontification on the nature of responsibility, no dreary dead dad flashbacks, just a good, solid story.
And no fucking Ben Affleck.
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