8 Heroic Movie Sacrifices That Ultimately Meant Nothing

3. Jonathan Kent €“ Man of Steel

Pa-Kent I€™m sorry, I just have to mention Jonathan Kent. I know Man of Steel comes in for a lot of stick on this site for various reasons, but I could see the dramatic reasoning behind Jonathan Kent€™s untimely death in the tornado, even if I didn€™t necessarily agree with it. The lesson that Clark needs to keep his superhuman nature a secret is a worthy one, and having Pa Kent sacrifice himself was a perfect way to put this across. Yet really, what does this accomplish? If the prologue of Man Of Steel tells us anything, faintly little €“ despite his father€™s sacrifice Clark still goes around performing superhuman feats such as holding up huge stanchions of a burning oil rig in front of witnesses and eventually shishkebabing an 18-wheeler in a public car park. It seems as if the guy hasn€™t learned anything €“ the only revelation he really has in the film is how to fly and flounce about in a garish outfit, and that came courtesy of the awesomely-bearded Russell Crowe. Really, Pa Kent€™s sacrifice might have been a poignant movie moment if his son had taken f his lesson to heart at all. However, he€™s instead so conspicuous in his actions that he can be tracked down. Now, I know Lois Lane is technically a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and thus has supreme investigating skills, but her journey to find Clark seemed to revolve around asking witnesses €“ witnesses that wouldn€™t have existed if he€™d have taken his adoptive father€™s sacrifice to heart.
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Contributor

Durham University graduate and qualified sports journalist. Very good at sitting down and watching things. Can multi-task this with playing computer games. Football Manager addict who has taken Shrewsbury Town to the summit of the Premier League. You can follow me at @Ed_OwenUK, if you like ramblings about Newcastle United and A Place in the Sun. If you don't, I don't know what I can do for you.