The films adapted from DC comic book characters have had a difficult, unpredictable history in the past 14 years. When the "Green Lantern" film with Ryan Reynolds was released in 2011, it sort of began the unofficial DC cinematic universe and the grand franchise plans for the Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment studios.
With releases like "Suicide Squad" (2016), "Wonder Woman" (2017), "Justice League" (2017), and "Shazam!" (2019), it has often felt like these films are trying eagerly to catch up to the more established, and more popular, Marvel comic book films like "Captain America: The First Avenger" (2011), "The Avengers" (2012), and "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (2017).
Against this tenuous history comes the new adaptation of "Superman," the first film in the all new DC universe (produced by DC Studios) and the second reboot of the Superman film series. This PG-13 action adventure is not just a reboot but also a return to the bright, colorful palette of the "Superman" comic books and the original "Superman" films between 1978 & 1987.
The last stand-alone Superman film, "Man of Steel" (2013), was directed by Zack Snyder and co-written by Christopher Nolan; it has a surprisingly darker emotional tone and is much more grounded in reality for a comic book film. But this new "Superman" version is placed directly under the bright rays of the sun.
Directed & co-written by James Gunn (who brought us the three "Guardians of the Galaxy" films and one of the "Suicide Squad" films), "Superman" has a playful, goofy, lighthearted charm. The humor is very youthful and wholesome, clearly aimed at children and parents to enjoy together. I watched this in a theater surrounded by people of all ages, and many of them were laughing together more than just once or twice. For a fascinating comparison, I laughed zero times.
David Corenswet ("Hollywood," 2020) plays the title character with the expected boy scout cuteness. No swearing from him, and he has the traditionally strong principles about honesty and kindness. This "Superman" also has a sidekick in a super strong mischievous dog named Krypto. (This dog is a CGI, terrier-adjacent, white-haired mutt who can fly, run fast, and wear a red cape.) All this playful childlike energy is clearly employed to appeal to the widest range of movie watchers as possible.
Maybe this childlike energy is why this film feels so insanely accelerated. It starts with almost no exposition or review of Superman’s past. Audiences are thrown right into Superman recovering from his first defeat lying in the snow outside his ice crystal hideaway. And once he’s patched up, he flies immediately back to his fight with a large robot. There’s seriously so little time to slow down, take a breath, and understand the emotions of the main characters, I felt like I was on a spinning carnival ride without an attendant to manage the controls.
The messages of welcoming immigrants from faraway lands, the delicate power of social media, and the view of the United States as a savior of third-world countries are all forcefully clumsy and rushed, because of this fast pacing. (Some of these messages are upsetting to conservative viewers simply because of their overtly “woke” content.)
When Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult, "Nosferatu," 2024) creates a news announcement about Superman’s dubious origins, a crowd of supporters literally turns violent in less than a minute. Are we meant to believe this collective public opinion can change that quickly with properly crafted misinformation? Maybe this exaggerated reflection of today’s culture works for some viewers, but it also loses any believability with other viewers.
A crazy speedy pace is a customary choice for a superhero film, it’s been done many times before. And that kind of pacing often works in large-scale action sequences with a lot going on. I get it. But it doesn’t work when it’s in the majority of a whole film, because you eventually have to care about someone when something bad happens to them. That’s what I struggled with during "Superman."
Maybe I’m too old fashioned. Maybe I just need to loosen up and try to have a good time with films like this. I did have fun in some parts of this film, but it was too trying for me to get past so much of a hurried mess.
