When I was a little kid, I loved Superman. I loved the character, the way he carried himself, the fact that he could appear as one thing in broad daylight (Clark Kent), and that no one could see it was really him (Superman). Superman the Movie still is one of my favorite films because Richard Donner was magic. But then I hit my teen years, and Tim Burton’s Batman came out, and the idea that a ‘normal’ (albeit extremely rich) guy could use his smarts to beat the world’s bad guys pushed Superman to the side. Scott Snyder, Tom King, and other writers took Batman to places that matched Christopher Nolan’s version of Batman. Superman seemed so … basic.

I took my sons to see Superman, the new one with David Corenswet. It was better than Man of Steel or Batman vs. Superman (“Martha!”) or most of what DC has been putting out lately. But I wasn’t stunned, and quite frankly… I fell asleep. I walked away afterward thinking that Nicholas Hoult’s Lex was better than some (especially Kevin Spacey), that Corenswet was passable, and that Mr. Terrific was probably the best part of the film. And I was really bothered by the way that the message from Krypton that Superman replays over and over in the Fortress of Solitude made it seem like he was … a bad guy. After seeing FF: First Steps, I told my sons it blew Superman out of the water! And they begged me to sit down and watch Superman again.

Thanks to the kind folks at Warner Bros., I received a copy of the film, and I did, in fact, watch it again. I’ve already told both of my sons but I want it in print here: I. Was. Wrong.

This latest version of Superman isn’t just a movie. It’s a statement. Unlike some of the the superhero films getting thrown at us on the regular, this movie has something to say about good, about evil, about truth, and super-directly, what it means to be human.

So I won’t break down too much of a synopsis here, but the basics are this: Superman has just broken up an invasion of a helpless little country, ticking off a dictator. In Metropolis, Lex Luthor is fighting to get governmental backing to take Superman out. Superman is working on relationships with Lois Lane, his dog Krypto, and the “Justice Gang,” Mr. Terrific, Green Lantern Guy Gardner, and Hawkgirl.

This all matters, but it doesn’t because it’s the plot but not the message. The message boils down to this:

We’re all human and we should recognize our commonalities to work together. Of course there are several side ideas, like “People in power have agendas that need to be investigated and they don’t actually care about you,” “just because it’s on the internet doesn’t make it true,” “don’t judge a book by its cover,” etc.

This is the most basic of lessons of my Christian faith AND one that is being challenged daily, moment by moment, in the world we live in today. Jesus was asked by a rich young ruler who wanted to prove himself, “who is my neighbor?” Jesus launches into a parable about the Good Samaritan and explains that the powerful, the religious, the expected – none of them turn out to be a really good neighbor. But the man in need’s enemy? He chooses mercy and grace. In Superman, that parable is played out, with the leaders in power, wealth, and government proving to NOT be good neighbors, while the “alien” among us stands tall for, well, everyone.

Don’t get me wrong: Superman looks good, sounds great, and executes well as a wonderful couple of hours of entertainment. But it’s also the movie we need right now, to be reminded that we are called to be neighbors to each other, regardless of where we came from.

Superman is available now on Digital and in retail stores.