It's an attention grabber right! He has done a little acting to be fair in a henchman role. So it does fit what I'm going with hereTyron Woodley
DC EXTENDED UNIVERSE PRESENTS |
ESCAPE FROM BIZARRO WORLD |
With the DC Extended Universe now entering it's second chapter, we'd finally get our first ever sequel focusing on the story of Superman. Continuing directly on from the events of Man of Steel and the Justice League movies. This film would begin with a funeral for the former Mayor of Metropolis Frank Berkowitz. Of course mayor Berkowitz was murdered at the end of Man of Steel and this was by Mercy Graves (Anna Kendrick) as per the orders of Lex Luthor (Denzel Washington). Of course with Berkowitz being a notable public figure and his death being close to a public execution, his funeral very much was a notable affair. With the Daily Planet on hand covering the event, Lex Luthor would eulogize Frank Berkowitz calling him a friend and a true leader of men. Still to the outside world Lex was able to portray himself as a businessman and at times philanthropist. While many bought into this narrative that Lex Luthor was selling, a few of the Daily Planet writers weren't so convinced. This included Lois Lane (Allison Brie), Cat Grant (Halle Berry) and Ron Troupe (Echo Kellum). The trio had been suspicious of Lex since the attack Metropolis suffered at the hands of the Ultra Huminite in Man of Steel. Wanting to help Lois in anyway he can, Clark Kent (Matt Bomer) knew of her investigation and asked how he can help. However Lois in an effort to protect Clark and his secret identity would ask him to stay clear of this, just in case Lex is as dangerous as she believes and she doesn't want to risk his exposure. This would be a great expose on the relationship of Lois and Clark. Both completely trusting and supporting one another and willing to listen to one another taking what they say on board. While he may have had some misgivings about staying away from the investigation, Clark would respect Lois' wishes while promising to keep close just in case any danger came their way. Of course what neither could predict is how close to home this danger was with George Taylor (Olivier Martinez). The desperate reporter of course was long looking to save his own skin and in doing so would be at the mercy of Lex Luthor and Mercy Graves. For now this would include being Lex's eyes and ears in the Daily Planet. While not the most popular individual thanks to his at times surly nature, Taylor wasn't someone who was perceived as a threat down to his at times incompetence in his job. Taylor wouldn't be the only source Lex had however as with the death of Berkowitz, a new local politician would ascend to mayor. this mayor of course will be Dirk Armstrong (Brian F. O'Byrne). Unlike Berkowitz who seemed to struggle with the pressure and ramifications of his decisions, Dirk Armstrong seemed to be fully at peace with the deals and decisions he'd made. Of course along with the mayor of Metropolis, Lex also had police chief David Corporon (Julian Glover) on his side. The unscrupulous police commissioner who Lex has in his back pocket, we'd learn that while in many cases Lex had either orchestrated, corrupted, blackmailed or threatened those to be in his employ. David Corporon was believed to have always been someone who walked on the line and was in fact associated with Lex's father. It was thanks to this connection that Corporon had a loyalty to Lex that we had perhaps not seen in some of Lex's other allies. It would then be in what proved for quite a fascinating experience, we'd spend a lot of this time world building in the life of Lex Luthor making him a central main character in this film alongside the story of Clark Kent. With focus on his already established dynamics we'd also meet more of those in Lex Luthor's world including Hope Tya (Ryan Newman). Very much seen as Mercy Graves' lieutenant, Hope Tya was shown to be a stoic, emotionless woman who was capable of vicious acts far beyond her youthful looks. While Hope in some ways was a wolf in sheeps clothing, the same could not be said for another member of Mercy's crew known as Otis Berg (Jack Huston). A career criminal who very much took a sadistic joy in what he did, Otis was someone who very much was kept away from the public light due to Mercy looking to keep him clear of association with Lex. Another ally of Lex's would be a former soldier turned mercenary by the name of Elias Orr (David Oakes). Orr, unlike many of Lex's crew had loyalty to the mighty dollar and would in many ways be reminiscent of the Howard Branden character in the Batman film saga. The last member of Lex's operation was Harold Spalding (Bertie Carvel). While Mercy Graves seemingly had orchestrated and mastered the guise of operating while in the public eye, Harold Spalding meanwhile was someone who much preferred to act in the shadows. A well connected fixer who in many ways was the source of a lot of Lex's blackmail material, Spalding was shown in his scenes to be a cold individual who very much seemed to treat most people with a type of disdain. As we shaped Lex's criminal organization, we'd also get some more fleshing out at Lex Corp with Lex's newest recruit Sebastien Mallory (Harry Treadaway). Very much a young, entrepreneur who Lex saw as a younger version of himself, Lex looked to mold Sebastien into a potential successor for him. This would make Lex very much a father figure to Sebastien who sought nothing more than to make his mentor proud. With Lois Lane seemingly convinced that there was something not right about Lex Luthor, Perry White (Jimmy Smits) would urge Lois to be very careful. Knowing that Lex was a well connected and powerful man who could make a fearsome enemy to them all if provoked. Looking out for Lois' best interests knowing that for now her obsession had little to go on, Perry would assign to her a new reporter by the name of Jimmy Olsen (Jack Quaid). While this was partly in order to distract Lois or give her something else to focus on, it was also because Perry recognized Lois' talent and recognized that when it come to reporters at the Planet there was no better mentor for a prospective journalist than it's most tenacious and talented. Unfortunately Lois didn't see it that way at least at first and while she was never rude or mistreated Jimmy, she had little issue in voicing her displeasure at the situation and could be quite the harsh task master in