Superman, 2025.
Written and Directed by James Gunn.
Starring David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan, Nathan Fillion, Isabela Merced, María Gabriela de Faría, Sara Sampaio, Skyler Gisondo, Terence Rosemore, Wendell Pierce, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Neva Howell, Beck Bennett, Mikaela Hoover, Christopher McDonald, Paige Mobley, Frank Grillo, Stephen Blackehart, Will Reeve, Alan Tudyk, Michael Rooker, Grace Chan, Pom Klementieff, Michael Rosenbaum, Bradley Cooper, Angela Sarafyan, Milly Alcock, and Jennifer Holland.
SYNOPSIS:
Superman 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.
Fully prepared and on board that Superman writer/director (and new DC universe overseer) James Gunn’s take on the iconic superhero (created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster) would be lighter, joyful, and punk rock (the original John Williams score is here, but there is also an appropriately punkish rendition of that in the music from John Murphy and David Fleming), the true pleasant surprise is how politically timely much of the material is, seemingly unafraid to alienate some viewers with at least one major stance.
It’s one thing to bring the character back to instilling hope and kindness in others; it’s punk rock to make your superhero film a thinly disguised commentary on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, taking a stance on who is doing the wrongdoing. Yes, technically, fictional countries are standing in for them, but one would also have to be embarrassingly media illiterate not to catch on. Whether it’s a copout or the sensitive choice not to use Israel and Palestine directly is up for debate. What matters is that it’s a jolt to the system that a narrative choice so topical made it into the film, and it’s not even the only one.
Since this is not an origin story (pre-opening credits text explains the basics rather than showing it yet again), it allows James Gunn to jump right into telling this story. It’s the kind of no-brainer decision that should become an unwritten rule for future remakes of all well-known superhero properties. There is no need to spend 30 minutes or an entire movie on such origins: Clark Kent/Superman (David Corenswet) is an alien from a dying planet sent to Earth by his parents, who grew up raised by a pair of Kansas farmers (Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell) and is now a journalist for the Daily Planet who also happens to be dating co-worker Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) while being a superhero on the side, fighting gigantic monstrosities while occasionally finding time to visit his Antarctica underground home base (the Fortress of Solitude).
By some chance, if someone is new to all of this, the film naturally weaves this information into the narrative. In this iteration, Clark Kent’s loyal canine companion, Krypto, is also present (arguably rougher here than Superman himself, who is relatively new to the fighting aspect of being a superhero), alongside a work-in-progress version of the Justice League, unofficially workshopping themselves as the Justice Gang. That’s what Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner/Green Lantern believes they should be called anyway, teaming up with lesser-known heroes such as Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl and Edi Gathegi’s Michael Holt/Mr. Terrific, seemingly fulfilling James Gunn’s need to work in some amusing misfits and related humorous banter.
There are times when this doesn’t work, as it’s a bit too much to expect to align with their dysfunctional, loony wavelength, considering everything else that’s happening here. They are here more as world-building rather than fully fleshed-out characters, and the battles they find themselves in often come with weightless stakes. However, this is mostly offset by endearing performances that make us want to see more of these characters elsewhere, especially the irreverent technology and aircraft specialist Mr. Terrific, who often comes across as James Gunn amused by the idea of working in the closest thing he can to a Blaxploitation-style sidekick superhero.
It’s also unquestionably tonally jarring watching a film veering between the leader of an Israel-like stand-in receiving free weapons from an Elon Musk-inspired tech a billionaire take on Lex Luthor (a cold, sociopathic Nicholas Hoult embodying the heartlessness of these types and the chilling indifference these otherwise regular people elicit as employees when doing his bidding from a room of computers) to take out a fictionalized Palestine, to a broad daylight battle against a humongous creature that is right at the crossroads of comic book and James Gunn’s style. There are also quick acts of cruelty here that almost feel out of place, considering that there are so many other cheerful and upbeat ideas on the film’s mind.
That’s without getting into other overstuffed narrative aspects: Superman sometimes wants to be a tale about journalistic integrity. It’s also about Superman intervening in the affairs of different countries, not on behalf of America, but to do what’s morally right. At other times, it’s more concerned with setting up its own Guardians-like take on the Justice League, crossing into tucked-away hidden dimensions that could cause a tear in the real world. It’s also trying to create time for romance and genuine human connection between Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane, exploring whether they are a good match for each other.
At some point, the sheer ambition of the project severely affected the budget, as the film also features an ugly rendered CGI baby, similar to The Flash, which was released less than five years ago. In general, the quality of the special effects is inconsistent, sometimes appearing impressive (such as the nano-based attacks from Lex Luthor’s henchwoman, The Engineer, as played by María Gabriela de Faría), and at other times unfinished.
One can’t help but feel Superman occasionally falls into the same trap the DCEU fell into by stuffing one installment with so much that it becomes more about compensating for Marvel’s now 30+ film head start. There is also reason to suspect that this was initially intended to be another TV series (Peacemaker, his previously politically charged superhero story) until WB expanded that universe and decided they wanted James Gunn to give it a shot. Superman is so logjammed that there is never time for anything about it to necessarily become emotionally gripping, unless one happens to be drawn to the idea of what Superman represents. Fortunately, that works and is a sincere, beaming, inspirational light.
That’s also the key to unlocking this version of Superman and riding the film’s wavelength. It’s a film where one of Lex Luthor’s downfall mistakes happens to be dating a brainrotted social media obsessed woman who ends up playing a key role in the narrative, not for reasons that are satisfying on a character level, but more as commentary that such a person is the antithesis to what that superhero stands for. Everyone here is also well cast and charming, with James Gunn once again excelling at crafting stylish, sometimes one-take spectacle sequences. This is Superman by way of Guardians of the Galaxy with a punk political punch that makes up for the film’s narrative shortcomings.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder
Originally published July 9, 2025. Updated July 11, 2025.
