Directed By James Gunn
Starring – David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult
The Plot – Superman (Corenswet) must reconcile his alien Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as reporter Clark Kent. As the embodiment of truth, justice and the human way he soon finds himself in a world that views these as old-fashioned.
Rated PG-13 for violence, action and adult language.
Superman | Official Trailer | DC
POSITIVES
Regardless of how you feel about the Zach Snyder Superman involved films, James Gunn provides a vitally exciting and stylistically exuberant breath of fresh air to the integrity of this franchise that makes “Superman” a high-flying return to form to drive audience ambition once more. With the script and the direction firmly in his grasp, Gunn not only provides authenticity in the depths of Superman’s previously established ideals and this affectionate appreciation for humanity, but also effectively taps into the some stimulating social commentary pertaining to everything from the toxicities of social media to uneasy misconceptions about immigration that bares more than a striking resemblance to the contemporary issues plaguing our currently divided country, making this so much more than an entertaining superhero film, and instead a responsible impulse from one of the industry’s most fearless filmmakers. While the former of these choices does predate the film a bit for coming generations that will endure it, the character study of the highs and lows of cultural stardom alongside this god of a man who inherited everything that makes him different expanded to a far more vulnerably complex and endearing side to the personality persisting within the man of steel than I’ve ever got in any previous film about the character, proving that for as powerfully unstoppable as we perceive him to be, he’s still defined by the very elements that make him human above all else, and I found this depiction of the titular protagonist to be every bit accessibly relatable as he’s ever been, all without giving up the imposing stature that defines the character. Gunn’s direction also attains the thrills of executing some exhilarating action set pieces for the movie’s appeal, shot incredibly with IMAX cameras featuring Panavision technology that allows the audience to surveil every aspect of physical conflicts that happen abruptly fast and overwhelmingly impactful. This gives the look and feel of the film a very original essence to its imagery that admittedly does take some time getting used to, but also accentuates the stylistic impulses of a sequence, where light and framing convey emotional insight into the psychology of its characters, producing these gorgeously luminating textures that rival some of the movie’s entrancing iconography that seamlessly bring to life the familiarities of its comic book origins. Underline all of this with an epically entrancing score from David Fleming and John Murphy, featuring awe-inspiring instrumentals that breed such an urgent conscience to the air of the despair and surrounding devastation in imagery, and you have highly captivating sequences in scope and spectacle that pay-off accordingly to towards conjuring goosebumps on the arms of its audience, all the while taking ample opportunity to showcase Superman’s unmatched strength with impressive feats made possible with the magic of cinematic technology. On top of Gunn’s irreplaceable value to the movie’s favor, it’s also cast perfectly throughout its extensive ensemble, led most evidently by the aforementioned trio that bring so much vibrance and distinct personality to match Gunn’s breezily airy and lighthearted demeanor in direction. Corenswet effortlessly elicits the expected resilience and stoicism of the superhero, with a hearty persistence that keeps him from ever giving up on these people, but his most shining moments, at least to me, pertain to the aforementioned vulnerability in the times that he is emotionally overwhelmed by the manipulation of public perception of a smear campaign, made most endearing by the remorse that David lends to the portrayal that makes him feel isolated, even at a time in the world where, for better or worse, he is its primary focus. As for Rachel Brosnahan’s portrayal as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult’s work as Lex Luthor, there’s a grave underutilizing for both that takes away a bit of the air of their evidential impacts, but the former conjures this punk rock mentality within undeterred drive that makes her the living, breathing embodiment of persistent journalists, while Hoult’s sniveling, snarky commanding of Luthor feels like the full-fledged embodiment of hate, right down to the misinformed ideals that drive his lapsed judgment, granting Hoult a few opportunities to casually chew the scenery without the need to channel Jesse Eisenberg’s erratic tendencies towards delivery.
