Tag Archives: Man of Steel

Best & Worst Movies of 2013

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Before I start, I’d like to apologise for my readers but especially to the editor of this website. As some of you may know, I came back from living in Vancouver, Canada for two years (and two weeks if you want to be precise). So going back to life in England has been rather tough but I’ve been managing to make the most of time getting back to grips. I would’ve posted my 2013 review earlier but life got in the way and thus got delayed. However, I did manage to squeeze in a few more movie titles to see if they would make it to the Best and Worst list. Again, I apologise for my absence and won’t waste anymore time.

 

It’s every critic’s dream/nightmare to compile a list of the best and worst things to come out of 2013. As such, I’ll be listing my best and worst movies of 2013. Since this is my own list, I will be listing movies going by North American release dates and by alphabetical order.

 

– BEST –

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1) 12 Years a Slave

I’ve been an admirer of Steve McQueen since I first watched his debut Hunger in 2008 and even admired his second film, Shame. His filmmaking style was bold and daring, like he wanted the film to convey the emotions in the scene (since film is a visual story-telling medium). Though he has gone to great heights with this adaptation of Solomon Northup’s memoir and McQueen shows no sign of slowing down. This is harrowing and powerful filmmaking, the unflinching detail of the horrors Northup suffered through-out his 12 years of being a slave. Some may mention Django Unchained already accomplished that but it was viewed as exploitation fantasy, this felt uncomfortably realistic. Chiwetel Ejiofor has been a versatile actor and he makes his career’s best performance and has my vote for Best Actor at this year’s awards season. Michael Fassbender delivers another award-worthy performance as the conflicted slave owner Edwin Epps, but the standout is Lupita Nyong’o as Patsy and she pours her heart out with his gut-wrenching performance. This really is a crowning achievement in filmmaking and story-telling.

 

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2) Captain Phillips

Paul Greengrass is one of the few filmmakers able to take a real-life event and deliver something emotionally compelling and intense (Bloody Sunday and United 93 showcased his prowess). This film could’ve easily labeled on who were the heroes and who were the villains but Greengrass decided to make it less simple-minded than it could’ve been. Instead, he shows that these men are just people and are just doing what they consider their jobs. Tom Hanks makes one hell of a performance as the titular character, the last scene in particular pulled my heart-strings (and a huge snub from the Academy to recognise his brilliant performance). Though Barkhad Abdi makes a towering breakthrough performance and have no doubt he’s got a shining acting career ahead of him. Just like Zero Dark Thirty, you all know how it ends but it is all about the journey and it is thrill-ride!

 

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3) Gravity

A science fiction movie that took 5 years in the making and it was worth the wait! Alfonso Cuarón has delivered such a breath-taking experience that it really had to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Though every technical award should go to Emmanuel Lubezki’s brilliant cinematography, the sound design and the visual effects were spectacular. Sandra Bullock delivers her best performance to date, she really shows the intensity on what the smallest mistake could end up with nightmarish results (also the fact she had to act mostly with her imagination and from Cuaron’s direction in a studio). This is exactly what movies are made for; to immerse the viewer.

 

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4) Her

If I were to tell you about a movie who the protagonist would eventually fall in love with his operating system, what would your reaction be? Curiosity more likely and asking yourself “is this a comedy?” in a puzzled tone. It is strange to say but the movie was wonderfully well-made! The writing and direction from Spike Jonze was exceptional, not forcing the audience to say whether technology should be viewed positively or negatively. It is all in the shades of grey and gives us two perspectives that, in the end, lets you decide. Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Olivia Wilde and Rooney Mara deliver such fine performances but it is the voice of Scarlett Johansson as the voice of Samantha that is the highlight. She conveys every emotion through her voice and you slowly grow attached to her the same way Theodore does. Some may say it is overly sentimental but it brought a smile to my face and really affected me as a viewer.

 

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5) The Wolf of Wall Street

This wasn’t easy to put on the list as I had to think long and hard whether I consider this a recommendation. In the end, it kept me thinking about various scenes and Martin Scorsese’s direction with the source material. So having it in my head long after the movie finished, I started to appreciate the movie. The movie is so OTT and ballsy, that it was great to see the legendary filmmaker still has that electric touch to make a movie feel and look alive. Leonardo DiCaprio delivers a balls-to-the-wall performance, Jordan Belfort is extremely unlikeable but yet he grabs your attention by the neck and never lets go. It is hard to make a movie about greedy excess and not have a morality message underneath it. Scorsese shows exactly how it was without sugar coating the story and it fits with Belfort’s persona.

 

Honorable mentions: Blue Jasmine, Dallas Buyers Club, Elysium, Inside Llewyn Davis, Pacific Rim, Philomena, Rush

 

– WORST –

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1) After Earth

Even keeping M. Night Shyamalan’s name from posters and trailers didn’t help prevent this being a borefest! Will Smith wrote the story and plays as Cypher Raige (yes, the name is laughable), a soldier who is able to defeat these alien creatures who prey on people’s fear (which is called “Ghosting”, though I call that bulls**t as fear is partially produced by adrenaline and is not that simple as you may think). Cypher’s son, Kitai (Jaden Smith), goes on a journey from having emotions to eventually become emotionless. The story-arc for Kitai is basically to become boring and only Shyamalan can make something like this unusual.

 

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2) A Good Day to Die Hard

I was never a fan of this series, in fact I honestly think there should never have been sequels and left it as a stand-alone movie. However, we are dealing with the series that is slowly digging its own grave and hammering the nails. Bruce Willis clearly looks uninterested and has long gone past caring about this series. This was apparently the first movie written specifically as a Die Hard movie (unlike previous movies were written for another project) and that goes to show how low this series has got. The original movie had such a simple but effective premise, yet the sequels makes it seem the filmmakers don’t have a clue. The story is convoluted and idiotic, the action sequences are over-stylised and boring. This series should really die hard!

 

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3) The Lone Ranger

This movie took one of the many missteps when they cast Johnny Depp as Tonto. It continued the many mistakes Gore Verbinski and Jerry Bruckheimer made when making Pirates of the Caribbean sequels; inconsistent tone, lack of character development and too goddamn long! Armie Hammer could’ve been a convincing hero if he wasn’t portrayed in such a pathetic fashion. The fact that this Disney flick featured the villain (literally) eating somebody’s heart makes it wrong on every level (and you thought Man of Steel was grim!). It was a huge box-office bomb and barely made its $250 million budget back.

 

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4) Movie 43

How would you react if I were to tell you this movie is set-up around a screenwriter pitching various ideas to a producer and the gag is; they’re all gross-out humour? One example; a woman goes on a blind date and joke is he’s got a pair of testicles under his chin and nobody acknowledges it but the woman. It’s nothing but gag after gag, and not only is it juvenile but it is incredibly unfunny. What shocks me is the talent involved; Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Elizabeth Banks, Emma Stone, Chris Pratt, Dennis Quaid, Greg Kinnear, Naomi Watts, Liev Schreiber, Richard Gere and even Seth MacFarlane. You’re really left scratching your head and asking yourself “how the hell did this movie get green-lit?”

 

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5) The Host

So the book this movie is based on wouldn’t have been on my radar if it didn’t market it as this; it is science fiction for those who hate science fiction. Basically it was targeted at women and was referencing to women. . . . not even the slightest bit insulting, right? Apart from the marketing that bothered me, this is Invasion of the Body Snatchers for young adult crowd and I mean that in the bad sense. All centers on a girl that has an alien host implanted in her and is fighting for control (as you can hear her as a voice-over), though all the characters are generic and bland. The movie avoids all the concepts and themes that could’ve made it interesting and the dialogue is also cringe-worthy and laughable (“kiss me like you want to get slapped”). It’s everything you expect from a movie based on a book by Stephanie Meyer, one dimensional and unintentionally hilarious. Not even the writer and director of Gattaca and The Truman Show could make this rubbish work.

 

Dishonourable mentions: Diana, Jobs, Pain & Gain, The Purge, R.I.P.D., Star Trek Into Darkness

 

– BEST BLOCKBUSTER OF THE YEAR –

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Pacific Rim

This is what Michael Bay’s Transformers movies should be; simple and straight-forward without being convoluted. Guillermo del Toro’s action spectacle shows he clearly has a passion for Japanese monster movies and understands what makes it work. Sure, the characters are done in stereotypes but is done without being offensive (like Skids and Mudflap in Revenge of the Fallen). This movie ticked all the right boxes for being 2013’s best blockbuster and was all worth the ride!

 

– DISAPPOINTING MOVIE OF THE YEAR –

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Man of Steel & Star Trek Into Darkness

As much I wanted to like these movies, they failed to deliver my expectations on what could’ve been great movies. Though out of the two, Into Darkness was more a disappointment than Man of Steel.

Believe it or not, I still like MoS but I understand it is a movie with huge flaws. Henry Cavill looked the part and even act the part, despite given little to work with. The story did sound very interesting and probably thanks to Christopher Nolan. On the other hand, David S. Goyer’s script was incredibly clunky. Even the character of Lois Lane was pointless and could’ve been easily written out or replaced by another character. The tone of the movie was completely wrong, it should’ve been joyful than being grim. They took the wrong direction to replicate the success of The Dark Knight, the problem with that is Superman is a symbol of hope. You could argue Superman in the movie is that but is surrounded from such dark forces that makes his struggle even more poignant. The one positive note I’ll give is they made General Zod not just a villain but a sympathetic one. That’s saying a lot as I found the villains in Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World to be one dimensional.

Star Trek Into Darkness was a blockbuster series I was looking forward to and gave me no pleasure to say it was close on being on the worst list. J.J. Abrams’ mystery box style of filmmaking failed immensely on trying to deny that Khan would be the antagonist and Benedict Cumberbatch would play a new character. Though when it was finally revealed in the movie, everyone was more or less not surprised with this particular twist. The twist does not add anything apart from the sake of having a twist. Kirk and Spock have not progressed since the first movie, in fact this is the same movie as the first one only derivative from other movies. Derivative? Well you wouldn’t notice it if you have not seen any of the previous Star Trek movies in your life. There’s this little movie called The Wrath of Khan and one particular event is also repeated in Into Darkness; instead of Spock, Kirk sacrifices himself to get the Enterprise working by going into the engine room and dies from radiation. Instead of Kirk, Spock cries out in anger by shouting “KHAN!”, then the climax is J.J. Abrams’ favourite type of action sequence; people giving chase by running. I understand why a lot of people like this movie, it is well made and the actors make it work but the direction was completely wrong.

 

– MOST ANTICIPATED MOVIE OF 2014 –

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Guardians of the Galaxy

You remember the scene with Benicio Del Toro as Taneleer Tivan (aka The Collector) during mid-credits of Thor: The Dark World? Well this is the movie that will follow after Captain America: The Winter Soldier. As everyone else, I am excited for Joss Whedon’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron but we’ll have to wait for a year for that. The reason I’ve chosen Guardians of the Galaxy is because it is a Marvel property that no one except Marvel/comic book fans will know and I am incredibly excited for it. Chris Pratt is doing incredibly well from starring in recent critically acclaimed movies as Her and Zero Dark Thirty and recently in box-office hit The LEGO Movie (we’ll ignore he was in Movie 43) and this should give an extra boost to his career. He’s also joined by a supporting cast with Zoe Saldana as Gamora (Thanos’ adopted daughter), Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer (the name is a giveaway), Bradley Cooper voices Rocket Raccoon (a walking, talking raccoon. . . . yeah, you read that right) and Vin Diesel voices Groot (only lines he’s given is “groot” but in different tones to convey his emotions). It’s a bizarre team-up movie but producer Kevin Fiege feels confident to expand their Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is released on 1st August, 2014 in UK and USA.

Man of Steel {Film Review}

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*WARNING – MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!*

 

This week is Warner Bros./DC Comics turn to bring up the heat for summer blockbuster season. It has been seven years since we had Superman on our screens with Superman Returns and the results were incredibly underwhelming (considering we had Batman Begins the year before, which was a critical and financial success). So a reboot was green-lit and Zack Snyder takes the helm to deliver Superman with watchful eyes from Christopher Nolan (serving as co-writer and producer). The end result is not as soaring as one would hope but flies rather valiantly.