offering constructive criticism. Despite this Olsen took everything on board and was shown to be eager to impress and please. Soon we'd see Olsen and how he was perceived in the planet with him quickly befriending both Clark Kent and Ron Troupe, meanwhile as the newcomer he'd find himself hassled and hazed by Steve Lombard (Chace Crawford), all the while Cat Grant proved to be just as hard to impress as Lois Lane. While Olsen may have for now been in the process of winning people over, it was safe to say Superman so far had done so thanks to his efforts in both the Man of Steel film and Justice League. With most of Metropolis on his side it was said that Lex was his biggest detractor in private. Refusing to believe someone as powerful as Superman would be a hero, Lex's machinations would be revealed to be much further as we'd finally get a follow up on a meeting in the previous film that Lex had with Jax-Ur. Here we'd learn that Ur provided Lex with access to one of Zod's weapons caches which provided Lex with a variety of Kryptonian weaponry and technology. With this continued world building and establishing a new world order so to speak. As the story would then focus on Maggie Sawyer (Sienna Miller). The detective who thanks to her support of Superman had been ostracized by many of her old friends and colleagues. Aware of Sawyer's investigations and her want to help Superman, David Corporon seemingly had a game plan to sabotage Sawyer. This would be by pairing her with officer Dan Turpin (Kevin Rankin). A hot head shown to be an officer who has had his career marred by accusations of brutality, corruption and alcoholism. Dan Turpin was shown to be a pig headed and jaded individual, while her and Sawyer would quickly clash it would be during an argument that Turpin revealed that he knows what people see when they look at him and he is aware that he has earned a lot of that. Holding up his hands admitting he has made mistakes, Turpin says he has come to Metropolis to turn things around and that's why he requested to work with the officer no one else wanted to. As he sees Maggie as a good cop and someone who he thinks he can work with. This would lead to quite a positive partnership with a pair of complete opposites. It would be here we'd learn that Sawyer like Lois had her suspicions of Lex and in Dan Turpin she had someone willing to back her in her pursuit. Aware of the investigation against him however, Lex would in a surprising move request to do an interview with the Daily Planet. Using his connections Lex would have this interview be conducted and televised with him and Lois Lane. Bringing Olsen with her to Lex Corp, Lois found the privately run company to be heavily armed as she was met by Mercy Graves. Introducing herself as Lex's personal aide, Mercy began with a private tour of Lex Corp for the pair. This would further display Mercy's ability to blend into the public as she showed herself to be an engaging and charming figure. During this private tour Lois would be stunned to encounter her father General Sam Lane (Clancy Brown). To say things were tense between Lois and her father would be an understatement. This thanks in part to their differences in belief about Superman and also about General Lane's tough parenting approach of Lois from a young age. Despite his gruff exterior Lane was someone who cared about his daughter and seemed happy to see her. Unfortunately Lois wasn't as keen or interested in reconciliation and instead was far from impressed at seeing her father here with Luthor, as we'd later learn however Lane's reason for being here was under orders of the government in the hopes that Lexcorp could assist with issues with a recent NASA Project known as Excalibur. While Lane returned to his work, Mercy would lead Lois and Olsen to Lex's office. As Lois sat down with Lex for this interview, we'd see an interesting interaction between Jimmy Olsen and Sebastien Mallory as the pair were revealed to know one another and share quite the adversarial relationship. During the interview with Lois it was clear that Lex was looking to very much manipulate things as best her could. Wanting to silence any doubters and retain the positive public perception he holds, Lex would be very candid and quite aggressive as he looked to push narratives to further his own end. However Lois to her credit showed herself willing to spar with Lex verbally and even question him on some of Lex Corps more shadier dealings. This included hiring one Gerard Shugel despite numerous questions over his ethics. Unfortunately for the pair in this interview, outside elements would soon takeover as loud bang could be heard from outside while many raised voices could be heard from outside. It would then be revealed that the satellite known as Excalibur had began to crash land and was heading to Metropolis. Called to the lab area Lex would have one of his security guards escort Lois and Olsen out of Lex Corp, it would be here that Lois recognized her guard as her ex boyfriend John Corben (Sullivan Stapleton). During this brief interaction it seemed that Corben had a lot he still wanted to talk to Lois about but we'd see Lois had very much moved on and looked to just be civil. The fall of Excalibur and a lot of the collateral damage would be stopped by Superman. Sadly the crew on board were beyond saving, this is the case for all but one survivor who would be introduced as Hank Henshaw (Cheyenne Jackson). While Hank may have survived the crash which we'd later learn that had also claimed the life of his wife. A distraught Hank found himself with a slow death sentence as his body would be consumed with the radiation he was exposed to during his time in space and the crash. In an effort to save Hank, Lex would authorize the usage of Lex Corp equipment under the watchful eye of Sam Lane. This experimentation would see Lex Luthor use what he described as life saving, experimental prosthesis to rebuild Hank and his skeleton in an effort to save his life. While Lex may have attempted to rebuild Hank physically he'd task one of his employees Amanda Marie McCoy (Marin Ireland) to act as a psychiatrist and observe Hank's progress mentally and report her findings to Lex. These meetings of course would take place in secret and we'd see Amanda unable to hide her concerns about Hank's stability. Calling him mentally unstable and someone who was consumed with their own grief. In turn Lex would see this an opportunity to