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.
It goes without saying DC on film has had a rough go for the past several years, particularly for their flagship superhero Superman. As the official beginning to DC Studios’ launch of its cinematic universe, studio head, writer and director James Gunn has succeeded with Superman, capturing the Man of Steel’s heroic character with a fantastic trio of leading stars and plenty of heart within its story.
The best and most immediately positive aspect to Gunn’s Superman is the casting of David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan and Nicholas Hoult as Superman, Lois Lane and Lex Luthor respectively. Their performances embody the core characteristics of the iconic heroes and villain with Corenswet rightly standing out as the title hero. Corenswet comes off incredibly earnest, showing a Superman who only wants to do good and believes in the best of humanity even if it is, as some of the other characters claim, rather naive. He has the charm any Superman actor should have as he dashes around the world and saves people with a friendly smile, but still shows what an unrestrained Superman looks like when he doesn’t need to hold back. The only real critique is it would have been nice to see more of his Clark Kent persona at the Daily Planet, but considering the ‘real’ Clark is the one who dons the ‘S’ and interacts with Lois and his parents out of costume, Corenswet perfectly captures Superman’s essence in his performance.
Brosnahan likewise makes for a great Lois Lane and her chemistry with Corenswet is one of the best Superman and Lois pairings in film and television. The way she portrays Lois makes it clear why Superman would fall for her and she for him with their differences complimenting each other. Brosnahan shows off Lois’ wit, empathy and dedication to truth in journalism and how she is a hero in her own right. Hoult, meanwhile, is perfectly scummy as Lex Luthor. He’s a villain you’ll love to hate as his ego and narcissism doesn’t allow room for anyone but himself to take center stage, yet also has his own charm that allows him to steal and chew the scene. The rivalry between Superman and Luthor is nicely built up with Corenswet and Hoult playing off each other well.
Then there is Krypto, who deserves his own shout-out as he steals many of the scenes and proves to be the goodest boy a superhero can have. Krypto is the right mix of comedy, cuteness overload and fearsome protector throughout the film. Obviously Krypto would appeal to young kids and dog lovers, but as someone who thought Krypto might never work on the big screen – at least in live-action as opposed to 2022’s Krypto-centric DC League of Super-Pets – Gunn used him remarkably.
Gunn wastes little time jumping right into the story, eschewing the traditional origin scene as Superman’s is one of the most well-known origins in pop culture. The pacing is well done with Gunn balancing the humour, story and character moments so nothing feels disjointed or out of place. What also helps differentiate Superman is how it is more fantastical than previous entries, even the classic Christopher Reeve series, with the inclusion of other superheroes, monsters and pocket dimensions. It is very much a comic book movie in all the best ways and while it is also a lighter Superman film than the more recent ones there are still very serious and emotional undertones that, combined with the performances, pack quite a punch.
As for the supporting cast, they all do well and for anyone nervous about the amount of other superheroes in the film, rest assured the focus remains purely on Superman and his story. Edi Gathegi, Isabella Merced and Nathan Fillion provide funny banter, particularly in Fillion’s case as the Green Lantern Guy Gardner, while Gathegi’s Mr. Terrific is given the most material to work off as he plays a more significant role. Pruitt Taylor Vince imbues Johnathan Kent with care and wisdom while Neva Howell’s Martha Kent is a bit more dotty than usual, but the love she has for Clark is felt whenever she is onscreen.
Out of the Daily Planet crew, Skyler Gisondo is given the most screentime as Jimmy Olsen and makes the most of it through his comedic timing. Lex’s goon squad has several smaller roles that standout, but of his main enforcers María Gabriela de Faría and Sara Sampaio as The Engineer and Eve Teschmacher each provide nice foils to Lex, though Engineer could have been expanded on with a bit more backstory and motivation. Sampaio’s Eve, however, could have easily become an irritation but her performance gives Eve more depth and comedic timing than the typical airheaded and self-absorbed character archetype.
For those seeking the action of a superhero film, Superman does not disappoint with its set pieces showcasing Superman’s vast powerset alongside his allies and the enemies he faces. There is enough variation viewers won’t feel every action sequence repetitive, especially when Krypto is added into the mix with him and Superman performing combo moves together, and Gunn creates enough tension for both Superman and his friends that the threats feel credible. The film’s colour palette evokes the comics with its bright visuals and the cinematography presents clear and immersive imagery that places you right with the characters in the midst of their emotionally heavy scenes or thick of the fight.
Superman contains everything a fan looks for in a Superman story: great character moments, emotional and relevant story, exciting action and fantastic performances. Corenswet, Brosnahan and Hoult are incredible as Superman, Lois and Lex and Gunn delivers such beautiful direction and writing throughout the course of the film. Superman is a great start to the new DCU under Gunn’s leadership and the measure we should hold future DC films to live up to.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Ricky Church – Follow me on Bluesky for more movie news and nerd talk.
