How I First Met Superman

Dear Wal,

this isn't a good picture, but you get the idea

I remember the original Superman movie (1978) with a near-mythic quality, because of the icy vistas of Krypton and the equally cold and crystalline Fortress of Solitude. I wasn't very old when I saw that movie, I couldn't have been more than seven, and it's one of my fondest childhood memories. Even though the movie wasn't new, and wasn't animated and it didn't have a black horse in it, but I still loved it. I was too young to realize how lacking the special effects are in that movie, and frankly I didn't care. I still don't care. For me, the 1978 Superman is like Star Wars, or Star Trek, the original series. It's awesome is beyond comprehension.
So, for the longest time, Superman was to me a dude in tights who lived in an ice castle in the arctic. Those images of ice and more ice stuck with me, while the rest of the movie faded from memory. I vaguely remember Supes as Clark Kent jumping through a field, and how weird Lex looked with hair, but that's all. I don't think I even got to see the whole movie, because I remembered nothing about turning back time.
The next time I encountered Superman was Superman Returns. Sadly. I did get to see that movie all the way through, but I really didn't understand what was going on. Like, for instance, that Supes had a kid, or why Lex had this elaborate plan to build a new world on an island of kryptonite. But I still thought it was awesome. Remember, this is ten-year-old. I distinctly remember my mom going: "Where do they get these men!" as she was cooing over Brandon Routh as Superman.
So, what is all this leading into?
The Man of Steel.
We've all heard about it. Most of us have seen the trailer.

And I've got to say, I'm excited. This is a chance to redeem Supes from Returns. I just hope they kept the idea of Krypton as an ice planet, because that was beyond cool. I've heard people say that trying to make Superman a gritty, edgy hero isn't the way to go, that a new movie should stick to the basics of truth, justice, and the American way. Me, I think a more realistic take on Superman (if such a thing is possible) could be a very good story. Superman is truly a difficult character to put in a movie/tv show/video game, or even as a comic book character, simply because he has so much power. Somehow, you have to make a god relatable. Do it wrong and you could end up with something like, well, Returns.

/endrant