manipulate Hank relating to his survival and what was next for him. Through these manipulations, Lex convinced Hank that there was a reason he was a survivor through all this and he had a greater purpose in life. Looking to become a hero based off of this Hank would adopt the moniker of Cyborg Superman. While we'd continue to see Lex's machinations in play, focus also showed Jimmy Olsen's continued journey to prove himself a the Planet. Despite his hard work, it seemed that Olsen couldn't quite get Lois Lane to warm up to him. On top of this Olsen would regularly be the target of hazing and at times bullyish behavior by Steve Lombard with his attempts to stand up for himself very much being met with mockery. Despite this Olsen did find himself with a pair of friends in Clark Kent and Ron Troupe with the pair doing the most they could to make him feel welcome. Along with this, Olsen had earned a little big of respect from Cat Grant for his graft so far but still had a long way to go there. During a review with Perry White however, Lois was nothing but complimentary of Olsen and praised his work before admitting that while she doesn't want to be in this mentor role, she recognizes Olsen's potential. At the same time she will not let him rest on his laurels and will make him work as hard as she did to reach his potential. Later that night however in a break from seeing Lois in her profession, we'd see a family dinner as for the first time Lois' father Sam Lane would meet Clark Kent as well as Clark's parents Martha Kent (Laura Linney) and Jonathan Kent (Steve Carrell). While Lane was respectful during the meal, it was clear that he wasn't a fan of Clark Kent. He was also shown not to be impressed with the Daily Planet's constant praise of Superman which would continue to show that while a lot of Metropolis may have accepted Superman, to some he was still seen as a threat. With his work on Cyborg Superman continuing, Lex would meet with George Taylor who continued to feed Lex information about the Daily Planet. While an outsider in the Planet, George would stoop to any lows to find out about any potential investigations into Lex. As we'd very much see from Taylor, this was a man who knew that he had made himself a deal with the devil but in turn was desperately looking to save his skin in any way possible. During a later meeting with some of his associates Lex would encourage Turpin to make things a little more difficult for the Planet, while Corporon was shown to be very unhappy that Sawyer and Turpin had found a way to coexist. This is why in turn he had been giving them grunt details. Meanwhile as we'd also learn in this meeting Elias Orr was currently transporting some kryptonian weaponry and was aided in doing so by Otis and Hope. Unfortunately one of Lex's best laid plans which of course was Cyborg Superman would soon come to backfire as while it seemed like while physically Hank Henshaw had the potential to be an alternate, mentally he was still fragile and far from being a hero. Snapping entirely and experiencing a psychotic break, Hank Henshaw would escape Lex Corp and would soon be overwhelmed by all the sights and sounds of Metropolis. Undergoing a psychotic break as he looked to get away from everyone Cyborg Superman was shown to be a danger to himself and others. Quickly several of Lex Luthor's security including John Corben would enter the field in the hopes to contain Hank Henshaw and stop any damage. Unfortunately for these guards with Hank's instability he would be unable to control himself or the powers he'd developed thanks to the experimentation. This would leave many of the Lex Corps dead and John Corben mortally wounded from his injuries. While the police looked to help the public escape from the scene we'd see Superman in action for the first time as he battled Cyborg Superman. We'd see in this fight that Cyborg Superman thanks to his enhancements had near enough the same abilities that Superman did, recognizing the danger of Cyborg Superman, Superman looked to take this fight as far away from Metropolis as possible. Taking the fight further up into the air, Superman kept trying to talk Hank down from his rage. Yet Henshaw was consumed by his insanity and rage as he made it clear that he held aliens responsible for all of this. Realizing Henshaw couldn't be stopped Superman took the fight near enough into space. This would be were things began to become quite notably different as the human parts of Hank began to struggle with being out of the earth's atmosphere. Watching on in horror, Superman would then see Cyborg Superman began to fall back into earth's orbit. Rushing after him in the hopes that he could save and reach Hank Henshaw, Superman while able to catch him could only watch the human parts of Hank slowly get eviscerated on entry to the earth's atmosphere. The robotic parts meanwhile would fall into the ocean. Quickly Lex would begin a mission to salvage this situation and he'd use his right hand man Spalding to dig up some dirt on Hank Henshaw. Pushing the narrative that Hank Henshaw was mentally unstable and couldn't live with himself or what he'd done, Lex called what happened a fateful mistake and error in judgement. Lois meanwhile sought to prove Lex's guilt in turning Hank Henshaw from a space hero into a space creature. Sadly as we'd find Lex was not someone who messed around and it would be the efforts of Otis and Hope that the materials used to construct Hank were extracted and destroyed. At the same time Lex as we'd learn had some aces up his sleeve, as we'd see he'd in fact been watching on from a camera attached to Cyborg Superman. Having seen close up Superman's powers and the gifts being closer to the Sun afforded him, as we'd further learn in Lex's latest stash was a weapon which could truly hurt Clark. This flashing green element would be known as Kryptonite. Revealed that he was personally looking after John Corben's care, we'd see Lex speak with Sam Lane who expressed concern over experimenting on Corben. Lex said openly that he's had his team check Corben's vital and his psych evaluations. Unlike Henshaw who Lex called riddled with trauma and issues, Corben is a soldier and someone who just needs help physically. Help which Lex can give and save him should Lane allow him this chance. As Lane would soon learn, Lex had been trying to create Corben a new heart to correct the damages that Corben had suffered to his. While at first uranium was