The great thing about comic book fans is that they are so dedicated to what they love. Gene Fallaize is one of those fans. He is the writer, producer and director of the Superman fan film “Superman Requiem,” which pays tribute to the Richard Donner version of the hero.
Before I go into the review, here is the official description of the movie:
- Superman is the world’s greatest superhero and law enforcement across the globe has come to rely on him to deal with some of the major tasks that face society. When the Man of Steel loses some of his powers after an evil villain attacks him with Kryptonite, he must overcome his obstacles and prove he really is a super man.
“Superman: Requiem” is set several years after the events of “Superman Returns.” It takes into account the events of that movie, as well as “Superman” (1978) and “Superman II” (1980).
The casting for the movie was really fascinating because what I love about well-made fan movies is that you get to see how much talent there is out there around the world. Martin Richardson portrays the Man of Steel and the mild-mannered reporter, and I will make this very simple – he was inspiring. I was touched, and I think that while it was Donner inspired, it felt like seeing a new take on Superman and to me, it was a really good one and that is something that I think is so important with the role of Superman.
One thing that made this movie so much more interesting was the character Ali Noels (played by Stacy Sobieski), who basically replaces Lois Lane. In this storyline, Lane has left the Daily Planet. What makes this character so interesting is that it’s not often that you see Clark Kent having interest for a woman other than Lois Lane or Lana Lang. I didn’t have anything against her being similar to Lois; Ali was someone that I liked, so thumbs up for her.
The villain of the story — the son of Lex Luthor, Alexander Luthor — is played by Paul Khanna. He was seriously scary, and I mean that in a good way. Also there is one more actor that I want to point out and that is Julian McDowell as Perry White. I’m not kidding, I was hearing the late Lane Smith (who portrayed Perry White in “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,” and is one of my favorite actors to portray White). Overall with the casting – excellent portrayals by all of them; it’s not often that I feel like this with a fan film, but this time I did.
Now the storyline: Superman loses some of his powers. That was definitely something that I enjoyed watching, but what I loved about the storyline was the feeling and how they were expressed through the lines. I don’t want to spoil anything for those who haven’t seen this movie yet, but I will say that there is a huge scene in the end that says so much about who and what Superman stands for – with or without his powers. What that scenes shows to Superman fans all over the world is that even if he is more powerful than a locomotive or faster than a speeding bullet, he can still understand what ordinary men have to deal with in decisions when it comes to saving lives and that it isn’t easy for them.
It was just so beautifully well done and portrayed in that scene. I know people who think that Superman is a lame hero because he is basically an overpowered God and can’t be defeated unless if he is exposed to Kryptonite. But that scene shows the total opposite — that he may be powerful but he is just like the rest of humanity. I’m not saying that this is something that we have never seen before in previous Superman media, but I’m saying that director Fallaize did excellent work in directing that scene and the movie overall.
For a fan film with a very limited budget, the effects were well done, but personally, that is something that I didn’t think about after I had seen the entire film because I was so focused on everything that was going on. It’s a well-written story, with fascinating actors and inspiring direction by Fallaize and I’m now recommending to you to watch this excellent film. You can watch it below and you can find out more about the film at www.themanofsteelisback.com, where you can also find the beautiful soundtrack, information about the project, links to follow the director and Supes himself on Twitter and of course – the entire movie.
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Well it was better than Superman III
A fine effort for a fan made film
I’m not sure if you’ve heard about Christopher’s Dennis’ predicament. He is the man that portrays Superman on Hollywood Blvd., and has been doing so for the past two decades. He was assaulted, his money stolen and his costume was burned, turning his life upside down.
Recently, he’s somewhat gotten back on his feet, but he still remains homeless. A fan made him a new costume based on the Man of Steel film. The link below is from ABC News.
http://abc7.com/society/superman-returns-impersonator-comes-back-to-hollywood/1788276/
A Kickstarter has been launched to tell his incredible story with proceeds going back to Christopher to help him continue to assist his financial and physical recovery. Christopher is fully involved in the production and the campaign.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/682008878/hollywood-superman-series?ref=creator_nav