1978’s Superman: The Movie will always be iconic and, so far, the definitive cinematic treatment of Superman’s origin story. While Zack Snyder attempted to give a more science-fiction-driven adaptation, it fails to capture the genuine heart that has driven this archetypal hero since his first appearance in comic books. And since Snyder’s DCEU never quite accomplished the desired success of its film producers, filmmaker James Gunn has been tasked with revitalizing the DCU cinematic universe with his theatrical feature film Superman. With a lot riding on this significant release, a lot of comic book fans and fans of this IP have been on the edge of their seats, myself included. However, after experiencing Gunn’s take on the “last son of Krypton,” I can honestly say that the new DCU is in good hands.
Much like the newer Spider-Man movies in the shared Sony/MCU franchise, the latest Superman movie avoids redundancy by not retelling Superman’s origin story; instead, it launches headlong into an existing universe where Superman is a major player alongside other heroes, villains, and metahumans. With a little bit of prologue text, Superman brings the audience up to speed, much like George Lucas did with his crawls in Star Wars.
Superman has been fighting crime on Earth and battling fantastic beings to protect the planet’s inhabitants. With only altruistic and genuinely good intentions, Kal-El is doing only what he feels is the right thing. However, international politicians and parties interested in profiting off of the suffering of others (Lex Luthor) loudly voice their opinions that Superman is operating without consent or any oversight.
Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) utilizes this issue to his advantage and plots in various ways to destroy Superman. Planet Earth is far more complicated for the naive yet good-hearted boy scout that is Kal-El/Superman/Clark Kent (David Corenswet). He has his goals and refuses to bend to the agendas of the humans who oppose him. He does have some help from the metahumans, including Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and the Green Lantern Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion). Still, even they sometimes feel that Superman is out of his element. All Clark knows is that he wants to stop evil while maintaining his job as a journalist for the Daily Planet newspaper and attempting to take his relationship with his colleague and secret girlfriend, Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), more seriously.
I realize that my synopsis makes this movie sound overstuffed, and I worried about that potential problem after watching the movie’s trailers. However, the impressive writing by James Gunn, along with his skillful direction, makes all of these elements work quite cohesively. This movie often soars at a rapid pace. Still, Gunn knows precisely when to dial things down for moments of character development, particularly when it comes to Superman’s dilemmas and his complicated relationship with Lois.
As far as how the movie looks and how it plays out, it feels like a comic book or animated series come to life. Much of the science-fiction/otherworldly elements that comic fans have been craving from Superman movies are all on full display. This approach is essentially the antithesis of a Christopher Nolan Batman movie, but that is okay because Superman’s universe in the comics addresses genuine human problems while also transporting readers into a vibrant and fantastical world. These elements have been either missing from other cinematic iterations of the hero or have been mishandled.
On top of all of this, Gunn’s signature sense of humor permeates everything, but without overdoing it. When the movie needs to be serious, it is, but when it needs comic relief, Gunn knows how to lighten the mood. Gunn and his actors were all on the same page because this cast is fantastic.
David Corenswet brings much earnestness and charisma to Superman. Still, like Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne/Batman and Christopher Reeve’s Clark Kent/Superman, he knows how to differentiate the multiple personas of his character. Rachel Brosnahan is also wonderful as the tough, no-nonsense journalist Lois Lane, a realist and sometimes cynic, who is much different from the complicated “man” who holds her interest. Nicholas Hoult plays Lex Luthor as a brilliant but entitled and often petulant Lex Luthor who genuinely proves that he is a viable challenge to the Man of Steel. The movie also features great acting from Edi Gathegi, Nathan Fillion, Anthony Carrigan, Pruitt Taylor Vince, and Skyler Gisondo. Everyone in this movie is excellent.
This film will never be as iconic as Superman: The Movie. However, this is a delightful, fun, and exciting feast for the eyes and ears that should please most fans of the characters. This movie has a lot going on in it, and it works very well, though certain characters get slighted in it. Gunn truly captures the heart and spirit of the Superman character, and that is what matters most. The new DCU is in great hands under the guidance of James Gunn because he has a lot of love for this world.