The first movie in a revamped DC Universe headed by writer/director James Gunn, ‘Superman’ tries to bring the popular superhero back to its original comic book roots with an action-packed new version.
David Corenswet steps into the red boots once filled by the legendary likes of Christopher Reeve and Henry Cavill, as he looks to save the world from a devasting threat orchestrated by Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). By his side is the irrepressible Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), with popular Daily Planet favourites including Perry White (Wendell Pierce), Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) and Cat Grant (Mikaela Hoover) all present and accounted for.
With so much riding on this new big-screen version of the beloved character, expectation for the film was incredibly high… but if anyone can save the day it’s Superman, right? Well sadly no, not really. I went into ‘Superman’ really (desperately) wanting to love it, but the truth it’s a muddled attempt with good intentions, but lacking genuine spark and spectacle.
David Corenswet makes for a very amiable Superman and looks the part onscreen. He’s the best thing in the film, but is sadly let down by a screenplay that doesn’t utilise Clark Kent or Superman’s characters effectively enough. Call me old fashioned but I feel like Superman needs to be front-and-centre of his own movie, but most of the time the Man of Steel is battered and bruised. They pulled back on showcasing him as the most powerful superhero of them all, and if you can’t establish that in your first movie then what hope is there for sequels? More should have been done with the story to make sure Superman was represented far more accurately onscreen.
Being a huge film, you need an iconic villain… so step up Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, who clashes with the Man of Steel well and delivers a scene-stealing turn, with his Lex being much more of a traditional bad guy. Rachel Brosnahan is a fine actress and she and Corenswet share undeniable chemistry, but I think her character of Lois wasn’t well-written either, with an interview scene really missing the point of how Lois and Clark’s dynamic works – especially for a relationship that we join well into its run. She knows Clark is Superman, but that dynamic is hardly explored here.
The supporting cast are all fine. Too much screentime is given to the ‘Justice Gang’ even though they form some of the best elements of the film. But it says a lot that Edi Gathegi’s excellent Mr. Terrific has the best fight scene in the whole movie, and that Nathan Fillion’s Green Lantern aka Guy Gardner is the most memorable, with the best lines. I didn’t like the direction they went with Jimmy Olsen’s character either (no reflection of Skyler Gisondo’s performance), and his complete lack of empathy in a story-thread involving Sara Sampaio’s Eve Teschmacher was odd to watch unfold.
And then there’s the dog – it seems like James Gunn has made ‘Superman’ about his dog, and for his dog. I love dogs as much as the next guy but Krypto was overused and didn’t add anything but chaos to an already muddled plot. I can see what he was going for, but Krypto just didn’t work for me. The fact that most of the marketing for the film features Krypto shows you exactly what they were planning, but it just didn’t work well for the character, for Superman, or for the flow of the film.
‘Superman’ sadly isn’t the big win I was expecting, and I’m disappointed that so many easy wins were bypassed for a pedestrian story that really didn’t feel very cinematic at all. The cast are all great, but I think the writing is what lets this down so badly, and I didn’t think that would be the case with a James Gunn film – someone who usually delivers well on the characterisation front. And a late cameo at the end of the film was truly awful, and really did the opposite in making me want to watch that character onscreen again. ‘Superman’ lacks the power and presence to be a statement relaunch of a new DC era of filmmaking, but with tweaks it can still be salvaged. Hopefully they’ll get the chance to do it all again soon for a sequel, but lessons need to be learnt on how to deliver a compelling action blockbuster that doesn’t lean too heavily on extremes. ‘Superman’ deserves better.
Cast: David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, Nathan Fillion, Edi Gathegi, Isabela Merced, Wendell Pierce, Skyler Gisondo, Mikaela Hoover, Sara Sampaio Director: James Gunn Writer: James Gunn Certificate: 12A Duration: 129 mins Released by: Warner Bros Release date: 11th July 2025
