So, let’s get this out in the open right now – all cards on the table and in view; i am now and have pretty much always been a Superman fan. As such, there was no way in heck I was going to miss this movie’s opening day. I’ve hit a bit of what they’re calling ‘Superhero Fatigue’ of late. I haven’t bothered with a Marvel movie since the last Spider-man and I don’t really do the Disney+ shows either. But Superman? That’s a whole different ball game!
That’s not to say I was entirely sure I was going to love this new movie. I avoided spoilers, newer trailers and a lot of the in-depth interviews and promotional material right up to the film’s release because I wanted to be sure to experience everything with as fresh a perspective as possible.
Anyway! As per the format pioneered by Conner, we’re going to break this film down by Story, Acting and Overall.
I’m also going to avoid spoilers as much as possible!
Story 9.5/10
There’s a lot to love about this plot. It’s not a comic adaptation, first and foremost. It uses elements from several comics but it’s distinctly its own thing. To use an example, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice combined the plots of several well known comics, most notably The Dark Knight Returns series and The Death of Superman, and while the themes and story beats are different from the source material the most recognizable bits are displayed proudly and as such, are easy to spot for those who are even casual comic book readers. Superman, though, draws more subtly from sources both well-known and obscure to bring together something that is very distinctly it’s own story. We’ve got elements of All-Star Superman, Superman for all Seasons, Action Comics #900, Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow as well as elements that are more recognizable to fans of Smallville. You can feel the love James Gunn has for this character and this world throughout the movie; so many awesome Easter Eggs for Superman fans to enjoy without any of them being obtrusive.
This is all set against a backdrop of a modern world filled with influencers, social media, hashtags by the bucket-load, a pretty great depiction of a troll farm and a 24/7 news cycle reminiscent of our own. There’s a war on between two countries and… well. Let’s just call it what it is; it’s a proxy for Israel and Palestine. (The parallels are too many to ignore and it’s actually just weird that more people aren’t talking about this.) Superman intervenes, preventing an escalation in the conflict and is called out by both sides of the aisle back in America. Is he an instrument of U.S. policy acting on behalf of a large colonial power? Who gave him the right to do that? Or is his involvement counter to U.S. interests? Is he openly working to destabilize the situation in a manner unfavorable to America?
In actuality he’s just trying to save lives on both sides. This is a recurring beat throughout the film, where Superman tries to save as many lives as he can; civilians, friends, enemies, people, animals, monsters. His number one goal is to save everyone. Weird how that seems to annoy so many people.
All this to say this is the Superman the world needs right now.
I was kind of worried about the level of humor when going in. I didn’t necessarily want Star Lord as Superman, y’know? It was a mostly merit-less worry. There’s a lot of humor but most of it is in the moment, relatable, human and fast, never really overstaying it’s welcome. The theater I saw it in was mostly full and there were a lot of funny lines that got laughter out of most, if not all, the audience. (The crowd’s energy was ridiculously positive – Dang, I love the theater experience!)
So. Why only 9.5 out of 10? Well, I’m generally loathe to give anything a perfect score – no room for improvement at all? Inconceivable! There IS one mid-movie twist that veers away from pretty much every established canon that I know of for Superman and I’m still not entirely sure I’m on board. I won’t go into it too much as it’s a major scene, but when you see it, you’ll know. It does set up a really heartwarming sequence towards the end so I do understand its narrative purpose but still…
I also kind of wish Hawkgirl had a bit more to do!
Acting 10/10
As mentioned I am generally loathe to give a perfect score but I can’t for the life of me find fault with the folks who acted out this story.
David Corenswet IS Superman. He’s not a stiff, stoic ubermensch or a wacky, silly goofball. He has elements of both but they meet in the middle to create a regular guy who’s entire life goal, who’s entire identity, is centered around HELPING. He finds purpose in using the gifts he was given to lift others up. And he has a gentle humor to him that could easily be a little too corny or campy, but just comes off as endearing. He’s the kind of person Superman should be – he’s a friend. A guy from a small town who was raised right and wants to bring all of that to the table.