 

Superman’s origin story remains the same; Kal-El (Henry Cavill) is one of the last remaining beings from the planet Krypton. Both his parents, Jor-El (Russell Crowe) and Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer), sent him off on a spacecraft as the planet was becoming unstable and would soon lead to its imminent destruction. His spacecraft crash lands in Smallville, Kansas and is raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Coster and Diane Lane). Though the interesting aspect that writers David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan decided to focus on this Superman movie is asking; how would we react to a super-being? Would we welcome it with open arms or would we feel threatened? It’s certainly interesting to the fact none of the previous

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movie iterations even remotely decided to focus on that aspect. Although the story can feel a bit too cold for a Superman film and comes to no surprise it mostly has Chris Nolan’s stamp all over it. It was understandable for his Dark Knight trilogy to contain such a grim tone and featuring such dark themes. Superman really is a Moses story through and through but really delves into his alien heritage. There are amusing one-liners here and there but the cinematography all felt bleak with shades of blue and grey (with exception of scenes in Krypton).

 

Henry Cavill dons the suit really well, and he also brings the character quite a bit of charm but also some weight to the character. He brings such emotions as isolation and frustration, trying to blend in but there’s always a reminder that he will never be one of them. Although one scene that I felt was too forced on the religious symbolism is when he confesses to a priest in a church (whilst sitting in-front of a window with Jesus on it, subtle movie!) and he tells Kal-El to take a leap of faith. Amy Adams makes Lois Lane an active character this time round, rather than just solely being the damsel-in-distress that has Superman saving often. The chemistry between Superman and Lois is a bit weak but hopefully will expand in future sequels. Both Kevin Costner and Diane Lane play their characters really well, though there’s not much to work on as Jonathan is along with the many motivational parent/guardians to our heroes (Aunt May in Spider-Man and Alfred in Batman). Though the spot-light is Michael Shannon as General Zod, a great character actor but he completely chews the scenery and yet makes him quite intimidating which brings the fun to this film. You really believe this is a man motivated and dedicated to his genetic upbringing as a military leader.

 

As expected from Zack Snyder, he really delivers the spectacle and makes you believe a man can fly again! You feel the ferocity when Superman is flying for the first time, the sense of wonder from Superman’s reaction on roaring through the clouds. We finally get to see super-beings beat the living daylights out of each other. The scale and action sequences is spectacular, raising the bar to the extreme on what Superman has to handle. Zod’s soldiers really do put up a fight and you feel every blow they make is a devastating one! Though it does concern me that Zack Snyder causes this much destruction more on looking cool than taking into consideration the death toll would be extremely high (not to mention the amount of damage and lasting impact would leave upon Metropolis’s citizens). I was genuinely enthralled by WETA Digital’s creation of Krypton, clearly the filmmakers made sure they distanced themselves from Richard Donner’s Krypton. You feel that everything had a purpose and the planet felt alive with its inhabitants (I especially liked the silver projections when Lara is giving birth and Jor-El is giving Kal-El a history lesson about Krypton). Hans Zimmer’s score really captures the awe and wonder of Superman but also the menacing threat from the villains. There’s a lot to live up to than being under the shadow of John Williams’ iconic theme tune but Zimmer completely makes it his own.

 

Overall; a great stab on the Superman icon and really succeeds to make its own than trying to be a copy with what has been already established. Henry Cavill and Amy Adams play their respective characters faithfully and supported by a terrific cast. I really am looking forward to seeing more of this Superman series.

 

4 out 5

Best & Worst Films of 2012

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It seems 2012 has come and gone! We have gone through the best and worst of Hollywood and I am here to bring you my personal favourites and least favourites of the year that was apparently and supposedly to doom us all! I should note that I have not yet seen some movies that may (or may not) have ended up on this list, such as Beasts of the Southern Wild and Battleship for examples.

(Note: In alphabetical order)

– BEST –

1) Argo: Ben Affleck has not only grown to be a very sophisticated actor but also an exceptional filmmaker. It’s a movie that is so bizarre that it could only work as a true story. The cast nothing short but fantastic, Alan Arkin and John Goodman bring great performances and the tension is absolutely thrilling. A great authentic thriller that feels like it belongs to the great thrillers of the 70s like All the Presidents Men.