NEGATIVES
Superhero films have the difficult task of simultaneously having to cater to hardcore fans who expect things one way, and inexperienced fans who know little about the world-building taking shape, and while “Superman” was an entertaining engagement for someone like me, who falls in the latter category, its desire to cater almost exclusively to the former makes it a bit of a frustratingly limited experience, particularly with a script involving far too much going on in its overstuffed execution. Gunn’s decision to stay away from making this an origin story for the character is a wise one, as everyone should know Superman’s established roots by this point, but the film also feels like the second or third installment to a rendered trilogy, instead of the first, based entirely on these characters and dynamics that we’ve had no time to learn or even experience first hand, and considering the script feels like an advertisement for future installments in this Gunn-led universe for D.C, the film’s focus feels frenetically all over the place, with very little time utilized to vividly flesh out the abundance of its characterization or themes, and instead catering towards fan service that inadvertently alienates half of the audience. Beyond this, I also found Gunn’s historically consistent humor to be every bit as abrasively intrusive and unnecessary as any film that the director has ever produced, with comedic material that landed maybe 10% of the time for me personally. While the material is a problem in itself for the kind of cutesy, corny gags that it continuously goes for, the bigger problem seems to lend itself to Gunn not feeling comfortable with allowing the audience to experience a scene with deep emotional significance, with the exception of one involving Clark speaking privately with his father, and considering this is the same visionary who made “Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3”, it’s a bit disappointing that the film doesn’t dig deeper on a roller-coaster of emotions that could’ve worked especially well with its aforementioned profound social commentary, instead crafting these abrupt tonal shifts in the sequencing of these scenes that feel a bit too indulgent in the comforts of Gunn’s creative wheelhouse. The film is also oversaturated by artificially ugly special effects work that produces a hollow encompassing to flying sequences that lack any definitive gravity, with jarringly fast execution in editing meant to hide the overwhelming transparency of an effect lacking believability, even in a Superman movie. While I wholeheartedly understand that C.G and greenscreen are needed to orchestrate Superman’s supernatural capabilities, it doesn’t feel like enough time or creativity energy with the framing of the shots were used to better conceal what is painfully evident to someone sitting in a theater, and for a movie with an astonishing 225 million dollar budget to its benefit, some of the shots in this movie are downright ugly to have made the final print. Finally, Gunn’s arrival to the studio allows it the opportunity to dabble in post-credit scenes, with two here that lack any kind of meaningful merit towards the future of this franchise or universe. I typically expect that one of these always pertains to a cheap comic punchline usually taken from an earlier gag in the movie, but both of the ones here are so lazily enacted that it not only makes me wish that they didn’t add them in the first place, but also doesn’t necessarily drive me emphatically to see the secondary installment to this newfound universe.
OVERALL
“Superman” is far from a bulletproof film, but it is a light and airy return to form for a comic book franchise that soars the highest when tapping into societal parallels that appraises the humanity that bonds differing cultures striving for a better world. While the script feels a bit overstuffed and underdeveloped, and the humor intrudes a bit too often to be forgiven, the charm of its electric ensemble, as well as the unforeseen vulnerabilities of its title character make this easily the most accessibly relatable of the franchise, establishing Gunn as the caped savior who just might save this studio from the brink of Armageddon.
My Grade: 7.1 or B-
Im so happy you posted this.. the kids and I are planning to go see this this weekend maybe at the drive in.. Do you think it woudk be better to see at the theater? My oldest is the comic fan.. Marvel and DC. not sure which he favors. I think he has favorites from each. ( As do I). The other 2 kiddos may know what’s going on just because we’ve seen so many different versions of “Superman” movies. But they aren’t into the whole comic things, with that I hope to actually get to watch the movie and not have to answer questions lol. ( so maybe the Drive in would be better…Just in case.
What a great all encompassing review. You really covered everything from the. Quality of the plot all the way down to dimensions of current events going on in our society. And the whole while not one spoiler. I like how you recognized. The failed attempts at for like a better word, forced humor. I think for me when an attempt of humor don’t pan out. It leaves me questioning the quality of the entire movie probably unfairly. It’s been several months since I The failed attempts at for like a better word, forced humor. I think for me when a attempt of humor don’t pan out. It leaves me questioning the quality of the entire movie probably unfairly. It’s been several months since I’ve read many reviews and then I can already see in just a short time. Continued improvement. You really are an excellent movie critic.
PS. I hate talk to text sometimes.