Video Shows What Man of Steel Would Look Like in Vibrant Color

[NoShoes]

Video Shows What Man of Steel Would Look Like in Vibrant Color

Let the sun shine!

Zack Snyder's Man of Steel had some obvious stylistic choices that helped it achieve the dark and gritty feel seen in the more recent DC superhero films, but what would it have looked like if Superman had a chance to really show off his iconic red and blue? The folks at VideoLab [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHYaOi0AIGD25d4a8-i4AQQ] took it upon themselves to answer this question by adjusting the original film and providing a glimpse into a more vibrant Man of Steel.

The video's description [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Du-eYiD9OfM] details out some specifics of the team's work on adjusting the film. According to VideoLab,

"The results we achieved are obviously a bit oversaturated and contain contrast artifacts. Since our source footage already contained severe color-grading decisions, it was far from optimal and, at best, this is an approximation. If the raw footage had been colored in a more natural and pleasing manner, it would actually look SIGNIFICANTLY better than what you see here."

Interestingly, they add that the "orange-tinted sky in the Metropolis aftermath shots and the purple girders behind Zod were actually there naturally. We believe Man of Steel had a more traditional-looking color grade until later in post-production when they decided to go darker."

Watch the video below and tell us whether you prefer vibrant color or gritty darkness for Man of Steel.


Whatever side you're on, make sure you check out the hilarious Batman v Superman/The Lego Movie [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/140520-Batman-v-Superman-The-Lego-Movie-Mashup-Is-Awesome] mashup to get your gritty fix. Just trust me.

Source: Polygon [http://www.polygon.com/2015/4/24/8489215/man-of-steel-colors]

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[Ukomba]

Some of the colors don't seem quite right, but I like the more colorful version better. Superman should be bright, not everything has to be Batman.

 

[coolbond]

i like movies that has a lot of contrast in em because the contrast is eyecatching and keeps your attention, if you cut down on the saturation everything mixes together into one homogenus blob of gray and becomes much more boring and forgettable

 

[coolbond]

i wonder how batman would have looked if they fixed the colors

 

[Scarim Coral]

Oh come on! Wasn't the Green Latern failure was due to sloppy writing and effect rather than its bright green colours??!!

OT- It actually does look better in actual colours.

 

[Remus]

I would buy this version of Man of Steel today if it were released to the public. It looks like the Superman movie we should have, rather than the one we got.

 

[hermes]

The movie has issues. Issues that go beyond the color palette... but yes, it is better.

 

[Dying_Jester]

Definitely like the more colorful version. Seems like it would have made more sense to of had it be more colorful, compared to the very black and white batman films, when a Batman/Superman movie was likely already in the plans...y'know, really push the differences between the two heroes.

Now, I love a good black and white movie, but I was bored when watching Man of Steel, and not just because I didn't like the movie. Nothing caught my eye because everything was so...grey.

 

[coolbond]

I would buy this version of Man of Steel today if it were released to the public. It looks like the Superman movie we should have, rather than the one we got.

its the superman movie we deserve, not the one we got.

 

[Covarr]

I didn't like the dreary tone in Man of Steel, but that's not my only issue with the way it was graded. The Dark Knight trilogy had dark, often desaturated color grading as well and it turned out fine. A large part of the reason it didn't work here is because it was done incompetently.

The Dark Knight Rises is the weakest film in its own trilogy, but it was colored pretty well so I'm going to use it for some comparison here. The indoor and night scenes got dark and dreary grading, but daytime scenes (which were plentiful in this one) got much subtler, brighter color grading. It gave the film variety. Man of Steel, conversely, applied the same style of coloring to every single scene and shot regardless of all that. Sometimes it was a little more brown and sometimes a little more blue, but it was always dark and desaturated. This made outdoor scenes look really weird and unpleasant, with green-gray skies, and healthy grass still taking on a brown appearance.

Another thing TDKR did right was more intricate grading even within a shot. Shadows were typically more blue, while highlights were typically not, and skin tones were left natural in both night and day. This really helped Batman stand out without making him look too vibrant or silly. The use of natural skin tones also helped actors' performances shine through even in some of the most heavily graded scenes. They also often brightened some screen regions and darkened others to help draw the viewer's eye to certain things. Man of Steel also got this wrong, applying extremely basic, flat coloring across the board to entire scenes. Everything in a frame gets desaturated, everything in a frame becomes darker... It creates a horrible lack of contrast and visual interest.

Good color grading is absolutely not just tossing a filter over a movie or scene and calling it done. A lot of care needs to be put into each scene, each shot, to help convey what that particular scene or shot is trying to convey. The way it was handled in Man of Steel frankly comes across as rushed and extremely amateurish. I think the poor quality and low effort put into the color grading is ultimately a much bigger problem than the fact that its dark tone didn't really fit Superman.

P.S. Thanks

 

[Shiftygiant]

my god

*takes off sunglasses*

it's beautiful

 

[Aggieknight]

my god

*takes off sunglasses*

it's beautiful

Amen.

DC has to learn that they can't make everything Nolany because it worked for 2 of the 3 Batman movies. I fear for the Dawn of Justice.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Supes needs to be bright, he is a symbol for hope and needs to stand out. He is a larger than life character. Batman needs darkness as he operates from the shadows and promotes fear in his enemies. Its why Batman would look weird in the light of day.

BvS should make a point about these two characters. One thrives in the daytime and the other thrives at night. One stands front and center and the other stays in the shadow. One is about hope and the other is fear. Making them both dark makes the film less interesting for me.

 

[IOwnTheSpire]

As a fan of Man of Steel, I think some of the colours were a bit too muted, but I think it was intentional on their part to show a more grounded world.

I think it would be cool if the colours become brighter over each film as more people come to accept Superman as a hero. The world's view of Superman could be reflected in the colours.

 

[K.ur]

I wish they had played with the colour saturation to show Cal-Els mood or moral alignment. Like Matrix gave the matrix a green shine, while zion was a muted brown.

 

[Olas]

Having a muted color palette is a perfectly valid artistic choice, to say that certain characters are supposed to be depicted a certain way seems like the kind of puritanism that chokes creativity.

I'm not saying Man of Steel didn't have flaws, just that the tone and choice of direction shouldn't be criticized outside of one's own preferences.

Some of the colors don't seem quite right, but I like the more colorful version better. Superman should be bright, not everything has to be Batman.

Batman has been bright as well, in fact he's been all over the place. Why should only Batman get to have range?

 

[fix-the-spade]

if you cut down on the saturation everything mixes together into one homogenus blob of gray and becomes much more boring and forgettable

I don't think that's entirely fair, good lighting and framing can make for some amazing, clear and attention grabbing shots that use nothing but grey. Heat might well be the greyest 'colour' movie ever made, but it's full of distinct and beautiful shots.

Man of Steel's problem was that going desaturated was a lazy post production effect, many bad films can explain their visual failings like that.

 

[The Hungry Samurai]

Can they add this effect to the script as well?

 

[Baresark]

I would pay to see that movie. The muted colors was a huge pet peeve for me. Not that the movie was perfect, it was not. But if I didn't feel the entire movie was shot a night I would certainly have enjoyed my experience seeing it better. Too bad this has that hack Christopher Nolan attached to it. He wanted that.

 

[Scars Unseen]

You know, I look at all the live action DC offerings out there. We have Batman, Batman with a cape, Batman with a bow, The Flash... wait a minute, how did that last one sneak by?!