Superman

When Superman finally returns to the big screen, we meet a defeated superhero. Clark Kent has lost his first ever fight against a powerful metahuman, and things don't get any better from there; not only does he become embroiled in a political conflict with a warmongering country, he also becomes the target of a relentless smear campaign. Everything is going according to Lex Luthor's plans, and he has no intention of giving up until Superman is destroyed in every possible way. But Superman isn't exactly known for giving up easily, especially when he has star journalist Lois Lane, superdog Krypto, Mr Terrific, and other oddball superheroes at his side...

James Gunn, who has now breathed new life into DC, shows from the film's first minutes that he refuses to waste time on things we already know about the good old Man of Steel. Bang! Boom! Bam! We are thrown straight into the action as if this new film universe has already been established in a predecessor. Just fasten your seatbelt as soon as you see the opening title, as Gunn only slows down when absolutely necessary. For example, there are no obligatory scenes about Kal-El's origins or scenes about how the Superman persona came to be. Instead, we are treated to insane comic book action with lots of heart and a wonderfully childish sense of superhero action.

We meet a frustrated Clark Kent who is perhaps too naïve for his own good and that of the world, and who is driven by the wishes of his alien parents. This Superman has a short fuse, which may not fit well with the more confident Superman we are used to, but which also becomes a clear inspiration for other more varied characters. I like David Corenswet's human and fragile character portrayal; it's a different interpretation of the role that I'd like to see more of. The same goes for Rachel Brosnahan and the sweet chemistry she has with Corenswet, and it's also fun to see a comic book-faithful Jimmy "Rizz" Olsen on the big screen (plus he doesn't get shot in the face this time, as happened in the awful Batman v. Superman).

The structure is initially reminiscent of the comic book All-Star Superman, which almost feels like a bunch of vignettes stitched together to deliver a hefty action punch towards the end. It's a simple plot crammed to the brim with DC mythology and characters who barely have time to blink before Gunn throws the viewer into the next period of madness. At times, Gunn's eager storytelling, which reaches feverishly enthusiastic levels when our heroes begin to move between different dimensions, can be almost disorienting, but it's constantly entertaining, charming, and light-hearted. I especially like the quieter scenes, when Gunn decides to slow down. One of my favourite moments, for example, was an intimate conversation between Lois Lane and Superman in a dark apartment, while Hawkgirl battles a laser-shooting space jellyfish in the background.

The film can be likened to Nathan Fillion's terrible pot-bellied Green Lantern character; it's silly, but in just the right way and carried with pride. Superman is refreshingly shameless in his comic book portrayal, even incurable in his heroic romanticism. Gunn understands very well how strange this world is and revels in his new DC-branded toy box rather than wasting time on things that have already been done in previous Superman films. This interpretation of Superman feels like a bunch of episodes from Superman: The Animated Series on steroids, without the elegance of, for example, the first Christopher Reeve film, and where the patented Gunn humour doesn't always land. Well, unless your name is Krypto, of course, an equally lovable and ill-mannered superdog who is allowed to steal as much limelight as possible and often interrupts scenes for comic (and successful) effect. The children in the audience will definitely adore this four-legged whirlwind of unconditional love.

In other words, this is a typical Gunn film, for better or worse, because sometimes the well-known director stumbles over his own flashes of genius. The story is tight, but it's not always convincing, as some emotional potential is sacrificed in order to keep up with the fast pace, and some exposition can feel clumsy, such as when certain characters talk more about who they are as characters rather than showing who they are. Superman also falls into that inevitable CGI trap that many big films plop into these days, where larger portions towards the final act suffer from overloading computer effects. I would also like to add that the music is somewhat of a disappointment, mixing John Williams' immortal leitmotif with a dash of Hans Zimmer's electronic touches, resulting in something of a pale tribute to its predecessors. But when the credits start rolling, you still sit there with a silly smile across your face and realise that, despite everything, you've had fun, even if several elements don't always click.

Superman is a really cocky film that is far from flawless, but which also embraces all the quirks of the comic book medium more than most superhero films released in recent years. It's clear that Gunn loves comic books, because even though the film has a tendency to become something of a bizarre fever dream, it's incredibly entertaining and feels wonderfully nerdy at its core. If Superman is a taste of similar adventure films in the DC Universe, I would argue that James Gunn has actually succeeded in the monumental task of rebooting DC's theatrical efforts with a twinkle in his eye.