The Man of Steel Returns, Better Than Ever

For the last 20 years, the predominant cinematic image of Superman has been one of a Christlike martyr sent to Earth to suffer for the sins of a world he does not belong in and can never fully understand. James Gunn’s Superman flips that script. His Man of Steel is just … a man. Strong, yes. But not absurdly shredded with muscles on top of more muscles. Durable, sure. But not indestructible. In fact, what struck me most about Gunn’s interpretation of Superman is how vulnerable he makes the character, both physically and emotionally. This guy gets beat up constantly — and he beats himself up constantly too.

Gunn’s Superman loses fights so badly he can barely stand. He tries to save everyone, not just his friends and his family but also total strangers and even some of his enemies, and he’s devastated when he fails. The key line of dialogue for this Superman is not something like “Up, up and away!” It’s “Come on! Be careful!” spoken to a reckless fellow hero. This Superman is not some distant god floating above, looking down on us. He’s a flawed person with feelings. He makes mistakes and then desperately tries to fix them.

I imagine some fans of those earlier Supermen will not be on board with a Man of Steel who cares and occasionally cries. There will be inevitable outrage in some circles over the decision to portray Clark Kent as a guy so wholesome he says “darn” instead of “damn.” Those who feel that way are entitled to their opinions. In my opinion, Gunn’s Superman is a super-breath of fresh air — for DC Comics and for superhero movies in general — and easily the best Superman movie made in my lifetime.

Instead of an umpteenth origin story, it’s a foundation, one that establishes a new Superman and his world while also telling a deeply satisfying adventure tale. It’s somehow soaked in classic DC Comics mythology and simultaneously loaded with modern touchstones and resonances. It is, to my pleasant surprise, quite super.

READ MORE: The Strange Saga of the Superman Broadway Musical

It’s also got a terrific cast. David Corenswet is an incredible discovery as the new Man of Steel. He embodies Gunn’s conception of the character perfectly; tall and handsome but not the slightest bit imposing, with piercing blue eyes that radiate concern and compassion. Standing in stark opposition to his virtuous Clark Kent is Nicholas Hoult as the perfect Lex Luthor for our times; a narcissistic tech magnate consumed by greed and envy who could easily eclipse Superman, if only he could stop devoting his every waking second to destroying this strange visitor from another planet (or this “it,” as Hoult’s Lex describes him). And Rachel Brosnahan rounds out the core trio as a Lois Lane who is evidently smart and resourceful but never tries to impress anyone about being the smartest person in every room.

But even the smaller roles are filled with terrific performances — and sure, that can be a Mr. Terrific pun, since he is probably the key supporting character in the movie, and Edi Gathegi steals every one of his scenes as the brilliant gadgeteer with a ridiculous code name. He’s the de facto leader of a team of nascent heroes called “The Justice Gang” that also includes Isabela Merced’s ferocious Hawkgirl and Nathan Fillion’s obnoxious Guy Gardner. (And I mean he is really obnoxious.)

The Justice Gang serve as wary allies of Corenswet’s Superman, although their tenuous friendship gets tested by the main storyline of the film, in which the Man of Steel intervenes in a brewing war between the made-up countries of Boravia and Jarhanpur. Meddling in the complicated world of international politics brings Superman into the U.S. government’s crosshairs, and opens himself up to Lex Luthor’s latest dastardly scheme, one that threatens Metropolis and the rest of the world.

As in his Guardians of the Galaxy movies for Marvel, Gunn once again proves himself uncommonly skilled at juggling large casts of heroes and villains, and balancing large-scale action sequences with quieter moments that strengthen the relationships (and tease out the comedy) between his characters. He also finds time — in a movie that’s only about two hours long and paced faster than a speeding bullet — to channel some ideas into Superman as well. It can’t be a coincidence that after Gunn got himself temporarily fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 over some offensive tweets that he concocted a story that is, at least partly, about Superman getting canceled online over his well-intentioned but possibly short-sighted actions in Boravia.

Turning Superman into a message movie could have been Gunn’s Kryptonite, if the film wasn’t so consistently fun and exciting; if Corenswet’s Superman didn’t use his powers so cleverly and in such unexpected ways, if he didn’t have such strong chemistry with Brosnahan, and if he didn’t have one of the best dogs in movie history by his side in the form of Krypto, a mainstay of Superman comics and cartoons turned by Gunn into a CGI scene stealer. Typically portrayed as a super-obedient, super-loyal sidekick with the intelligence of a human, Gunn brilliant decision with Krypto was to give him the personality of an actual dog: Rambunctious, affectionate, and hilariously obstinate.

Krypto loves Superman, but he is not particularly inclined to listen to him. Although he was made with computers, Gunn infused the dog with a more realistic dog behaviors that almost any pooch I can recall in film history, super or otherwise. (He based Krypto’s appearance and temperament on his own rescue dog, Ozu.) Dog lovers are going to be over the moon; non-dog lovers might rethink their stance a little, at least in Krypto’s case. He’s such a good boy.

Krypto’s constant disobedience provides plenty of comic relief, but it’s also another smart facet of Gunn’s conceit for Superman. This guy’s such a normal bloke he can’t even get his dog to listen to him! Again, that might irk fans with a very specific, very narrow vision of Superman as an almighty, infallible savior. Personally, I found myself genuinely invested in the outcome of a comic-book movie for the first time in a long time. This Superman does something more impressive than make the audience believe a man can fly. It makes them care about the man doing the flying.

Additional Thoughts:

-Everything is divisive online, but Corenswet’s Superman costume was a particularly sore subject for some DC fans, who complained about its colors, its belt, its red shorts, its dimensions. After seeing the movie, the costume’s slight imperfections — it doesn’t fit Corenswet like a glove, it constantly gets burned and singed and rumpled — also feel like a deliberate choice designed to bolster Gunn’s concept of Superman as an imperfect dude. That concept wouldn’t work quite as well if he looked like a Greek statue brought to life. (Also, the costume and its tailoring really makes Corenswet look like a live-action Kevin Maguire drawing, and as a big Kevin Maguire fan, that made me happy.)

–Superman is the first comic-book movie in a while that teases a cinematic universe not by forcing needless subplots and unrelated cliffhangers, but by enriching its own story with so many interesting and amusing supporting characters that you want to watch them in other projects. There’s at least three DC heroes in Superman not named Superman that I can’t wait to see again.

RATING: 8/10