 While I'd probably never claim Superman to be among my all-time favourite superheroes, he does still tend to be a character for whom I have the ideal version in my head. Superman should be a full-on hero, going out of his way to rescue creatures great and small, protect Metropolis and the rest of the world, and not become a dark, brooding DC character, as Batman has already perfected it, and we don't need another. With that said, however, don't worry; I get it. The DCEU has its fan base, but it's not altogether for me.
The best 'Superman' movies to date, in my opinion, are the 1978 original and its 1980 follow-up. But for my particular tastes, and this is a bold statement, but this reboot has swiftly become my favourite of the bunch. Still, not everyone is gonna come out of this loving it. It must be noted that this is very much a product of James Gunn, so you will get the same vibes you got with the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' movies, or 'The Suicide Squad' if you're more of a DC person, and there is no "Smallville" feeling to it. This is a fresh take on the character, and we can all breathe a sigh of relief knowing it's not another origin story. We are introduced to a world where Metahumans are a known entity, and Superman/Clark Kent (David Corenswet) is already an established superhero. His latest feat was to face off against the nation of Boravia, which attempted to invade Jarhanpur, a neighbouring country. Superman threatens the Boravian president, Vasil Ghurkos (Zlatko Buric), that if he doesn't back off, Superman will return. This sets up a solid split for the audience, as while we love to see Superman take on a political bully, things just aren't that cut and dry, as wonderfully illustrated by the Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) interview scene, as seen in this trailer. The film opens with a brief recap of Superman's origin story, presented subtly without resorting to a flashback or similar device. But altogether, we get the Fortress of Solitude, how Superman heals using the power of the sun, we're introduced to his awesome dog, Krypto, and it's even established that this is a very sci-fi setting, as it's shown Superman has some robot helpers, who include the voice talents of Alan Tudyk, Michael Rooker, and Pom Klementieff among others. I must give credit to the opening for providing us with so much without simply repeating what we already know. Before we know it, Superman heads back to a fight he was just bested at for the first time against the "Hammer of Boravia," a metahuman controlled by the genius Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), who aims to take Superman out of the picture, allowing Boravia to invade, which Luthor has his reasons for wanting. However, Luthor's real motivations for stopping Superman are based on hatred and resentment for Superman's stardom. But it's not all so black and white. There are more profound questions that come into play, part of which includes Superman's apparent true purpose here on Earth—the hero questioning just who he is. The film even manages to bring in other heroes, including Guy Gardner/Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), all of whom are well-utilized and do not detract from the movie being a 'Superman' film. I also feel that I should bring John and Martha Kent (Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell, respectively) into this - John is still alive in this, which immediately tells us that it's still very early in Superman's career. Both are pretty great, often coming off as stereotypical "old folks," but the film still allows for a very heartfelt scene between John and Clark. There's so much more I could write about, like a great use of special effects, doing subtle things never thought of before (like seeing Superman fly through varying weather), the fact that Hoult completely steals the show with his villainous performance, that feeling of a comic book come to life rather than some unnecessary dark take on things, and so much more. There were moments when I was watching it with a huge smile on my face, as I was finally getting a version of Superman I wanted to see. I cannot wait to see what Gunn does with the rest of this universe. 5/5
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