Superman (2025)
Directed by: James Gunn
Premise: Superman (David Corenswet) causes a political uproar when he intervenes in an international conflict. Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) petitions the government to imprison the Man of Steel.
What Works: Superman has had many screen incarnations over the years and the 2025 film is distinguished in the way it embraces the optimism of the character. Following the middle-aged ennui of Superman Returns and the brutal cynicism of Man of Steel, 2025’s Superman is refreshingly upbeat. It’s very funny and this take on the character emphasizes his goodness in contrast with a cynical world. Superman’s extraordinary abilities have put him in the position to do good but taking action causes drama. As the film begins, Superman has intervened in a geopolitical conflict, upsetting world governments and other interested parties. The film dramatizes simplistic idealism and altruism colliding with the complex realities of political power. Superman is in this sense a political movie but not a partisan one; the filmmakers intend to inspire us with what Superman represents and they manage to do that without getting hokey. Superman eschews the character’s origin story to put us right in the action. It’s the right choice for this movie, playing to an audience that has been immersed in superhero stories for decades. The film is well cast with David Corenswet as Superman, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. Corenswet emphasizes the humanistic qualities of Superman while Hoult has a very contemporary take on Luthor. The film also introduces other superheroes, namely the Green Lantern, Mr. Terrific, and Hawkgirl (Nathan Fillion, Edi Gathegi, Isabela Merced). They are used well and Mr. Terrific in particular gets some great moments.
What Doesn’t: 2025’s Superman feels a bit overstuffed with story elements. Superman and the other heroes fight various monsters and villains while Superman and Lois Lane face a crisis in their relationship and Lex Luthor engineers a master plan. The story pulls the audience in a lot of different directions at once and incorporates a lot of ideas but not all are well developed. Superman and Lois’s story is especially truncated. 2025’s Superman also feels a bit redundant within the superhero genre. This is yet another spectacle climaxed by the destruction of a city. The effects are done well but we’ve seen this many times in other films and the climax lacks a sense of personal stakes. It’s loud and exciting but there’s not much emotional impact to the ending. The 2025 Superman film comes across as a compromise between a new take on the character and fidelity to earlier versions. The look of the film owes a lot to Richard Donner’s Superman films and Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns. The present film reuses the crystal design for the Fortress of Solitude and the music score adapts the theme created by John Williams for the 1978 movie. As a result, this version lacks an aesthetic and an identity of its own.
Bottom Line: 2025’s Superman is one of the better superhero pictures of recent years and it is a promising new start for DC’s film slate. It’s a little too busy for its own good and the film is torn between the past and the future. But like its central character, Superman is earnest and optimistic in a way that’s very appealing.
Episode: #1057 (July 20, 2025)