used in the construction of the heart, Lex would also begin to use Kryptonite also. Along with this Luthor would have scientists use similar tech that was used on Henshaw to craft an exoskeleton for John Corben. This would officially transform him into the DC character Metallo. Unlike Hank Henshaw, Corben had no interest in becoming a hero or the next Superman. What Corben wanted with this near death experience was a chance to follow his heart and talk with Lois Lane. Using his new found strength to escape from Lex Corp, Corben would head to the Daily Planet much to Lex's disbelief. As it was Corben would head to the Planet at the same time as Sam Lane looked to invite his daughter for lunch. To say things were still tense with the pair would be an understatement as Lois remarked that Sam wouldn't approve of anyone for her least of all someone who hasn't been a soldier or follow his orders. Before Lane could respond the pair would be met by John Corben. Neither could believe of the changes to Corben and as John demanded a conversation, Lois would refuse stating that she had nothing else to say to him. This would only enrage Corben as Lois called him a monster. Revealing that Corben was an abuser and one who she was happy to get away from, Lois seemed surprised as Sam Lane stood between her and Metallo. Saying that he always thought highly of Corben as a soldier and as a man. Sam makes it clear that he'd heard murmurs and rumors of the kind of man Metallo was. Now standing here and seeing what Corben has become, he realizes he was wrong about him in the first place. This would enrage Metallo who would charge at Sam only to be tackled by Superman. Having arrived on the scene in the nick of time Superman would tackle Metallo through a wall while loudly telling everyone to run. In a show of his care and consideration of his staff Perry White would stay behind with Sam Lane to make sure the building was clear while Steve Lombard helped some of the more vulnerable members of staff to safety with the help of Olsen. During the fight with Superman, Metallo would actually open his chest and in doing so he'd expose Superman to Kryptonite. The effects while quick would seem to increase with exposure. Gradually weakening Superman and causing him to experience extreme pain, this would very much be the first time we saw Superman in such danger and near death as because of this Metallo began to beat him. Showing himself unwilling to stop in the state of rage he was, it would only be thanks to Sam Lane that Superman's life was saved. Seemingly recognizing a hero for the first time, Lane would berate Metallo drawing his attention. With Metallo advancing towards him Superman would use his laser vision on Metallo's chest. This would seal it completely shut and it allowed Superman to begin to recover from the exposure. At the same time We see the exposure to Kryptonite begin to affect Corben's heart. This would trigger a heart attack from Corben which Superman sought to prevent and save his enemies life. With Metallo's heart restored, Sam Lane would authorize Corben to be taken to a facility known as Belle Reve which could hold him. With both the Metallo and Cyborg Superman incidents, we'd see public opinion begin to alter on Lex. Recognizing that people began more and more to see his guilt, Lex was smart enough to realize that his time was drawing near which is why he drew up some plans for the future. This included tasking Sebastian with how to run the company in his absence. On top of this Lex seemed to be fully committed to bringing Superman down with him. However Lex's day would go from bad to worse as during one of their routine deliveries Elias, Hope and Otis would be met by Metropolis police who had become aware of the illicit dealings of this group. A shootout would then begin and during the process we'd see Elias shot and killed by Dan Turpin. Otis meanwhile would be wounded by police fire while Maggie Sawyer personally would manage to arrest Hope. Despite experiencing these setbacks Luthor remained confident of his true plot as he told Mercy it was time to then launch Bizarro. It would seem while Metallo and Cyborg Superman may have been botched products which put him in a treacherous situation that Lex very much had an ace up his sleeve. This ace as we'd learn was an unnamed man (Colin O'Donoghue) who was severely injured during Hank Henshaw's meltdown. In secret Lex had his people collect this man believed to be braindead and in a coma. Having seen both Hank and Corben ruled by their grief and trauma, Lex saw the brain dead man with no identity or memories as a fresh start and attempt to truly create his own hero. Using Kryptonian DNA which he'd recovered from the cache. Lex would experiment on this comatose man until a transformation would begin to take hold. Slowly becoming Kryptonian in his own right this man would begin to recover from his injuries but with his brain trauma he'd have very little understanding of the world he was in or who he was beneath. Using Amanda very much to help spin a narrative to Bizarro that he is Superman and the real Superman is a pretender and evil replicant. Lex would almost be perceived as a father like figure to Bizarro. Despite Amanda's warning that Bizarro is heavily disturbed with a twisted sense of what is right and wrong, Lex insisted that they continue pushing him knowing that it is in Bizarro that he has the best chance to finally bring Superman to his knees. While Lex would do this, we'd see Clark return to the fortress of solitude and here Clark would be met by his father Jor-El (Adrian Pasdar). During this conversation Jor El would warn Clark of the dangers of Kryptonite and what long term exposure can do. Unfortunately for Clark he wouldn't have much time to spend in the fortress as we'd see police begin to arrive at Lex Corp. While they did Luthor would authorize the release of Bizarro telling him to protect his father at all costs. Amanda would protest this and in turn her neck would be snapped instantly by Bizarro. Mowing down police officers, we'd quickly see Bizarro's twisted view on the world come to light. This would cause Superman to enter the fray and we'd see during this fight some noted differences between the pair. For while Clark was arguably more skilled and rivalled Bizarro if not was superior in most facets. It was Bizarro's wildness and lack of control which made him as dangerous a foe as Superman had faced. During the conflict