Much like the film itself, which exposits its backstory in increasingly escalating anecdotes based on a numbers motif, I think we can dispense with much of the history. James Gunn’s Superman is an optimistic, hopeful return to earnest and sincere superhero myth-making, for better or worse. In fact, the movie itself is one of the most earnest comic book films on record, eschewing subtlety for clearly defined metaphor and the belief/hope that one man can inspire genuine change. It wears its emotions on its sleeves, in hopes that a sense of kindness will impart onto the audience. David Corenswet dons the trunks and cape this time, avoiding impressions of any past actors known for the role, and settling into his own goofy energy and humble strength. He’s fully established when we meet him, already seen as an icon of Metropolis in a DC world that has been inhabited by super beings long before the blue boy scout shows up.
Corenswet is an ox as the Man of Steel, the actor and Gunn utilizing his broad frame to mimic the aspirational might of the character, complemented by Superman’s love for humanity and need for acceptance. Superman kind of admires Earth’s civilization, and feels it’s his duty to protect them in hopes that one day he’ll be fully accepted as one of their own. He clashes with Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), a self-admittedly envious tech billionaire, who desires Superman’s God-like powers, and obsessively devises plans to incapacitate his rival out of paranoia. Luthor’s methods are similar to those of Syndrome from The Incredibles (2004), the characters also sharing a similar cruelty. He wants to brand Superman as an unambiguous threat to humanity, to turn public opinion against the hero and constitute his demise.
Luckily for the Man of Steel, he has help with protecting the globe in the form of the Justice Gang – Green Lantern/Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced). This team of effective assholes are like if you gave superpowers to a trio of detectives in a 1970s TV show. Gathegi has a breakout performance here, embedding Terrific with icy confidence and a lovely way with words. He uses an array of gadgets to fly, create protective holographic barriers, and launch attacks from his T-spheres. In certain shots, his appearance seems realized by a combination of CGI and practical effects, but to what extent for the latter is unclear to the human eye and part of the movie magic. Fillion’s portrayal of Green Lantern wouldn’t be my ideal version of the character, but it’s still fun to see the actor on the big stage in this world, his Guy a leader you’re forced to take seriously despite an absurd haircut and costume. Hawkgirl… unfortunately doesn’t get to do much, other than occasionally remind us “I’m here, also!” As a collective, their best moment occurs with them almost off-screen, as a hilarious backdrop to a conversation between Superman and Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), as the group engages in some late-night heroics.
While Superman is the draw here, his umpteenth outing is practically leveraged for the real origin story here – that being an already functioning DC universe. The vision makes sense – why waste time endlessly establishing and explaining these characters’ histories and powers. It’s a fantasy world – the audience is meant to just accept that and keep the questions to a minimum. Yet, the film never abandons being a Superman movie in totality, the narrative very much an exercise in how successful he can be in having his endless and old-fashioned optimism rub off on the world. Superman, the character, shouldn’t change much, but the world around him always does. He eventually gets his way, in moments that feel less like genuine catharsis and more like a branding exercise. Legions of fans engage in chanting his name, in a sequence where you can feel the corporate synergy. Yes, “SU-PER-MAN!!” We get it, it’s kind of the reason we’re all here. Mister Terrific somehow succumbs to this franchise-building too, shouting his own name before the camera cuts to spotlight said name written on the back of his jacket.
During the Zack Snyder era of these movies, the filmmaker barely let his Übermensch talk. The audience starved for insight into how much the steely Henry Cavill truly cared for other people, and how much of the job just felt like a duty thrust upon him because of his destiny and abnormal abilities. Gunn seemingly wants to discard the image of a mute Superman almost immediately, staging an early verbal jousting between Superman and Lois Lane. The latter grilling her subject on the ramifications of his decisions to involve himself in complex geopolitical conflict. Superman balks at this questioning because at the end of the day – he saved countless innocent lives.
Superman ultimately builds its engine out of the parts that have worked in the genre before, rather than reinventing the wheel. Its approach is that of an established ideal updated to modern sensibilities, not too dissimilar from TV’s My Adventures With Superman. Both properties feature strong world-building, but at times can get too goofy in their characterizations, leaning on their comedy in ways that can be distracting or cut the tension too much. Some of this is exemplified in the portrayal of Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo), reimagined as a reluctant ladies’ man, the ultimate punchline we’re led to being that of his magnetic effect on Luthor’s girlfriend. However, some of these scenes go on too long, much after the joke has already been fairly worn down. Gisondo, to his credit, plays the material well, and at least the movie actually sees value in having Jimmy Olsen help Superman solve the film’s mysteries. Gisondo has a knack for finding himself in terrific comedic productions, and is usually additive to those environments, but his material here as Clark Kent’s best friend seems it was devised just to give the guy something to do, and it wasn’t enough for an actor of his talent to do.
The action scenes, often the reason why audiences flock to these things, are incredibly busy and garish. What Superman has in its favor is that the film is good at building up to moments, such as Mister Terrific dressing down a group of Luthor’s goons, and these scenes are well-captured. However, when it comes to intense one-on-one fights, the movie falls short. Gunn’s Guardians trilogy have some standout moments in terms of setpieces, but I’ve never confused him with John McTiernan as a pure action scene savant. Here, the CGI and green screen run heavy, chipping away at the weight of these scenes; some instances and shots appear too much like CGI gunk. Superman knocking out teeth and hitting a laser eye spin on his foes just isn’t as visually appealing as it should be.
Maybe it’s just the unfortunate reality of modern Hollywood and the chosen methods of production, rendering comic book splash pages to not come fully to gorgeous life, but to appear plastic, stilted, and over-lit. As the stakes escalate, and the speechifying becomes more rote, Lex’s rants get increasingly angrier and unhinged, while Superman turns up the dial on the cheese. By the end, their yelling at each other with such hammy intensity, it’s as if you’re transported to a showing of Hamilton. That may work for the stage, but it appears jarring in a film that earlier featured a more naturalistic conversation between Superman and Lois. Brosnahan has the making of a good Lane, but she’ll need a more interesting character arc next time around to make use of her sharp wit and sense of humor.
Superman does entertain, and it will successfully launch this new universe. Kids will love this colorful world, along with its zany and action-packed shenanigans. Adults will mostly enjoy it, while being more critical of the film’s admittedly well-meaning messaging and real-world analogy. Superman, the man himself, is as busy as he’s ever been, with barely a moment to even sit down. As a consequence, we hardly even see Clark Kent. But I believe Gunn’s focus, in this first film, was to rebuild the Man of Steel specifically. And while doing so, plants new roots for a much more fun and irreverent DC universe. But behind that irreverence is a sincere acknowledgement of a world in turmoil, with Gunn pondering how to center a message that inspires a return to genuine humanity and advocating for liberation and a rebuke of selfishness. In that sense, while the writing can get a little messy, the heart is in the right place. And it hits at the core tone of an ideal DC universe. One where kaijus can just appear around the corner like an 18-wheeler. And a big burly man wearing red underwear can wax poetic about being a better human, and no one says a word.
Our Rating:
