io9 has a list of things that need to happen to make Zack Snyder's upcoming Superman reboot non-terrible. I have just one: remember that the dude's an alien, even if he doesn't need to get mopey about it. I feel some sympathy for directors who have to work with characters who look like often very good-looking human beings but are supposed to be fundamentally other in some way, even if they've got some good training in human behavior. It's far too easy to default to essentially human behavior that's just slightly off. That's actually one of the problems I have with Doctor Who: the doctor mostly seems like someone who was socialized in odd ways. You get the slightly-off "fantastic!" delivered at inappropriate moments:
But the Doctor's alienness isn't persistent. And the thing is, if you're not human, the world has to feel different. Your body temperature's got to be different, your skin might be more or less sensitive. Maybe your eyes process light differently. All of those things affect the way you move through your environment, your comfort levels. Even if you've got great training in social customs, these are things you've learned, things that aren't inherently yours.
So make Superman kind of strange, like Doctor Manhattan, like the Watcher. Make Lois Lane have to cross over a bit to really bond with him (I'm not hugely optimistic about the possibility of casting Natalie Portman in the role. Girl needs to stay away from any Star Wars-esque epic love stories, I think.). Make the central conflict force Superman to choose his alienness.