which caused great damage in the city of Metropolis, Clark recognizing Bizarro as a construct and not a real Kryptonian would attempt to reach Bizarro. However with his diminished intelligence this would prove difficult thanks to Bizarro's unwavering support of his father. The turning point however would be when Bizarro met Lois Lane during the skirmish. Stunned by her beauty and Lois' care. Bizarro briefly come to a halt as it seemed that Superman would begin to reach him. Remarking that he doesn't know who he is or what he is, Bizarro was truly a tragic and confused figure. One whose life would tragically be cut short as he'd be promptly shot down with a kryptonite bullet by Lex Luthor. As Bizarro collapsed on the ground and slowly succumbed to his wounds with Lois Lane holding his hand to comfort him. We'd see Superman confront Lex in a long awaited face off. The angered Luthor would express his rage at Superman for not wanting to work with him as the pair could have been unstoppable. With one Kryptonite round in the chamber for Superman, Lex said he didn't plan on this moment but he will take great satisfaction in knowing he was the one to do it. Unfortunately for Lex what he didn't account for was this entire scene being recorded by Cat Grant and Perry White as well as a well timed gun shot to the shoulder by Sam Lane. This disarmed Lex and allowed Dan Turpin to handcuff and arrest the billionaire for the world to see. With Lex felled, we'd see Bizarro slowly begin to pass before we'd be treated to some warming visions of Bizarro's heaven which in some Bizarro world. We'd see him as that version's Superman protecting the world with a Bizarro Lois by his side. A montage would then follow of many of Lex Luthor's crimes being exposed to the world and one of the first loose ends shown to be tied would be police coming for his fixer Spalding only to find that Lex's right hand had in fact taken his own life. Cathartically the next few scenes would be all the more satisfying as Maggie Sawyer personally got to be the officer who'd arrest the corrupt police chief David Corporon and march him through the police department in handcuffs. While the police couldn't find anything on Sebastien Malloy who would quickly do media tours promising to rebuild and rebrand Lex Corp with the help of his assistant Mercy Graves. This would be quite the surprise as we'd further learn that not only had Graves managed to cover her own tracks but she'd installed Sebastian as the face of this new company while in secret she'd be the one in charge and had in fact secured the Kryptonian cache for herself. Meanwhile in a big scene Perry White would head to the mayors office and would expose Dirk Armstrong for his corruption, while not enough to expose him or vilify him for the world to see. White would tell Armstrong that from this point onwards he would be on his best behavior as mayor and would he break that promise than his sins would come to light. A highly enjoyable scene then followed with George Taylor's criminal activities and corruption being exposed. Unlike others Taylor wasn't as keen to go quietly and he'd draw a knife in the Daily planet. His attempts to make a clean getaway however would be intercepted thanks to Jimmy Olsen tackling him. While Taylor and Olsen scuffled, Steve Lombard again showing there to be more to him than just a bully would rush in and help disarm Taylor before knocking him out. After this Taylor would nod his head out of respect to Olsen. With this new Metropolis beginning to establish itself without Lex Luthor playing puppet master. The film would close with a tease of things to come as firstly we'd learn that Sam Lane had secretly taken the gun containing the one bullet of kryptonite for himself and his team. The final scenes would then shown an alien ship begin to crash on the outskirts of Metropolis, heading over to it Superman would be stunned as a young woman would pull herself out from the wreckage. Climbing to her feet, she would look at Clark in shock before snatching him in a big hug as she introduced herself as Kara Zor-El (Soarise Ronan), his cousin! |
CAST/CHARACTERS |
Clark Kent/Superman - Played by Matt Bomer Lois Lane - Played by Allison Brie Jonathan Kent - Played by Steve Carrell Martha Kent - Played by Laura Linney Perry White - Played by Jimmy Smits Mercy Graves - Played by Anna Kendrick George Taylor - Played by Olivier Martinez Ron Troupe - Played by Echo Kellum Cat Grant - Played by Halle Berry Steve Lombard - Played by Chace Crawford David Corporon - Played by Julian Glover William Henderson - Played by Danny Glover Pete Ross - Played by Tobey Maguire Sam Lane - Played by Clancy Brown Maggie Sawyer - Played by Sienna Miller Lex Luthor - Played by Denzel Washington Hank Henshaw/Cyborg Superman - Played by Cheyenne Jackson Dirk Armstrong - Played by Brian F. O'Byrne Dan Turpin - Played by Kevin Rankin Hope Tya - Played by Ryan Newman Otis Berg - Played by Jack Huston Sebastien Mallory - Played by Harry Treadaway Amanda Marie McCoy - Played by Marin Ireland Harold Spalding - Played by Bertie Carvel Elias Orr - Played by David Oakes Jimmy Olsen - Played by Jack Quaid Bizarro - Played by Colin O'Donoghue John Corben/Metallo - Played by Sullivan Stapleton |
DC EXTENDED UNIVERSE |
THE IMITATION OF LIFE |
Looking to follow in the footsteps of an acclaimed Superman sequel. Unlike that film in which we saw a sequel of an already established character. Instead this film would serve as the introduction story for Victor Stone/Cyborg (Denzel Whittaker) to the ever growing roster of the DCEU's hero list. In the build to this movie, we had promised very much a heavy tale focusing on accepting oneself and the changes endured. Of course before we could focus on that part, the story would begin with the early days of Victor Stone's life. The son of two highly reputable scientists and researchers Victor Stone (Laurence Fishburne) and Elinore Stone (Gina Torres). While being the son of two highly reputable researchers and scientists may seem like a great boon to a young man. But sadly as we'd find it also meant that Victor grew up a lot on his own with his parents focused on their study. This doesn't mean that Victor was unloved, in fact his parents truly thought the world of their son and wanted what is best for him. While the pair very much had their passion for research and science. It was clear that both very much had their own vocations. As while Silas Stone was a