Movie Review: Superman
James Gunn’s Superman is an important movie. Not only is Gunn rebooting the iconic superhero for the fourth time, but he has also been appointed to launch a new DC cinematic universe, following the failed attempt in the 2010s by Zack Snyder. Starting with Superman to kick off a cinematic universe of this magnitude is a good idea. The Man of Steel is arguably the most famous superhero and has been for decades. Everyone recognizes the ‘S’ logo, everyone knows the red and blue suit with the cape and boots, and everyone knows what Superman’s powers are and what he stands for.
Unfortunately, Gunn’s Superman left me feeling underwhelmed. While it features exciting action and some strong performances, the film’s writing is messy, neglecting simple character and story development in lieu of trying to kick off an expanded universe, which ultimately hurts the film and makes it void of emotion.
Superman begins with a series of expositional sentences that act as the origin story for our Superman, played by an excellent David Corenswet. We learn he came to Earth 30 years ago from the planet Krypton and was raised by Kansas farmers. We learn that three years ago, he introduced himself to the world as Superman. We learn that he has recently become the subject of controversy after stopping a war between two countries without consulting any political leaders. The first time we see Superman is moments after he lost his first battle ever against the robotic Ultraman, who is being controlled by Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). Superman is bloodied and battered outside of his Fortress of Solitude in the middle of a frozen, snowy tundra.
This was an interesting and new introduction to Superman. Rather than give our hero a glorious moment saving someone, Gunn shows our hero down and out. But following this opening scene, Gunn dumps an entire movies-worth of characters and story on us. We learn a little more about Luthor, the tech billionaire whose sole purpose in life is to get Superman off Earth. We barely meet the players at the Daily Planet, which includes Jimmy Olson (Skyler Gisondo), Perry White (Wendell Pierce), and Lois Lane (a lovely Rachel Brosnahan), who is dating Clark Kent and knows he is Superman. We are also introduced to the Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and Mr. Terrific (a scene-stealing Edi Gathegi), a trio of superheroes part of the Justice Gang (a working title per Green Lantern). And through all of this, there are also Superman action scenes, most of which are exciting, a plot involving interdimensional time portals, a plot involving two countries going to war, a superdog named Krypto, and the basic story of Superman trying to save the day against Lex Luthor. All of this happens very quickly, almost faster than a speeding bullet.
Watching Superman felt like I was watching a sequel to a film that I had not seen the first film. In sequels, the characters, their motivations, and what they stand for are already established, and we are familiar with the world we are in, so the film can expand and introduce us to more ideas. Superman felt like it was expanding its universe, but without setting the table first. Sure, we know the basic story of Superman. Yes, we know Lex Luthor is the bad guy. But who is this Superman? Who is this Lex Luthor? How does this Metropolis function? Because Gunn puts so many characters and plots into this movie, we don’t get any of these answers, and the film doesn’t dive into any of its characters. Clark Kent is in the movie for two scenes, so we don’t get to see the juxtaposition between Clark and Superman, which is always fun for an actor to portray in any Superman film. We barely get any moments between him and Lois, Luthor has no complexity, and Metropolis might as well be called Big City USA. Mr. Terrific is as important a character in the film as Superman is, and there are more dramatic sequences with Krypto than with Superman. There is no character depth at all, and everything going on makes the film feel overstuffed, which ultimately makes it emotionally inert. I never felt a connection to any of the characters in the film, so when the world was in peril, it was hard to care whether Superman was going to save them or not.
While I appreciate the idea of trying to do something different, James Gunn’s Superman is focused too much on building a universe and less on the superhero the film is about.
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