Rachel Brosnahan is a great Lois Lane. Focused, smartest person in the room when she’s not with Mr. Terrific, and fearless. She’s got no lack of confidence and is able to challenge Clark in a way that makes him question his actions and think about the impact he has. This isn’t a bad thing. Questioning yourself is the best way to improve, so in that way, she can help him be the best version of himself. But that’s not to say she’s a passive participant in this film! She gets a lot to do and puts all those skills she’s honed as a reporter to use to help save the world in her own right, up to and including teaming up with the other Planet staffers to break a story! Specifically with…
Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen. This guy knocks it out of the park as a young, eager reporter, certainly. He also has an incredible, dense and bizarre life in and outside of work that we get to see only snippets of. Silver age Jimmy was a wacky character who used disguises and all manner of weird tech to aid his Pal, Superman! The sub plot surrounding him leads me to strongly, STRONGLY suspect similar shenanigans are ongoing in the life of this version of Jimmy.
Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor is fantastic. By the end of the movie you wind up absolutely hating him and this is by design. Completely without care or remorse, he’s abusive, petty, ruthless, reckless and endlessly cruel. He shows emotion only in the negative and is driven by insecurity but not in a way that makes you relate to him. You can’t. You’re not supposed to. But it does give him a narrative reason to be something other than a mustache twirling villain. There is depth there.
Neva Howell and Pruitt Taylor Vince play an incredible Ma and Pa Kent. Martha yelling into the phone to make sure Clark can hear her made me smile. Jonathan’s quiet, thoughtful and gentle approach to helping Clark through his issues brought a smile to my face and a tear to my eye. They’re wonderful parents. Meeting them reminds you that any kid from Krypton could be powerful, but it takes Jonathan and Martha Kent to craft Superman.
Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardener is an absolute delight – he’s crass and hilarious while also effortlessly powerful.
Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific plays, essentially, a second super powered protagonist. Most of what he does is to aid Superman, sure, but his “powers” and abilities are very different to what Superman can do so they work together really well and compliment each other. He also has many of the best comedy beats! I’m actually not at all familiar with the character outside of this movie but I think I see a few issues of whatever he’s in making their way into my collection! (Any commenter want to give me tips? I’m all ears!)
Isabella Merced is Hawkgirl and I really, really liked her in the role despite how little she gets to do. I’ve been a fan of hers since seeing her in the second season of The Last of Us and when I saw that she was cast in this role, I had high hopes! She does get to do a couple of pivotal things but I would have loved to see her able to, literally and figuratively, spread her wings a bit more!
Krypto! He’s entirely CGI but honestly, he chews the scenery in every scene he’s in. He’s just fantastic. As someone who’s had an unruly rescue dog, I very much empathized with Clark’s frustrated “What the hey, dude!?” and mine had no super powers whatsoever!
Overall 9.7/10
There’s a lot of discourse online about this movie. It’s been pretty divisive. Many people who discovered Superman via Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel are upset about the lighter, softer tone of this Superman. And i understand. I actually enjoyed Man of Steel for what it was with the mentality of, hey, at least we’re getting a Superman movie and chances are high we’re never going to get a pure, hopeful, comics accurate rendition now that the days of Reeve and Routh are behind us.
Boy! Was I wrong or what!?
This new version does an incredible job of bringing the Kal El I grew up admiring to the silver screen. The friendly, funny, powerful, gentle, hopeful, earnest and strong character I’ve always enjoyed is here, now. Some of you might be meeting him for the first time and to be honest? I envy that. My sincerest hope is that you find something that brings you as much joy as this character has brought me over the years. And I do hope the Man of Steel crowd will give him a chance and find something here to make them happy.
Jim’s Final Thoughts
I can’t wait to see it again! That’s pretty much all!
Oh, there are TWO after credits scenes. One is a slight setup for another movie in Gunn’s DCU but it’s also a MASSIVE payoff to something that’s been present throughout the entire movie and that’s the primary goal of the thing. It’s not an end of movie stinger or a commercial for another project. It is literally bringing full-circle something that, from scene one, had me wondering what exactly the deal was. I loved it. The other one is just a bit of frosting on the absolute cake that is this movie.
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