man who studied robotics and prosthesis. It was Elinore who had the grander ideas in her dimensional research and theories. Often times Elinore would engage in a dialogue with Silas' close friend and colleague T.O. Morrow (Aiden Gillen). While Silas may not have necessarily understood what Elinore was looking for. T.O. Morrow was shown to be someone a lot more open minded to these ideas. Meanwhile Elinore's colleague Simon Jones (Ralph Fiennes) would often come into conflict with Silas who was shown to be quite dismissive of Jones. Continuing to further establish some differences between Silas and Elinore, while we would see that the duo did love and care for their son. They did have different ways of showing it, for while Elinore when she could see her son would prove herself to be a loving and caring individual. With Silas, was a lot colder and not as emotive at least in the public eye. However one thing Silas did want was for his son to be something great. This is why shockingly unknown to everyone but himself, Silas would administer to his son a series of injections with unknown chemicals. These drugs would alter Victor's DNA and lead to an increase in his intelligence as he began to grow older. Unfortunately this would cause conflict as Victor got older and began to realize that he and his intelligence as a side effect of being in his words his father's personal test subject. This would unfortunately fracture Victor and Silas' relationship for a long time and also impact Silas' relationship with Elinore. In perhaps a turn of rebellion from Victor, we'd see him forego these intellectual gifts he'd been presented with and instead he'd begin to pursue the life of an athlete. While this would not sit well with his father who saw this as an afront or an attempt to spite him. Elinore would show pride in Victor and wanting him to achieve all he can. During his time on the sports team we'd see Victor meet some people who'd alter the course of his life forever. The first of which would be Sarah Charles (Willa Fitzgerald). Similar to Victor, Sarah was shown to be highly intelligent but unlike Victor who excelled physically also we'd see Sarah had more of a flair of the creative. A romance between the two would quickly blossom, along with this relationship Victor would encounter three others who would alter the course of his life. The first two of which would be rivals on the football field in Bobby Zirrozinski (Justin Prentice) and Sebastian Cardona (Santiago Segura). While Sebastian Cardona and Victor may have shared a fairly civil relationship. On the field they were highly competitive and looking to one up one another. In the case of Bobby meanwhile, we'd see things were a lot more hostile with Bobby showing a real lack of respect to Victor. As we'd find with this rivalry there is a lot more than just competition which caused these issues as Bobby had long been interested in Sarah. The final relationship that Victor would cultivate would be Ron Evers (RJ Cyler). Unlike the others mentioned, Ron Evers wasn't a rival on the field or an athlete of note. Nor was he someone who matched Victor's intelligence. In Ron, Victor found a brother, someone who would always have his back no matter what despite their differences. As we'd see however unlike Victor who had a family, Ron very much had to look out for himself and because of this had become accustomed to fighting and breaking the law. While Silas and his son may have been distant, Silas couldn't help but voice his concern and disapproval of Evers. Elinore also would privately talk with Victor and while not outright shooting down Evers. She just looked to implore her son to be careful as Evers only knew trouble. Sadly these warnings would fall on deaf ears so to speak as one night Ron would involve Victor in one of his schemes. The fall out from this would see both young men arrested but when it came time to processing it would be Victor's father who bailed out Victor. However he'd also make the choice to prove a point by leaving Ron to face punishment for his crimes. This wouldn't mean that Victor's actions would go unpunished however as we'd learn that Silas pulled in some strings to get his son released from jail, this would be agreeing to work on a project spearheaded by a government agent Matthew Holmes (Jake Weber). In turn Victor would have to work at the lab after school and this meant that his practice time reduced and his relationships would deteriorate. Unfortunately as we'd learn this wouldn't be the only alteration in Victor's life. As with Silas agreeing to work on Holmes' dimensional research. He would draft in Elinore, Morrow and Jones to help him do so. This would lead to one fateful day in which the group explored forces more than they could imagine. This led to the opening of a wormhole and the releasing of a dimensional demon (parademon) into the lab. With the dimensional radiation in this chaos hitting Simon Jones, we'd see chaos as people scrambled to safety. Sadly in this ensuing chaos Victor and Elinore found themselves attacked by the demon as Morrow tried to reset the flow. With the Demon being pulled back into his reality, Silas Stone would be left with the horrifying images of Elinore sacrificing herself before the demon then mortally wounded his son. In a fit of despair Silas looked to save his son at all costs. While many questioned the ethics of such experimentation, Silas would be joined by lab assistant Lori Carmichael (Bex Taylor Klaus) and a traumatized T.O. Morrow. While many may have turned their back in the horror of such human experimentation, Silas was driven into his research as they used experimental technology to rebuild Victor's body turning him into Cyborg. This would take the process of many months of work before finally we'd see Victor begin to regain his consciousness. Haunted by memories of the attack and his mother's death, Victor would soon be met with the horrifying revelation of what he'd been turned into. This would very much take our movie into a much darker tone than it had already been as we'd see tones of depression, self harming and suicide all be discussed openly and internally with Victor struggling with survivor's guilt. This would very much show a rage and self loathing build up inside Victor which transformed who he was as a person. Turning him from a confident and laidback into brooding and hateful. Allowing his hate and rage to consume him Victor's relationship with his father was forever damaged as Victor could not hide his anger at what his father had turned him into. As we'd learn with these enhancements Victor did have some gifts he didn't have previously. This included enhanced strength as well as an ability to interface with computers and technology. In doing so Victor would traverse social media as he searched for connection. This included searching up his former friends and Sarah to see what had become of them in his time away. As we'd learn from this Sebastian Cardona had attempted to pursue a pro football career but injuries cut his time short leading to him joining law enforcement. Bobby Zirrozinski meanwhile had looked to pursue a career in the military while his now pregnant fiancé Sarah Charles would work from home as an artist. Attempting to find Ron meanwhile, Victor would be saddened to see his friend only took a darker turn with multiple arrests for drug dealing, guns and robbery as it seemed that Evers fully embraced the gang life style. With Victor falling further into this pit of despair it wouldn't just be him who was shown to be highly troubled or affected by these incidents. As we'd learn Silas had also fallen into quite a pit of despair consumed with guilt and grief over his actions. Meanwhile T.O. Morrow troubled at what he had done had descended into alcoholism and become consumed with his work and his newest project. This would be a concept he called AMAZO as it was clear that Morror was haunted by the creature which took Elinore from this world. The last person of focus would be Simon Jones who as we'd see was slowly flooded with powers from his exposure to dimensional radiation. Instead he would be shown to begin to develop telepathic and telekinetic abilities. These abilities and his frightening physical transformation would begin Jones' transformation into the villainous Psimon as he was shown to relish in this power and control. While Victor would lock himself away in the day it would be at night that Victor would slowly get some confidence to venture out into the streets. During this time we'd see Victor begin to grasp some other changes his new body afforded him including enhanced speed and flight. Worrying constantly about Victor, Silas had also outfitted this armor with some weaponry including his electronic eye and also a blaster, finger laser and grappling hook. While pushing himself to his limit may have brought something to Victor's life he could never truly shake that he should be dead and he didn't belong here. This would be until one night Victor potentially found a new purpose in life. As one night Victor overheard screaming and found a woman being robbed. Using his newfound abilities Victor would save her from this robbery attempt and fight off the robbers. As Victor then attempted to flee in order to avoid showing his face, this woman managed to follow him and later would introduce herself as Sarah Simms (Margaret Qualley). Revealed to be a nurse who also spends a lot of time working with sick and under privileged children. Simms was someone who truly focused on inner beauty and what lied below the surface. It would be Simms who saw Victor's troubles and also recognized his potential. Believing that Victor could be a protector and a hero not too mention an inspiration, Sarah wanted Victor to come out in the light with her. But Victor was hesitant and adding to this would be Silas wanting to keep his safe and hidden from those who may want to use him. Unfortunately as we'd learn news of what Silas had done had spread out there to Agent Holmes. Now revealed to be partnered with Sebastian Cardona, Holmes wanted to bring Victor in but not as a test subject instead an agent. This wouldn't sit well with Silas who wanted to keep his son hidden. However with Sarah's words in mind Victor would agree to help Holmes unit on a mission. This mission would see the team travel to an undisclosed location where a notorious criminal known as Warlord Uma (T.I.) had bunkered up. The vicious warlord and his unit had long been wanted for war crimes and human rights violations and had been on many watch lists. Thanks to the unexpected arrival of Cyborg however we'd see this warlord and his resistance front be brought to a stop once and for all with Uma being killed in the conflict. Sadly as we'd see however Cardona would be badly wounded in the battle with Cyborg rescuing his former friend and bringing him home. As we'd learn however Cardona wouldn't be the only one hurt in battle as Bobby Zirrozinski would also be badly wounded from conflict. Unfortunately with Cyborg's first time in the field noted, many would take an interest in the cybernetics used to save him. This included a politician Michael Champlin (John Doman) who had long opposed Silas and his research. Holmes meanwhile would ask for Silas' help to save Cardona. Albeit with hesitation Silas would help on recognizing that Cardona's wounds weren't as serious as Victor's and would only require slight enhancement. He would be reunited with colleague Lori Carmichael who very much was shown to see Silas as a father Figure. The pair would share a much more harmonious paternal relationship than Victor would with his father. While this surgery managed to save Cardona's life and give him a new lease on things. We'd see unfortunately that Bobby in desperation would meet with a criminal known as Gizmo (Anthony Carrigan). A notorious cyber terrorist and weapons designer, Gizmo as we'd learn had formed an alliance of sorts with Simon Jones. Jones by this point had been consumed with the power he found and he craved more. So by aligning with a criminal like Gizmo they began to look for like minded individuals who join their cause. This included manipulating Bobby and his demons following his time in war. Shown to have developed a drug addiction and struggling with PTSD, Bobby was promised a chance to be pain free but it would come at a cost. With Gizmo having become fascinated with this so called cyborg program, he would look to create his own in a painful process. Bobby wouldn't be the only recruit unfortunately as a criminal known as Shimmer (Fiona Dourif) had brought her own recruit a former addict known as Latoya Charles (Keke Palmer). Bobby and Latoya would very much suffer at this cost but as we'd learn they'd be mere pawns in the game for Gizmo, Shimmer and Psimon. Curiously they wouldn't be the only ones from Victor's past apart of this group as we'd see Ron Evers and his