James Gunn's new Superman may already be the most-hyped movie of the year. Even December's teaser trailer had its own pre-trailer billing it as an event on a par with the movie itself. Then came the TV spot in January.
Finally, DC has released an 'official' trailer – as if the others were mere leaks. Fans were waiting to soak up every detail of the three-minute piece, so improvements in the VFX from one trailer to the next didn't go unnoticed.
The new Superman trailer begins with Lois Lane interviewing an irritable superhero, who attempts to defend his actions, and his apparent defiance of bureaucracy, to save lives. I'm thinking Superman's new testy character might be divisive. He seems to come across as arrogant and egotistical, but I guess the aim is to show a hero who's less perfect (and more interesting, maybe).
Then, the iconic John Williams theme cranks in and we have bad guys, explosions, romance and some sharp lines. We see Superman getting beaten up, and even bleeding a bit.
The reactions from fans are generally positive. "DC is back not with noise, but with purpose. The symbol of hope just rose again!," one person wrote on YouTube. "For the first time in a long time for a DC movie, I got emotional," another person wrote.
Highlights for fans include emotive shaky homemade-looking footage of Clark as a kid, and some nice attention to detail and world building with the inclusion of a Lordtech (as in Maxwell Lord of the Justice Gang) recorder at the 14-second mark. But one detail that's intriguing the most eagle-eyed viewers is the work that's been done on VFX since the last trailer, as evident in the comparison of one scene below.
Posted by DCPRIMETV on
VFX artists other continue working on post-production close up to a movie's release. Given the long marketing cycle for movies these days, it means VFX work continues well after initial trailers are launched. This comparison is a nice example.
As well as more cars and buildings, an additional advertising billboard and more debris, the colours have been tweaked too. The result is that Metropolis looks busier and denser – like it should.
With still some time to go before the Superman release date on 11 July, more changes may still be in the works. See our pick of the best CGI movie moments for examples of the magic of cinema VFX.
