Superman Review: First DCU Movie Is Rough Around the Edges But Fun
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience.Generate Key TakeawaysIt’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a new Superman movie! The DC Extended Universe fizzled out with a whimper, and now, James Gunn and Peter Safran are running DC Studios, launching the DC Universe with a new cast of superheroes. Gunn, who previously directed Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy films, kicked off the DC Universe’s Chapter One: Gods and Monsters with the animated HBO Max series Creature Commandos back in December, and he now writes and directs a new movie about the iconic man of steel, once again fighting for truth, justice, and the American way.
Superman is an epic, action-packed start for the theatrically released DC Universe. It’s heartfelt, funny, and filled to the brim with superhero action, even if there are a few issues holding it back. David Corenswet, who you have seen in films like Twisters, Pearl, and the underrated The Greatest Hits, steps into the boots of perhaps the most famous superhero of all time. This is no easy task. Coming off the heels of Christopher Reeve, Brandon Routh, and Henry Cavill, all actors who did marvelous jobs playing Superman on the big screen, Corenswet had a lot to live up to. He does a good job, bringing a lot of humor, humanity, and heart to Kal-El.
Gunn takes us up, up, and away to Metropolis. At the beginning, onscreen text catches us up on Superman’s origin story and reveals he has just lost his first battle against the Hammer of Boravia. He crash-lands near the Fortress of Solitude, whistles for his dog Krypto, and asks to be taken home. It was a wise choice not to have audiences watch the destruction of Krypton and Jor-El and Lara sending baby Kal-El to Earth. It’s already been done in the 1978 Superman film and 2013’s Man of Steel, so the text on screen was sufficient. While it is an engaging hook to show our invincible hero bleeding and beaten, there is a missed opportunity there.
The results of Superman’s actions have devastating consequences, particularly in the political landscape. There’s a scene where Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) interviews Superman about whether he considered the ramifications of his actions while he was attempting to stop a war. All of this would have been more interesting if we had seen the events they were referencing rather than allowing audiences to imagine what happened. In my opinion, a stronger opening would have been a classic Superman action set piece, only for him to lose at the end. It would have allowed greater context for the world that we’re in and the events that would set the narrative forward.
AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R16ekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R26ekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframeSuperman quickly heals with the power of the sun, and we get some fun moments with him interacting with Krypto and his “Superman robots.” Soon enough, we catch up with his alter ego, Clark Kent, bespectacled and rushing to get to his office at The Daily Planet. Gunn and his production designers do an excellent job with this place. We’re once again introduced to fan-favorite characters like Jimmy Olsen, Perry White, Cat Grant, and, of course, Lois Lane. We’ve had some pretty great Lois Lanes in Superman movies and TV, but Brosnahan is special. She does charming, magnificent work as this character. She’s likable, grounded, and she feels like a real journalist. The scene where she interviews Superman shows she’s not afraid of asking the hard questions, even if the subject of her interview is the guy she’s dating.
The film opens with Clark and Lois at an interesting point in their relationship. They’ve been dating for a while, and she already knows about Clark’s secret identity. Corenswet and Brosnahan have been the face of much of Superman’s marketing, and it’s no secret why. These two lead actors have phenomenal chemistry, starting from their first steamy on-screen kiss. The only disappointment is that there’s not as much “Clois” as you’d hope for. If you’re looking for a lot of Clark Kent in glasses at The Daily Planet, you may be surprised that there’s only about one scene of Corenswet doing his thing. It’s a shame because, like Reeve, Corenswet understands that Superman and Clark are two completely different characters. As for Clark and Lois? They only share about three dialogue scenes together in the entire film.
It’s somewhat underwhelming because Corenswet and Brosnahan are pitch-perfect casting for Clark and Lois. Gunn has spoken about how he had three possible actors reading for Clark and three possible actresses reading for Lois, and during the audition process, he would mix and match his options to see who worked best together. This is an excellent directorial choice that has given us a Clark and Lois with such a natural relationship. But not only do they not share the screen enough in this movie, but their relationship progression is a bit odd in this film.
They’ve been dating for a while, but they fight as a result of their “Lois Lane and Superman” interview. Clark’s response to conflict is to pack up and run, and Lois is having trouble in this relationship, too. At one point, she mentions not being too sure about him and considering breaking up with him. But by the end of the movie, Clark and Lois’s relationship ends up in a different place, and it doesn’t feel like the events of the movie allowed for their fate to be earned. They’re separated for so much of the film, so the ending doesn’t make us feel as strongly as we should. It feels like their relationship is in one place, “and then this happens, and then this happens,” rather than, “because of that, this happens, and therefore, this happens.”
AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R1cekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R2cekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframeNow, how about our other characters? One of the final three choices for Superman during the casting process was Nicholas Hoult, an actor who has already stepped into superhero fare as Beast in the X-Men movies. He’s an exceptional actor with experience in heroes and villains alike, and he’s just coming off a generational run of movies with The Garfield Movie, Juror #2, The Order, and Nosferatu. Much like how Cillian Murphy didn’t get the role of Batman but ended up cast as Scarecrow, Gunn couldn’t help but envision Hoult as Superman’s bald archnemesis, Lex Luthor.
Hoult is yet another exceptional casting choice. You feel every bit of his pure hatred for the caped superhero. He’s got a silky smooth voice and a screen presence that commands your attention. He has an army working for him at LutherCorp. None of them feel particularly scary; they all feel like interns or people you’d run into at your office, all of whom have no reason to dedicate themselves to killing Superman. In a tribute to Gene Hackman’s portrayal in 1978, he has an assistant/girlfriend named Eve Teschmacher (Miss TESCHMACHER!!), played by Sara Sampaio. Eve starts as your typical representation of a superficial influencer, but she ends up doing a bit more than that. Another standout member of the cast is Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen. There’s a hilarious running gag where he constantly gets the attention of gorgeous women (something Lois can’t make sense of), but he rejects all of it.
What makes this Superman wonderful is Gunn’s vision. Gunn and cinematographer Henry Braham use a bright, saturated color palette to bring a vibrant world to life. They do an exceptional job with the action sequences, particularly during the flying scenes. Whenever Superman takes flight, it’s hard not to feel like a little kid again. The camera movements are incredibly dynamic, and Gunn fills the movie with spectacle, particularly during a kaiju sequence. He also weaves in John Williams’s classic theme into the musical score.
This movie will thrill and entertain you. Some of the action can look a bit cartoony, but this is a really fresh vision for DC. I loved Zack Snyder’s darker, grittier take on these characters in the DCEU, but I’m welcoming Gunn’s vision with open arms. Although Snyder once directed Gunn’s script into the 2004 Dawn of the Dead movie, their styles are generally quite different. Gunn’s vision for the DCU is colorful, fun, and filled with heroes.
He introduces the Justice Gang, which includes Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced). While all three of these characters are a lot of fun and all the actors do such a great job with them, it does feel like their presence cheapens Superman’s role in this world. I watched this new Superman movie right after a Superman marathon that included 1951’s Superman and the Mole Men, 1978’s Superman, Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut, Superman Returns, and Man of Steel. Those movies had this hero at the center of the universe. This new Superman movie sometimes feels like it’s so occupied with setting up characters that will pop up again in future DCU projects that our titular character can feel less important as a result.
AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R1lekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R2lekkr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframeOne scene has Superman at home, while the Justice Gang is in the background, out of focus, battling a threat. When Lois asks if Superman should help, he says the Justice Gang has it covered. Scenes like this make Superman feel like only one member of a larger ensemble. There’s a scene where a kid is in danger and hoists a flag begging for Superman to come and save him. Superman never answers the call; he doesn’t have to because we have many other superheroes in this movie who are more than capable of answering this kid’s call.
Despite how fun and watchable this new Superman movie is, it does sometimes feel like we’re watching part two of a Superman trilogy. The first Superman film would have included some of Kal-El’s origins, his first battles, meeting Lois, and allowing us to see the moment where she finds out he’s Superman and the initial spark of their romance, and it would have planted the seeds of his rivalry with Lex Luthor. The second movie (this movie) would have been as is, showing there are more heroes, putting that initial romance with Lois into question, and having our Superman take on Lex and the villains who work for him. It feels like we’re entering this world after some interesting events have already happened. I would have preferred a story more focused on Superman before we met all these other heroes that exist in this world.
It can also feel like Kal-El’s characterization can be hampered as a result. Early on, Superman sees the public turn against him as a result of Lex Luthor’s media manipulation. He finds himself at the mercy of the people he has spent so much time trying to protect. The movie then puts Superman in a place far away from the people, so it takes a while for it to feel like we’re back to facing that conflict. Superman has a monologue at the end about what makes him human, but that doesn’t feel like what the movie is about for most of the runtime. It’s telling us that far more than it’s showing us.
So, is the new Superman movie worth watching? Absolutely. I’d be lying if I said this were my favorite Superman film. It’s rough around the edges, and it can sometimes suffer from setting up too much about this universe too fast, but this movie has exceptional casting choices. Gunn retains his trademark humor throughout, and it’s not as persistent as it is in his other films. There’s a lot of action, it can be enjoyed by anyone who’s looking for pure entertainment, and fans of the character will be happy to see a return to the optimistic look at this classic superhero. If you’re looking for an epic time at the movies, all you have to do is look up.
SCORE: 7/10
As ComingSoon’sreview policyexplains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” A successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
Disclosure: ComingSoon attended a press screening for our Superman review.
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