“Superman” Only Occasionally Soars

Superman (James Gunn, 2025) 3 out of 5 stars

The new Superman begins with a bang. Or, rather, a bolt from the sky. Actually, it starts with onscreen words, in an unnecessary bit of exposition that offers nothing that wouldn’t be understood from subsequent context (plus some additional language about “metahumans”). It’s an inauspicious intro to a film that struggles with coherence and consistency while also delivering fairly solid summer entertainment. It’s a lot better than I feared it would be (did we really need another Superman so soon?), yet also not all that great.

Writer/director James Gunn began his transition from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to the DC Universe (DCU) with 2021’s The Suicide Squad, without forgetting to complete his Guardians of the Galaxy MCU series along the way. His movies combine action and humor—often silly—in what can be a thoroughly engaging mix. He can also demonstrate a fine touch with sentiment, as he did in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Unfortunately, in Superman, he gets the balance of the various elements a little wrong.

Still, we have fun, courtesy of jokes (however random), a dog named Krypto (heretofore left out in previous cinematic iterations of the Man of Steel), and many of the performances, with one notable exception. Nicholas Hoult (Renfield), as Lex Luthor, Supes’ archenemy, threatens to derail the entire project through his over-the-top nonsense. Yes, this is based on a comic book (as is so much in this era)—hardly the most nuanced of formats—but less can quite frequently be more. Take it down a notch, please.

The rest of the ensemble is strong, including David Corenswet (The Greatest Hits) in the title role, Rachel Brosnahan (I’m Your Woman) as Lois Lane, Wendell Pierce (Clemency) as Perry White, Skyler Gisondo (The Social Dilemma) as Jimmy Olsen, Nathan Fillion (Skincare) as Guy Gardner/Green Lantern, Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold) as Hawkgirl, Anthony Carrigan (McVeigh) as Metamorpho, and my personal favorite, Edi Gathegi (Apple’s For All Mankind series) as Mr. Terrific. Certain sequences pop, as when Mr. Terrific—a brilliant master of technology who uses orbs known as T-Spheres—takes down an entire squad of assailants (Lois looking on in frightened awe). Other moments speak to the horrors of our modern age, such as the terrifying image of a secret prison where political enemies of the state can be rendered.

Actually, most of the people in the jail cells of that hidden “pocket universe” are personal nemeses of Luthor, who is clearly a stand-in for the (far too) many billionaire oligarchs of today. If one compares Luthor to Elon Musk, then perhaps Hoult’s line delivery makes greater sense. Still, the comparison is a bit obvious and heavy-handed, if nevertheless chilling. It does not feel like a great stretch of the imagination to predict that we will all soon be at risk of disappearing to some place no one will ever find us.

The script follows Superman/Clark Kent as he battles not only Luthor, but the American government and—the absolute worst—social media. The movie opens in medias res (following the aforementioned explanatory title cards) as Superman is losing a fight for the first time in his life. It seems the big guy recently stopped the country of Boravia from invading its neighbor, Jarhanpur, and now the “Hammer of Boravia,” an armored flying metahuman, seeks revenge. As Superman lies bleeding in the Antarctic ice (I always thought his Fortress of Solitude was in the Arctic, but there has apparently been a change), his trusty canine companion, Krypto, comes to the rescue. The simultaneous high stakes and cutesy comedy continues throughout.

From there, the screenplay ping-pongs from plot point to plot point, struggling to settle on one thread for long enough to develop a truly meaningful narrative. The steadiest and most successful through line is that the Man of Steel cannot go it alone. He is more vulnerable than we have ever seen him—and more volatile—making him also the most human version of himself.

Other aspects of the movie work less well, such as the tired conception of Jarhanpur as a poor, primitive nation filled with helpless people of color in need of rescue, preferably from their flying white savior. Gunn also makes a weird decision vis-à-vis Superman’s Kryptonian parents, Jor-El and Lara, and their motivation for sending their son to Earth. He can do what he wants, but that felt like a bizarre step too far.

Though this Superman often stumbles, when it does take flight, it occasionally soars (see above, re: Mr. Terrific). It purposefully rejects the doom and gloom of Zak Snyder’s DCU (that, in fact, is why we have a new Kryptonian in the first place, to reset the tone), yet doesn’t offer as bold a new vision as one might hope. Nonetheless, thanks to the oddball quips and gags and intermittently appealing action scenes, the movie will no doubt find an audience and set Corenswet up for at least one other future installment. Until the next actor comes along, that is. Stay tuned.

Christopher Llewellyn Reed

Chris Reed is the editor of Film Festival Today. A member of both the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS) and the Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA), and a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic, Chris is, in addition, lead film critic at Hammer to Nail and the author of Film Editing: Theory and Practice.