Superman soared back into theaters this summer, becoming the highest-grossing superhero movie of the year. For nearly one hundred years, Superman has embodied the ideals of being human — even if he comes from another planet. When it seemed like people had grown tired of him, believing he might be too idealistic for the modern age, writer-director James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) delivered a version that both honors the character’s legacy and introduces him to a new generation. Superman is the first major installment in the new DC cinematic universe.
David Cornsweat (Pearl, Twisters) stars as Clark Kent/Superman, who must reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with human upbringing. He feels ripped straight from the pages embodying the character in every aspect, and his ability to make Clark Kent and Superman feel like distinct characters is amazing, although I wish we had more scenes of Clark Kent. For the part of Superman David Cornsweat reportedly gained 40 pounds of muscles in four months. David Cornsweat’s performance is reminiscent of Christopher Reeve’s in the original 1979 film. His ability to be empathetic, inspiring, and hopeful is what makes him disappear into the role.
The film opens in the middle of the action as Superman faces off against another scheme from billionaire Lex Luthor, played by Nicholas Hoult (Nosferatu, X-men). Luthor is set on destroying Superman’s reputation through any means necessary. Fortunately, Clark Kent isn’t alone. Lois Lane played by Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards, Mrs. Maisel) aids Clark as both a coworker and secret romantic partner. The casting of all three actors is amazing as they all have a natural chemistry with each other which just elevates the acting even more.
Superman also teams up with an array of comic book heroes including Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, and Metamorpho. The standout amongst the supporting cast of heroes is Mr. Terrific played by Edi Gethegi (X-men, Twilight) with cool demeanor and an awesome action scene in the film’s second half.
Throughout, Superman face off against foreign dictators, city sized monsters, and his superpowered dog, Krypto. But when Lex Luthor uncovers the shocking truth that Superman’s alien origin isn’t exactly what it seems, shattering his world-view, Superman has to decide what defines him as a hero if he’s gonna save the world from Luthor’s arrogance.
Beyond the spectacle the film tackles real world issues such as xenophobia and propaganda in the media. Additionally one of the political conflicts in the film closely mirrors one today. Gunn often uses political commentary as the backbone of his projects as he did in The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. However in Superman themes are only touched upon on a surface level being diluted by the superhero genre with alternate dimensions and black holes.
Unlike previous iterations, like the dark and gritty man Man of Steel which was set in a world similar to our own, Superman is set in a fantastical world where superheroes have existed for hundreds of years. The movie allows itself to be fun and vibrant with some scenes feeling ripped straight from the comics.
If there is one part that falters for me it’s the script. I think it could’ve used another look through and some more time in the oven, some of the dialogue felt very exposition dumpy with some lines feeling unnatural in context. Some scenes felt like they could’ve slowed down to show instead of tell. However this never took me out of the movie, but rather is something I’ve been picking up as I’ve watched more of Gunn’s work. It’s a criticism I have of a lot of Gunn’s more recent project stemming back to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 where I feel like there could’ve been a co-writer onboard to help out with dialogue and provide story edits, I think this most apparent in the finale of his most recent project Peacemaker Season 2. Hopefully for future projects he can learn from this.
Superman doesn’t just reboot the DC franchise, it redefines the classic hero for the modern era and a new generation to look up to, reminding us why Superman has endured for decades.
Superman is now streaming on HBO Max, and James Gunn has already announced a sequel titled ‘Man of Tomorrow’ set to release July 9th 2027 with David Corensweat and Nicholas Hoult set to return.
