In 2006, the characters in Superman Returns did not use the phrase “truth, justice, and the American way” because the Iraq war had left America’s reputation in the toilet. Here we are 19 years later, and America’s reputation is somehow even worse. So, yeah, the characters in the rebooted Superman do not use that phrase either, but things are different. This new blockbuster film aims (not always successfully) to make the Man of Steel embody all the best qualities of his adopted homeland. Superman is no stranger to current events, as his comic-book version fought Nazis during World War II. This approach does come with pitfalls — remember Superman IV: The Quest for Peace? — but it helps make this week’s blockbuster the Superman movie that I would pick first if I wanted to watch one again.
The story takes place three years after Superman (David Corenswet) has made his presence known to the people of Earth. He stops a war between two foreign countries when it’s not clear that that’s the best thing to do, which incurs the wrath of not only the U.S. government but also Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), who aims to destroy Superman’s reputation with the help of that incident as well as unearthed footage of his Kryptonian parents (Bradley Cooper and Angela Sarafyan) being real dicks.
It’s both striking and refreshing how often Superman loses the fights in this movie and not just to people in possession of kryptonite. He gives a private interview to Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), who already knows that he is Clark Kent, and the scene not only shows her skills and toughness as a reporter but also reveals an unattractively self-righteous streak in our superhero. (Also, Lois is right: Having Clark interview Superman for The Daily Planet violates all kinds of journalistic ethics.) Later, one of Luthor’s henchmen (María Gabriela de Faría) tries to suffocate Superman by filling his lungs with nanobots, and the muscular superhero has to think quickly in mid-flight to avoid death. If the action set pieces aren’t the most memorable, writer-director James Gunn will use them in unorthodox ways, as when Lois and Clark have an earnest talk about their relationship while the military silently battles a kaiju in the background.
The edges of the film give Gunn a chance to flash a sense of humor that the previous Superman films have all lacked. That starts with the brief appearance by Supergirl (Milly Alcock) as a hard-partying wild child, which is more interesting than any previous iterations of the character. (She’s also the owner of a super-dog that Superman is temporarily looking after, and the less said about this pandering subplot, the better.) A better foil to Superman is the Justice Gang, a highly dysfunctional trio of superheroes led by a douchey Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), who wants to keep Superman out of the group to preserve his leadership position. The only member of the Justice Gang who tries to help Superman when he’s in trouble is Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), a pissy tech nerd who spends most of his time paired up with Lois, and his prickly presence gives these scenes life.
Corenswet, the Philadelphia native from Pearl and Twisters, doesn’t do much with the title role, but then, I think Superman might be an even harder role than Santa Claus when it comes to finding new angles to play. No, the proceedings are upstaged by Luthor, reimagined for our era as a libertarian billionaire who thinks he’s smarter than the scientific experts on his payroll and who wages war against Superman because the Man of Tomorrow makes him feel small and insignificant. Thus, Luthor rules over a pocket universe where he imprisons all of his ex-girlfriends (which is hilariously petty) and hires internet trolls to trash Superman online. He’s also willing to open up a black hole that sucks in Metropolis, including most of his employees, to prove his point. It’s cute that Luthor is a frequent guest on right-wing TV news shows, and that one of the ways the good guys defeat him is by getting the right-wing press to turn on him. Against that, a Superman who declares that his flawed humanity is his strength and says, “I can be a real asshole sometimes” (his last line in the film) is a bracingly self-aware touch that our zeitgeist could use.
Superman
Starring David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan. Written and directed by James Gunn. Rated PG-13.
