Man of Steel (2013)

Amy Adams, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne

There's a saying: "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."

So what if I continue to be fooled over and over again? And by this, I mean electing to watch movies against my better judgement because they have a quality ensemble cast. How have I made this mistake over and over and over and over again? 

Case in point: this movie. On it's face, I knew it wouldn't be a good movie. Of course it wouldn't be a good movie. I didn't even like the original movies with Christopher Reeve. Of all the male superheroes, Superman really only hovers above Spiderman and whoever Ben Affleck was supposed to be in Daredevil. I just don't find him to be very interesting.

And yet, I was swayed by the allure of 2 Oscar winners and 3 Oscar nominees (not to mention the Emmy nominees in the cast). In that 30 seconds I spent standing in front of the Redbox kiosk, I decided their judgement was better than my own gut feeling that this movie would be a complete throwaway. 

So shame on you, Amy Adams. I might expect less from your co-stars, many of whom have not been in a good movie in years (and yes, I am putting Les Mis in that category for Russell Crowe), but you are the top actress in Hollywood right now and I can't keep following you around to crappy movies.

That said, the movie had pretty decent *visual* effects. A sci-fi movie really lives and dies by its visual effects, so this one's disappointment stems from its plot. (Make that, lack of plot.) But due to the thirst for franchises in Hollywood and the utter lack of original screenwriting, a sequel is due out in 2015. Sigh.

Final word: I almost couldn't write a review because it was so forgettable.

*special thanks to +JustinG for continually reminding me the difference between special effects and visual effects.