 

2) Amour: Making a film about love is quite hard to pull off, without having the emotions feeling forced or contrived. Michael Haneke delivers one of the most heart-breaking but inspiring pieces of work he has made to date! Emmanuelle Riva’s performance is astounding, really capturing the effects of old age and truly pulled my heart strings. The film may leave audiences cold but it has that brutal honesty about the themes of age, time and (inevitable) death. It certainly left me touched on a personal level (which is a rarity in this day of age).

 

3) Skyfall: Bond certainly came back with a bang! Sam Mendes promised to deliver a respectful tribute to this 50th anniversary of the film franchise. Not only was it one of my favourite Bond films but it was my favourite blockbuster of the year (yes, even found it better than The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises and The Amazing Spider-Man). Javier Bardem makes one of the most memorable Bond villains in a long time and it is quite refreshing the film overall is having fun rather than being grim (i.e. Quantum of Solace). The cinematography by Roger Deakins is beautiful as ever and Thomas Newman’s score all sounds very modern but also rings back to the classic Bond we know and love. I am certainly looking forward to Bond’s return.

 

4) Zero Dark Thirty: Quickly making a film about the manhunt of Osama bin Laden was going to be a hard task. Though with director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal (the same team behind the Oscar winning The Hurt Locker), all made sense that they were suitable with this material. Jessica Chastain delivers a strong and memorable performance that actually comes across as a character that has a lot of depth and subtlety. The fact that Bigelow knows how everything is going to end but still makes it one of the most exciting sequences on film. The huge plus about the film is it doesn’t glorify their success, they show you how it was done and you decide how you feel about it.

 

Honourable mentions; The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, Django Unchained, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Looper and The Master.

 

– WORST –

1) The Amazing Spider-Man: I really wanted to like this film, I really did but it was even worse than Spider-Man 3. Andrew Garfield is a really good actor (see The Social Network for proof) and the idea of casting him as Peter Parker/Spider-Man did actually sound really good. Although the material he’s been given is awful, and it doesn’t help he’s going against one of the most one-dimensional villains I’ve seen. The visual effects looks terrible, as if they came out of a PS2 cut-scene and it also features one of the most cheesiest scene since Spider-Man. The only decent part of the film is Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacy was a smart and self-dependent character rather being the damsel-in-distress.

 

2) The Expendables 2: This macho rubbish has gone on a bit too long, even whilst I was watching the first film. The Expendables are once again on a mission to fight one man and his army, and that bad guy is played by Jean-Claude Van Damme as Vilain (no, really! That’s his name). We still know nothing about the characters, the most we get is a running gag that Gunnar has an advance degree of chemical engineering (when in real life, Lundgren has a master’s degree in chemical engineering). This isn’t a case of ‘it’s so bad, it’s good’, it’s just a bad action movie that doesn’t separate itself from the next. This really wants to be a nostalgic trip of the action movies of the 80s and 90s, when all it makes me want to do is watch the movies that made them famous!

 

3) Taken 2: I was never a fan of Taken to begin with. It’s a mediocre action film that’s taking the story from Commando but is treated like an episode of 24. Liam Neeson looks incredibly bored and seems to being doing this sequel waiting for a cheque. The villains this time round are a lot dumber and don’t even make sure he has any chance of escaping. The worst part is there’s somehow going to be a third one in the works!

 

4) This Means War: For someone like McG that is still making movies to this day still shocks me! After the dreadful Charlie’s Angels movies and the incredibly underwhelming Terminator Salvation, he really brings his career to a whole new low! You have three talented actors from Chris Pine, Tom Hardy and Reese Witherspoon in this unfunny, misogynistic and boring action/rom/com. The fact we’re supposed to be rooting one or the other when they’re clearly a bunch of juvenile agents who wasting the agencies time and effort to impress a woman is something I find really cringe worthy.

 

Dishonourable mentions: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Dark Shadows, Lockout and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2

 

– SURPRISE MOVIE OF THE YEAR –

Dredd: I was not expecting anything from this film but hearing the (somewhat) positive buzz, my curiosity grew and decided to give it a go! To my much surprise, it was really entertaining and very well done. The film is grim and violent but what did you expect from a Judge Dredd movie? Karl Urban makes the character worth rooting for and at least brings some charisma (despite going all Dirty Harry on his perps). The interactions between Dredd and Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) is the most interesting part of the film, showing the different perspectives of the law. It is a shame it wasn’t a box-office success but I believe it’ll have a cult-following in the near future.

