Superman is back on the big screen—again.
But before you roll your eyes at yet another reboot of the Man of Steel, it’s worth pointing out that this version is a bit different.
James Gunn, the irreverent genius behind Guardians of the Galaxy, is now steering the DC ship, and with Superman (12A, 129 mins), he’s clearly trying to bring some much-needed fun back into the franchise.
Gone is the brooding, heavy-hearted Superman of the Zack Snyder era. In his place is something… lighter.
Not exactly soaring, but certainly not crash-landing either.
A Silly but Sweet Start
The movie kicks off in a way that signals change right away.
Instead of the usual Smallville backstory and baby-Kal-El-in-a-crater routine, we meet our hero—played by David Corenswet—already bruised and battered in the Arctic.
Moments later, a super-powered dog named Krypto flies in, followed by some quirky robot assistants.
And then? Superman says “Golly!” Yes, really.
It’s goofy, it’s unexpected—and honestly, it’s kind of refreshing.
No Origin Story This Time, Thank You
One thing Gunn wisely ditches is the overused origin tale.
We skip all the growing-up-on-a-farm flashbacks and jump straight into Superman’s adult life, where he’s already dating a savvy Lois Lane (played charmingly by Mrs. Maisel star Rachel Brosnahan).
She’s in on the whole “Clark Kent is Superman” thing from the start, which saves us a lot of the usual secrecy drama.
Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (a slick, villainous Nicholas Hoult) is already deep into some high-stakes chaos, with plans that stretch across dimensions and into shadowy geopolitical conflicts.
It’s all quite a lot—but at least it moves fast.
Super-Paced and Super-Crowded
Speed is both this movie’s strength and its weakness.
The plot zips along at a breakneck pace, barely giving you time to absorb one wild idea before the next one hits.
One moment it’s Krypto flying through the sky, and the next Superman is in a battle with a slobbering, 100-foot monster.
Alongside him is a new team of superheroes—Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion, having a blast), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), who, believe it or not, steals the show during one of the film’s best action sequences.
But with all this going on, our main man in the cape starts to feel like just one hero among many.
There are so many punchlines, characters, and cutaways that we barely get to know this Superman—or Clark Kent, for that matter.
Not Enough Heart Behind the Heat Vision
That’s the catch. While Gunn’s version delivers big on humor and spectacle, it lacks the emotional weight that made earlier versions of the character iconic.
There are attempts at depth—like the line, “You are the choices you make…”—but these moments get lost amid the chaos.
Even supporting characters like Perry White (Wendell Pierce) are blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameos.
And the film’s finale? More collapsing skyscrapers in Metropolis. Haven’t we seen that before?
Verdict: Somewhere Between Man of Steel and Meh
This isn’t a bad Superman movie, not by any stretch.
It’s clever in parts, and it’s trying something new.
But it also doesn’t stick the landing as solidly as it could.
Instead of a bold new beginning, we get a film that’s just fine—part fun, part forgettable.
So where does this Superman land? Not quite a hero, not quite a zero. Let’s just call him… Okayman.