Superman is, arguably, one of the biggest pop culture icons in American history. Everyone knows Superman, and it’s no wonder that when Hollywood began making major feature film adaptations of comic book characters, the Man of Steel was one of the first to come to the screen. Richard Donner’s 1978 film Superman struck a chord with audiences at the time, as Christopher Reeve made folks believe he could fly. It is, by most accounts, a swell film, and while it’s held in high esteem as one of the best superhero movies ever made, I’d argue there’s another Superman film that exceeds Superman both in terms of quality and fidelity to the character: Bryan Singer’s 2006 reboot/sequel Superman Returns.

Donner’s Superman spurred four further sequels, each worse than its predecessor, until the franchise was killed once and for all with 1987’s low budget Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Hollywood spent the next decade and a half trying to figure out how to bring Superman back to the big screen until Singer—fresh off revitalizing the superhero genre with X-Men and X2—cracked the code. But instead of making a hard left turn away from what came before, Singer embraced Donner’s work on Superman and Superman II, crafting a film that was simultaneously a reboot and a sequel to Superman II.

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Image via Warner Bros.

The resulting Superman Returns was met with a mixed response. Just a year prior, Christopher Nolan reinvented the superhero genre once more with the gritty, ultra-grounded Batman Begins, and audiences firmly had Spider-Man fever in the wake of Sam Raimi’s colorful, splashy first two films. Superman Returns, meanwhile, was a much more thoughtful and deliberately paced superhero movie focused more on the relationship between Superman and the world/Superman and Lois Lane than action set pieces or fisticuffs. As a result, Returns got kind of a bad rap and with a worldwide gross of $391.1 million, failed to exceed the sky-high expectations of Warner Bros.

And yet, I still believe Superman Returns is the best Superman movie we’ve seen thus far. In terms of casting, Singer knocked it out of the park. Brandon Routh is at once thoughtful, sensitive, and above all heroic as the titular Man of Steel, and he very much follows in Reeve’s footsteps in crafting a distinct portrayal of Clark Kent in contrast to his true superhero persona. And holy hell is Kevin Spacey a delightful Lex Luthor. Despite an interesting performance from Gene Hackman, Superman’s portrayal of Luthor is somewhat boring—less menacing and more smarmy. In the hands of Spacey, however, Luthor toes the line between ruthless and charismatic. He’s clearly into some terrible things, but you also can’t wait to see what he’s gonna do next.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Spacey’s Luthor has a somewhat charming disdain for Superman, but also feels justified in his actions as being good for himself and humankind, as summed up at the end of one of his brilliant opening monologues:

“Gods are selfish beings who fly around in little red capes and don't share their power with mankind. No, I don't want to be a god, I just want to bring fire to the people. And…I want my cut.”

And while Ned Beatty’s Otis in Superman is so incompetent he’s more annoying than funny, Parker Posey’s hilariously off-color remarks and willingness to call Lex out makes for one of the best onscreen villain sidekicks in movie history. Kate Bosworth, meanwhile, is a swell Lois Lane, and is more than capable of handling the complex emotions that are brought about by the sudden return of Routh’s Superman, five years after he took off without so much as a goodbye. From a story standpoint, Singer’s structure here is kind of brilliant. The film builds off of Superman and Superman II, which gives him the excuse not to have to re-tell the origin story that everyone already knows, and allows him to immerse audiences into high drama in the middle of the story. Moreover, the 9/11 parallels are carefully handled, with Singer pondering the question, “Does the world even need Superman?” It’s that central conceit that drives this movie and makes it more interesting than most superhero stories out there. Superman Returns doesn’t operate from the standpoint of assuming its superhero is the world’s necessary savior. Singer asks, what if we don’t need him? Where does that put Superman, a man now firmly without his birthplace and in danger of losing his adopted home?

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Image via Warner Bros.

One of the major complaints lodged at Superman Returns is that Superman doesn’t throw a single punch throughout the whole movie, to which I respond, so what? Superman Returns offers a superhero that is more heroic than 80% of other modern superhero protagonists—Singer makes clear that Superman needs to save the people; that is his desire, and that is his purpose. Whether that involves punching the living daylights out of bad guys or not is beside the point, and in set piece after set piece we see Superman exuding the purity of the word “hero”, always aware of his surroundings and never favoring one person over another in particular, even if that person happens to be the love of his life. The plane sequence; the car chase; the Krypton rock finale—all of these set pieces are thrillingly crafted and executed, showcasing Superman’s heroics. Is Man of Steel a good movie? Yes, a very good one I’d argue. Is it a good Superman movie? No, no it is not. Zack Snyder misses the point of Superman in both Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and while those films may feature more impressive visual effects or fisticuffs, they fail to fully realize the character of Superman, which is where Superman Returns shines.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Even as Superman Returns becomes a tad bloated in its conclusion, the film’s impact outweighs that of Donner’s Superman, whose runtime is made all the more taxing by the spotty pacing. I know it’s sacrosanct, but it’s time to admit that Superman is just as mixed a bag as all the other Superman movies. The positives of Superman Returns far outweigh the negatives, and had Singer and Co. been allowed to continue on with the franchise, I believe audiences would have been in for a treat. Instead, it served as a one-off, but is long overdue for another look—especially in contrast to the current state of the superhero movie genre. While Marvel Studios is the biggest superhero player on the block, its focus on heroics and fidelity to character owe a debt to Singer’s Superman Returns. Moreover, if Superman Returns were released right now, as-is, it’d be hailed as a brilliant, character-centric twist on the superhero genre, standing in stark contrast to the explosion-filled theatrics of current comic book adaptations. It’s sweeping, it’s romantic, it’s thoughtful—Superman Returns is the best Superman movie ever made.

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