 

– DISAPPOINTING MOVIE OF THE YEAR –

Prometheus: Now I’m not saying the film is bad (though depends how you look at this film), the production design, costumes and visual effects are top notch. The idea about faith and creation are all interesting but if only it had nothing to do with the Alien franchise. The mysterious derelict ship from Alien has lost its intrigue and the result is a bit puzzling. Not to mention the characters aren’t as memorable as Dallas and his crew in Alien (or even James Cameron’s Aliens). The reason I didn’t really put this on the worst list is because it did have some positives to the film (i.e. Michael Fassbender’s David was the most interesting character in the entire film).

 

– MOST ANTICIPATED FILM OF 2013 –

Man of Steel: 2013 is going to have another hefty year of comic book films, with Marvel initiating phase two to lead up The Avengers 2 with Thor: The Dark World and Iron Man 3 (Captain America: Winter Soldier will be released in 2014). Though my interest is the upcoming Superman reboot, why you ask? Well it has been seven years since Superman Returns (remember that movie?) and it’ll be the first time that is not part of Richard Donner’s Superman. Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, the team behind The Dark Knight Trilogy, has created a story that feels relevant and interesting for a Superman movie. Zack Snyder is sitting on the directors chair and British actor Henry Cavill will be donning the suit (first time for a non-American actor to play Superman). What interests me is how this film will be received? It was just as intriguing back in 2004 that a Batman reboot was going to be made, and expectations were a bit low since the last Batman film at that time was Batman & Robin (remember THAT movie?). I’m very excited to see this version of Superman and I really do hope he soars this time round.

Man of Steel teaser trailer

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Man of Steel was a huge hit at Comic-Con, even made a fanboy cry! So it would be no surprise that a teaser trailer for the film would be shown in-front of The Dark Knight Rises, as Nolan co-wrote the story of Steel but is also serving as the producer. So when I saw Warner Bros., Legendary Pictures and DC Comics logo shown in-front, my heart was beating that I finally get to see footage of the upcoming Superman movie.

 

The music is taken from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by Howard Shore (as Hans Zimmer hasn’t started composing music for the film yet), already setting the mood that the film may take with the new Superman movie. It shows Henry Cavill not as Superman but as Clark Kent, sporting a scruffy beard and looking to be traveling the world.* Though we do see shots of Kent farm, though as if this was a Terrence Malick film. We have a voice-over by Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner)**, implying to be talking to Clark by saying what you’d expect he would say; that he would grow up to do great things. We see shots of a young Clark Kent running around in backyard, wearing a red cape that foreshadows on what will lead to the inevitable. We of course get the title cards, reading ‘From Zack Snyder – Director of Watchmen and 300‘ (luckily they didn’t list Sucker Punch and hope they continue to do so) and ‘And Producer Christopher Nolan – Director of The Dark Knight Trilogy‘. Finally, the last shot we all been waiting for; Superman himself. Though starts off with an aerial view of an unspecified location, then we see a small figure flying up to the sky. The camera zooms in and get a glimpse of Superman as he flies in an unimaginable speed!

 

That’s all that really is to say about the trailer, it really is the meaning of a teaser. I am interested where this Superman film will go but honestly, Superman is the complete opposite in tone to Batman. I am all for different approaches to characters, rather go to the same route to be safe but Christopher Nolan’s influence (for better or worse) is a bit much. I do hope it’s all part of starting really grim and eventually grows to being bright and uplifting as the story develops. We’ll just have to wait and see when it is released on 14th June, 2013.

 

* – It was nice to see a shot of Clark Kent trying to hitch a ride and the road was leading up to Whistler in British Columbia, Canada (probably a different location in the film but still cool nonetheless).

 

** – I have now just found out that there are two versions of the teaser trailer, same footage but two voice-overs. One I saw in front of Rises was with Jonathan Kent and the other is Jor-El’s voice (Russell Crowe) which you can see on Apple website (http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/wb/manofsteel/)