A New Idea for Superman
I think that a new Superman (of my design) movie begins with the opening of Superman The Movie. Be sure to catch this clip from the very beginning.
Thereafter, I would hearken back to the old Christopher Reeves TV show -- even including a slightly updated version of the soundtrack. I would go through updated versions of "faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to change the course of mighty rivers, bend steel in his bare hands, etc." But the total effect would be one to copy the early introduction from the TV series. If it were left up to me, I might shoot the entire movie in black and white. The plot? Well, it would be interesting to see how Superman could overcome Brainiac -- using all the CGI available today in a B&W mode.
The characters and dialogue would need to be upgraded, but not to the extent of squashing down the original TV series. For instance, Kent did not play a comedic role. He need not do so in a future role either. Why have Kent play the role of a flunky -- just to create a deeper separation between himself and Superman? I mean, come on, if you can't recognize Superman behind the glasses, having him act like a jerk isn't going to get you anywhere. One has to simply accept that Superman doesn't wear glasses, so Kent cannot be Superman.
Include some memorabilia such as Superman flying out windows along with a sound, as opposed to him merely floating away soundlessly. Someone who goes from standstill to hyper-sonic speed is going to create some kind of sound. Put someone in a NASA wind tunnel and capture the actual sound of a man's body going hyper-sonic (or near to it).
This would be a movie for the boomers who would be enthralled with an updated Reeves series. Such a movie would pre-date the Christopher Reeve batch of films, and so comparisons should be minimal. Christopher Reeve is by far and away the best liked and supported Superman, so why not try something drastically different? Film the whole thing in B&W, and draw heavily upon nostalgia. It doesn't have to be corny or dated -- just daring enough to show us old kids what the original series might have looked like if we had today's CGI plus a reverence for what brought the audience to see Superman The Movie in the first place. Let's face it. How much of an audience would Superman The Movie have pulled in if the boomers didn't have a latent, fond memory of the TV series? If this is true, then a movie loosely structured around the 50's-60's series should get a lot of boomers off their couch while simultaneously creating a lot of attention from younger generations because of its daring and radically different approach to a seemingly worn-out topic. Warner Bros. doesn't have a clue what to do with the Superman franchise. Instead of creating another mere slug-fest, they have the opportunity to take Superman back to his roots, back to when he was relevant, original and someone with whom you could identify.
