You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who is unfamiliar with the tales of Superman, so the release of two teaser trailers for the franchise re-boot, Man of Steel, is rapidly making big waves. Clark Kent looks to be making a glorious return.

The two trailers that have just released online (coinciding with their release before IMAX screenings of The Dark Knight Rises) feature identical shot sequences, with the only difference being the voice-over dialogue that plays. One trailer contains a message for Superman (Kal-El or Clark Kent) from his adoptive father, Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner), while the other is from his Kryptonian birth father Jor-El (Russell Crowe). Their messages are entirely different, Kent’s focusing on choice and Jor-El’s on fate.

The trailers gives the impression that director Zack Synder’s take on the famous DC Comic character will focus on what makes Superman who he is. The beautiful, poetic shots humanise the Man of Steel, indicating a heart-felt emotional journey will be at the core of the story, rather than just a physical one. In fact we only see one fleeting shot of a costumed Superman. One thing is for sure, this trailer promises a revitalised Superman experience.

Henry Cavill (Stardust, The Tudors) has the task of portraying this new Man of Steel to audiences. While Amy Adams (Enchanted, The Fighter) will play his love interest Lois Lane. Man of Steel‘s main villain will be General Zod, portrayed by Michael Shannon (Take Shelter, Vanilla Sky) and his partner Faora (Antje Traue).

The impressive supporting cast that has been recruited also features Diane Lane (Martha Kent), Christopher Meloni (Colonel Hardy) and Laurence Fishburne (Perry White).

Christopher Nolan helped shape the story in the Man of Steel with his Dark Knight story collaborator David S. Goyer (who’s written the screenplay), and this has had an obvious and immediate effect on what we have seen so far. The darkness and character driven nature of their work is heavily evident in the trailer.

The film will also feature re-invented versions of the traditional Superman costume (see here), designed to make Superman appear more like a true superhero-warrior, than a man in spandex.

Man of Steel is set to hit Australian cinemas on 13 June, 2013.