DC’s cinematic universe relaunches with Superman, and it’s anything but conventional. Directed by James Gunn and starring David Corenswet, this film is a quirky, offbeat take on the Man of Steel—equal parts sci-fi oddity and superhero satire. Hardcore fans may embrace its unapologetic weirdness, but casual viewers could find themselves scratching their heads.
After the collapse of the previous DC Extended Universe—thanks to the underwhelming run of Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom—James Gunn was handed the keys to a fresh reboot. Known for injecting irreverence and chaos into Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and DC’s The Suicide Squad, Gunn doesn’t play it safe here either. Superman doesn’t feel like a tentpole film designed to unify a cinematic universe. It feels like a passion project—eccentric, sometimes self-indulgent, and defiantly niche.
Rather than rehash Superman’s well-worn origin story, Gunn drops us into the middle of the action. This Clark Kent has been on the job in Metropolis for three years. He’s already dating ace reporter Lois Lane (played with brisk charm by Rachel Brosnahan) and drawing the ire of Lex Luthor (a scene-stealing Nicholas Hoult). Other superheroes exist too, with Superman caught in uneasy alliances with the ethically ambiguous “Justice Gang,” including Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced).
It’s a refreshingly unorthodox structure—like stepping into a franchise already in full swing. And it works, to an extent. The film skips the origin tropes and plunges into its rich comic book world, one filled with sentient Superman Robots, a cape-wearing superdog named Krypto, and the kind of zany world-building that might make even die-hard fans blink.
David Corenswet makes for a solid Superman—charming, principled, and just the right amount of cornball. But while the cast is strong and the visual effects are polished, the film sometimes feels like a jumble of comic book references rather than a cohesive narrative. It’s more eccentric sci-fi B-movie than grand superhero epic.
In the end, Superman is less a universal crowd-pleaser and more a film that celebrates its own comic book roots with reckless enthusiasm. It’s messy, bold, and undeniably geeky—and for some, that might be exactly the point.
