I had my concerns about James Gunn being put in charge of "Superman." I've found his superhero movies very hit-or-miss, a little too crass and a little too cynical for me. After a decade of Zack Snyder and Henry Cavill's grimly god-like Superman, I was definitely ready for a change, but was Gunn the man to do it? Yes, it turns out. Maybe this isn't the best "Superman," but it's exactly the right "Superman" for 2025.
We begin not with Issue #1, but somewhere around Issue #200. Clark Kent/Superman (David Corenswet) is already in a relationship with Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), and is the sworn enemy of industrialist Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), who is devoting considerable resources to destroying him. In the opening scene we watch Superman in a heated battle with an armored warrior who Luthor controls, and later his superpowered henchmen, giant monsters, and other foes on his payroll. This is a universe where "metahumans" are plentiful and very active, so Superman also regularly encounters the corporately sponsored Justice Gang, made up of Guy Gardner/Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and Michael Holt/Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi). Superman doesn't know much about his origins, but he has his Fortress of Solitude, with a couple of robot helpers, and also a loveably destructive superdog named Krypto.
Superman has never faced the kinds of challenges that he faces in this movie. The new Lex Luthor is not only greedy, but obsessive in his hatred of Superman, and using all kinds of crazy technology to attack him on multiple fronts. This includes an intense online hate campaign using a deluge of misinformation. The public isn't sure what to think of him. Metahumans are common, but Superman is an alien from another world, and there are deep suspicions about his motives. However, the important things stay the same. The one thing that hasn't been modernized at all is Superman himself. He's still the same aw-shucks small town reporter from Kansas, raised by loving human foster parents (Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell), who staunchly believes in helping humanity and doing the right thing. He's naive about geopolitics, not sure about his place in the world, and has a lot to learn about public relations, but he wants to be a good person wholeheartedly. David Corenswet gives him the right physicality and heroic gravitas, but also a fair amount of relatable frustration and existential doubt. This Superman can believably beat up an army of robots and still feel like an underdog.
And the casting is great all around. Brosnahan is a fantastic Lois, who is smarter, savvier, and more pragmatic than Superman, but there's never a doubt they're perfect for each other. Nicholas Hoult is channeling petty tech-bro on a power trip, and it's so satisfying to see him get what's coming to him. Comic relief characters Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) and Eve Tesmacher (Sara Sampaio) get their own ridiculous subplot, and prove to be a lot of fun. The Justice Gang is made up of the typical James Gunn-style abrasive oddballs, who would be a better fit in the "Peacemaker" corner of this universe, but they're mostly just around to provide a contrast to Superman, and not in the movie too much. I really love that Ma and Pa Kent are played by non-celebrity actors, and come across as just ordinary, average people.
The cast is what keeps the overstuffed plot and the in-media-res narrative from being too overwhelming. Gunn and company decided to throw us in the deep end more or less, introducing us to all kinds of super-powered characters, pocket universes, secret conspiracies, crazy creatures, and other common comic book devices. There's a cameo cavalcade, naturally. You couldn't have made a "Superman" like this ten years ago, but after so many years of superhero movie saturation, audiences can be expected to keep up, more or less. And even if they do get lost, "Superman" offers plenty of action and spectacle that needs no explanation and should satisfy even the nitpickiest fan. Plus, there's a cute dog, and who doesn't love a cute dog?
My biggest complaint, ironically, is the same one that I had with "Man of Steel," which is that "Superman" isn't kid friendly enough. I like that this version involves more interactions with kids, and uses a few kid performances to great effect, but there are some intense sequences and a few instances of questionable content that make this hard to recommend to anyone under the age of twelve or so. (No parent wants to explain what a harem is to a second grader.) And that's such a shame.
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