I am an OG Day 1 Superman movie guy. I was in Kindergarten in December 1978 when Christopher Reeve & director Richard Donner made the 6-year-old me believe that a man could fly. It was joyous and unforgettable. Three years later, in the summer of 1981, Superman II hit the US screens (the rest of the world got it in 1980). THAT was the first time I saw a movie theatre transform into a full fledged sporting venue/rock concert as Supes took down Non, Ursa and General Zod in the middle of downtown Metropolis. We cheered. We clapped. Again, it was joyous.
The less said about Superman III & IV, the better. The joy was gone. Long gone.
Fast forward to the summer of 2006. I was now a married man and a first time father when Bryan Singer unleashed Superman Returns on the world. When the unforgettable melody of John Williams’ classic theme blew through the IMAX speakers, I felt the joy rise up…and, like a balloon, it got deflated thanks to the monotone stalker portrayal by Brandon Routh, the annoyance of Kate Bosworth as Lois and the unnecessary camp of Kevin Spacey. It broke my heart as the years went on. Singer didn’t get Superman right.
And then came Zack Snyder, who, with Man of Steel, evaporated every ounce of joy from Supes thanks to Henry Cavill’s mopey, angry, stick-up-his-behind depiction of Kal-El – which was clearly influenced by Kevin Costner’s soulless and void depiction of Pa Kent and his rigid insistence that Clark hold back his Super and just be a Man because he feared how the people would react to Clark’s powers. Costner’s forlorn look gave way to Cavill’s joyless scowl as his angst carried over from Batman v. Superman to Justice League. My hero was gone. In his place was a dude pissed off about being a hero and content to just lay in Amy Adams’ arms all day. Her Lois ended up being the one to get him back in the fight in the (disgraced filmmaker) Joss Whedon’s cut of Justice League. In retrospect, Snyder’s vision for the Man of Steel was dark, void and empty – which was possibly more of a reflection on how he saw the world. As bitter and broken as our world had become by the time Justice League dropped, Cavill gained many fans and Snyder’s approach got many apologists. But for me, the 6-year -old who wanted his hero back, the joy was gone.
Enter James Gunn – who took a ragtag bunch of superhero misfits and made them rockstars via his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. He famously got bumped from that gig due to old receipts from his social media account. During said break, he delivered one of the best films in the former DC Universe in The Suicide Squad. It crashed and burned during the pandemic. But it left a huge impression with the good folks at Warner Bros as they gave him and producer Peter Safran the keys to the DC Studios kingdom. Upon taking the helm, Gunn announced his first project in the – once again – rebooted DCU: his take on the man from Smallville entitled Superman: Legacy.
As the film hits theatres at last on Friday 7/11, the film is simply titled Superman and features David Corenswet as the Man of Steel, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane and Nicolas Hoult as Lex Luthor. The haters have their claws sharpened ready to tear the film to shreds because Cavill is their guy and Reeve is seemingly irreplaceable. I was nervous going into the theatre for my screening because I just didn’t know if Gunn could pull it off.
Ladies and gentlemen…HE DID!
Corenswet’s Superman is the best one I’ve seen since I first saw Christopher Reeve back in 1978. He absolutely convinced me of his love and care for humanity. In his interview with Lois – clearly his girlfriend who’s fully aware of his identity when the movie starts – where she questions his actions and motivations, he gives the most clear cut answer one can give: “PEOPLE WERE GOING TO DIE!”  That’s the Superman I know! it’s the one who convinced so many people that Supes was really an allegory for Jesus Christ – the One who gave Himself away to save a world in peril. And, oh boy, this Supes really gave himself away. We see him bruised, bloodied limbs snapped thanks to villians empowered by technology from Luthor (whose vibes smelled very Musk-y throughout the film) who power packed every punch with a heavy heavy dose of Kryptonite. Luthor brings the pain – big time. And you feel the actual stakes that are on the line much more than we did in Singer & Snyder’s interpretations.
I have to shout out the electricity between Corenswet & Brosnahan. We haven’t seen heat that smoldering since Reeves and Margot Kidder back in my childhood. They truly have the fire! Shoutouts also to Skyler Gisondo’s Jimmy Olsen & Edi Gathegi’s Mr Terrific – one of the Justice Gang (not quite League yet) consisting of him, Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl and Nathon Fillion’s Green Lantern (with a HORRIBLE haircut). But the supporting cast member that’ll probably get the most love is Krypto, Superman’s dog. Krypto is wild and rambunctious but handles his business when the time comes. And we get a truly loving & supportive Ma and Pa Kent this go round (Neva Howell & Pruitt Taylor Vince).
In the end, the joy is back.The wonder is back. The fun is back up in the sky! Superman 2025 is THE BEST Superman movie since Superman II back in the 80’s! We finally got ourselves a Superman movie to make America (and the world) smile again. That 6-year-old boy is now a 52-year-old man and, for the first time in a long long time, I truly believed in my heart and soul that a man could fly. Again.
Superman flies into theatres on July 11th, 2025.