A review on Hollywood feature length film, Superman (2025). The feature length film is directed by James Gunn. The film stars David Corenswet as the Man Of Steel, Rachel Brosnahan as tough as nails reporter Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult as the diabolical Lex Luthor. Superman (2025) serves as the first film in the new DC Film Universe headed by James Gunn with many other DC film projects planned ahead.
+ Crew
- Directed by James Gunn
- Written by James Gunn
- Cinematography by Henry Braham
- Edited by William Hoy and Craig Alpert
- Music by John Murphy and David Fleming
- Produced by Peter Safran and James Gunn
- Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
+ Note
Due to the financial and critical failures of the Zack Snyder DC Universe, Warner Bros. decided to reboot the entire DC Film Universe and hired James Gunn to serve as the head of this new Superhero franchise. Due to his critical and commercial successes in the Guardians Of The Galaxy films for Marvel Studios, Warner Bros. decided to take a chance with James Gunn by hiring him first as the director for the Suicide Squad (2021) film (reboot). While not as popular as the Marvel films, the film was a modest success which grew further faith in James Gunn to head the entire DC Film Franchise. In order to bring the characters back to their roots, Gunn’s vision promises to be much more connected to the Comic folklore which also serves as a clear distinction from the gritty, dark realism of the Zack Snyder films. Superman (2025) mainly takes inspiration from the 2005 limited comic book series All-Star Superman from Grant Morrision and Frank Quietly.
+ Main Cast
- David Corenswet as Clark Kent / Superman
- Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane
- Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor
- Edi Gathegi as Michael Holt / Mister Terrific
- Anthony Carrigan as Rex Mason / Metamorpho
- Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner / Green Lantern
- Isabela Merced as Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl
+ Plot
The film takes place in a world where Superman has already been introduced to the city of Metropolis. But he is caught up between learning how to balance between real world politics and serving humanity. When Lex Luthor (Superman’s arch rival) discovers a secret Kryptonian message from Superman’s birth parents and reveals it to the world, Superman is left with either conforming to the will of the powerful or fighting for the truth, justice and the Human way.
+ High Points
i – Whether you are a fan of the Zack Snyder DC Universe or the original Richard Donner Superman films from the 70s and 80s, no one can deny the fact that James Gunn knows the genre of Superheroes quite extensively. He was undoubtedly one of the best candidates to reboot the entire DC Film Franchise. Superman (2025) is supposed to be the launching pad for this new universe and a lot of money and faith is riding on this project. Does it deliver? Short answer; yes, it does. Optimism and Color. Two major two aspects that I found missing from the Snyder films have again returned for Superman. Gunn’s vision of Superman is young, naive and empathetic to a fault. His vision of a superhero world makes the corniness of comics much more natural and acceptable. The daily occurrences of a giant monster destroying Metropolis is served as a minor inconvenience for the innocent bystander. There is a clear homage to the wackiness of the Golden and Silver Age comics (case in point, Krypto the superdog). Its very refreshing to have a balance between the grittiness of the Snyder films and the quippy one liners of the standard Marvel films. If the film turns out to be a critical and commercial success then Superhero films are back in a big way!
ii – David Corenswet is the best portrayal I have seen of the Big Blue on the big screen since Christopher Reeves. His natural charisma, naivety, the ‘gee golly’ approach to Life is perfect. He can play the timid, mild mannered reporter Clark Kent as well as the dashing superhero.
iii – Speaking of great casting, Rachel Brosnahan amazingly brought Lois Lane to life. Her tomboyish mannerism, straight forward/ head on approach to Life is wonderful and comic accurate. And so was Nicholas Hoult as the devious, cynical Lex Luthor. Hoult’s performance is calculating, menacing and for me, the best portrayal of Lex Luthor on the big screen (move over Gene Hackman!).
iv – Then you have other minor side characters like Jimmy Olsen who’s little subplot channeled a lot of his 60s/ 70s comic book series ‘Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen’ adventures (loved it!). Also one cannot forget the “Justice Gang”, Nathan Fillion killed it as the arrogant knucklehead Guy Gardner. Every single minor character, including Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho, was so impressive that we really have to give credit to James Gunn for juggling so many side characters and still giving them a reason to exist for the plot of the film.
v – Even though Superman is a fictional character in a fictional universe, I can truly admire the fact that James Gunn did not shy away from dealing with ‘real world issues’. I will not spoil it here of course but lets just say that its a very prevalent topic right now and it was great to see what Superman would’ve done if he actually existed. And suffice to say, he stands on the side of the oppressed (as he should).
vi – When I first came across the trailer for the film, I was worried that a CGI dog is going to make it overbearing for the entire runtime of the film. That was pleasantly not the case. While Krypto was indeed in large chunks of the film, his presence was limited and adorable.
vii – The romance between Lois and Clark was perfect. From their performances, you can feel the chemistry and tension as their relationship grows from a casual office fling to a serious one. While not as memorable as the Interview with Superman scene in Superman (1978), I did always enjoy whenever they both were onscreen.
viii – While I am not in love with the costume of Superman, it did eventually grow on me. But the best part is of course that it makes the color prominent and dominating whenever its onscreen. You just can’t miss it.
ix – Superman is portrayed as a man with values. Empathy, Kindness and Justice. These three key elements have always defined Superman for who he is and were sadly missing (or obscured at best) from the Zack Snyder films. I am glad that this time, its front and center because the world needs this Superman right now. In the face of real life tyranny and injustice, we need a Superman to help us remind ourselves what makes us Human in the first place.
+ Low Points
i – For the audience members who are not really aware of Superman and his mythos, I can understand the first half an hour of the film can be VERY confusing and narratively disorienting. The film does not retread waters of origin story but the introduction of a barrage of completely new characters can be overbearing to many casual viewers.
ii – The music was a major letdown for the film. Throughout the film, one could hear a few notes of the famous John Williams’ score but none of the other music from the film ever stuck with me. This problem, unfortunately, is very prevalent in modern superhero films. For whatever reason, the music is the most forgettable part of these films.
iii – Amongst all the minor characters, I think Perry White suffered the most. Mainly because he was never given anything to do in the film. Lois got a small story arc, so did Olsen. Hell, even Mister Terrific got one. Perry White is a very prominent character from the comics and was hoping he would get something substantial to do but guess we’ll have to wait for the sequel.
iv – From a technical standpoint, the film is nothing special. The cinematography was not outstanding or memorable. There were one too many close ups of Superman flying which made it hard to figure out what was really happening at times. Especially during fight scenes.
v – A direct note to James Gunn; please bring others in the Superman rogues gallery to the big screen! I am so sick of just Lex Luthor being portrayed on screen for the 1045th time. Where is Braniac? Metallo? Parasite? Hell, even Titano the Giant Ape? In the sequel, I would like to see at least one of these Super Villains fight Superman!
+ Overall
Charming, fun and adventurous; James Gunn’s vision of Superman hits the mark in all the right places.
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