gang of thugs work as collectors for Gizmo in exchange for weaponry. Only growing more power hungry and ambitious Evers would agree to pull off his most dangerous crime yet which would be a full blown raid on Silas Stones' lab. With this plan set in motion first we'd see a highly emotional scene between Silas Stone and his son. This confrontation which by now had been years in the making would see a lot of dirty laundry aired by the pair. During the course of this conversation Silas finally told his side of the story, how that even when Victor rebelled and went into sports he kept clippings and articles praising his sons work. Admitting that he has been a bad father and someone who has struggled in saying how he felt. Silas said he wanted Victor to know that all he's ever wanted is what is best for his son and that he loves him and is proud of him. Hearing these words would seem to wake something up in Victor as he and his father would share an embrace before Ron Evers led an attack on the lab. Shown to be looking for some specific equipment we'd see Evers and his team have little issue in spilling blood as they shot down a few of Holmes' agents. With Gizmo, Shimmer and Psimon also entering the fray along with an enhanced Bobby and Latoya we'd see Cyborg align with Cardona to battle the enhanced Bobby and Latoya while Holmes engaged in a shoot out with Evers and his men. Gizmo meanwhile with the help of Shimmer and Psimon would head to T.O. Morrow's part of the lab where Psimon used his gifts to play on Morrow's fears. It would be here we'd learn that Gizmo was aware of Morror's research and his work with AMAZO. During the ensuing shootout we'd see Ron Evers shot in the stomach by Agent Holmes who'd pass Silas Stone a gun. Showing further growth as a person Silas would begin firing at the villains as he looked to help Lori Carmichael make her escape. Meanwhile during the fight Cyborg would attempt to reach Bobby to no avail while Cardona battled against Lori. Unfortunately for their group they would be the first to come face to face with Amazo (Florian Munteanu). This chameleon like cyborg who was able to absorb energy and duplicate it's opponents weaponry was far beyond any design we'd seen so far. Revealing this to be Gizmo's plan all along, we'd see Amazo go on the attack with Bobby and Latoya beginning to realize that they had been used. While Latoya would use this time to make her escape, we'd see Bobby look to redeem himself as he agreed to help bring Amazo down. With Cardona looking to help others escape, Bobby and Victor put their differences aside as they looked to bring him down. Running back into the lab in an effort to help his son, Silas Stone would confront his old foe Simon Jones. Despite Jones attempts to manipulate Silas and his grief, we'd see Silas manage to knock out Jones with the butt of his gun. This would allow Holmes to capture Shimmer while Gizmo made his escape from the lab. Reaching out to T.O. Morrow and helping him overcome his issues but absolving him and forgiving him for his part in Elinore's death. Silas called Morrow his closest friend and the best mind her knew. Which is why he said now it's time to boot up his original and best. Morrow would nod his head and together the pair would awaken a project they called the Red Tornado (Chris Chalk). This powerful program and android would enter the fray as Cyborg and Bobby found themselves over matched by Amazo. Putting his past aside Bobby would shockingly sacrifice himself to Amazo after asking Victor to protect Sarah. This sacrifice allowed the Red Tornado to enter the field and together Tornado and Cyborg would shut down Amazo. With Amazo shut down, Agent Holmes and T.O. Morrow would arrange for him to be put into storage. The film would then begin to wrap things up firstly with Cardona and Holmes visiting Sarah Charles. Here they would give her the sad news of Bobby's death before telling her that he died a hero and someone who she could be proud of. This news seemed to be a comfort to Sarah who had long worried Bobby's demons would take him down a bad path. It would be then that Holmes revealed that his unit had put together enough money to support Sarah and her child in this next phase of her life. With Victor watching on from the shadows, Silas urged his son now to go back out there while we'd see in private Michael Champlin couldn't quite drop that these machines were an afront to humanity. Curiously however that could not be said for the Red Tornado. Showing that he wasn't some sentient android like Amazo, Red Tornado would tell T.O. Morrow that having been awakened he would like to find who he is in this world. The final scene of the film would see Victor reunite with Sarah Simms having followed her advice earlier. Showing himself willing to enter the day to day life, Victor would join some of Sarah's kids playing basketball. During a heartfelt moment, Victor's cyborg hands would be marveled at by one of the kids who was outfitted with a prosthetic of his own. This would be followed by showing how every kid Victor was playing basketball with had one of their own. With these kids looking up to him and what they could one day become, Victor seemed to mellow some no longer seeing himself as a monster and gaining some self worth. With the film coming to a close, we'd be treated with two post credit scenes the first of which would show a prison break as Latoya Charles picked her side and helped both Psimon and Shimmer escape Holmes' clutches. The second scene which followed would show Gizmo with Ron Evers body and having been in the labs and stolen a lot of documents. He would begin to follow Silas' steps as he'd transform Ron Evers into Grid! |
CAST/CHARACTERS Victor Stone/Cyborg - Played by Denzel Whittaker Silas Stone - Played by Laurence Fishburne Elinore Stone - Played by Gina Torres T.O. Morrow - Played by Aiden Gillen Amazo - Played by Florian Munteanu Ron Evers/Grid - Played by RJ Cyler Latoya Charles - Played by Keke Palmer Warlord Uma - Played by T.I. Simon Jones/Psimon - Played by Joseph Fiennes Bobby Zirrozinski - Played by Justin Prentice Mikron O'Jeneus/Gizmo - Played by Anthony Carrigan Selina Flinders/Shimmer - Played by Fiona Dourif Sebastian Cardona - Played by Santiago Segura Michael Champlin - Played by John Doman Matthew Holmes - Played by Jake Weber Sarah Charles - Played by Willa Fitzgerald Sarah Simms - Played by Margaret Qualley Lori Carmichael - Played by Bex Taylor Klaus |