The Official Black Owl Review of "Superman" (2025).

 

The last time I published a blog or wrote a movie review was six years ago. It was months before a pandemic, and was at the end of the first spate of Marvel films; “Avengers: Endgame.” That the subsequent six years have been a roller coaster, mostly at the plummet points, would be an understatement, but something has finally got me back at the keyboard to gush about a movie.

And that something is “Superman.”

I have written entire tomes about the first superhero, and I’ve spent a lot of my life—including situations where that life was in danger—wearing or waving the “S” like a priest with a cross. That symbol and all it represents has been a totem, a charm, a talisman to remind me what an ideal of truth and justice can look like, and though I would not SAY I am superstitious enough to believe that the presence of the symbol, or my faith in what the character represents has actually protected me from harm, I AM superstitious enough to believe that the presence of the symbol, or my faith in what the character represents has actually protected me from harm. 

So, in an age when it feels like Truth and Justice are losing to the cynical, the petty, and the heartless, I was perhaps looking for a reminder, and a reminder to everyone out there, what that character should or could mean. What inspiration should or could look like. 

The last decade or so there have been a few attempts at presenting this character mainstream; some more successful than others. Some closer to what the ideal means to me than others. But this is not a world that lets the potential for repackaging go by, and we can only hope that the person responsible for re-presenting the heroes and legends of our past can do those characters and stories justice. It can be an inherently good thing; every generation should have the chance to discover anew the best of the past. But when those efforts fall short, it makes me sad. I want my descendants in generations to come to experience the type of joy I did when I was six or seven and first saw Christopher Reeve put on a red cape and catch a helicopter. The recycling of ideas is inevitable; the recyclers’ understanding of the characters they portray may not be. 

So with that all out of the way, here is my review of James Gunn’s 2025 “Superman,” starring David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult. I’ll give you a spoiler free version up front, and then warn you before I get in-depth.

Thinking of “Avengers: Endgame” and the MCU, they successfully came along to say, "What if the aspirational, earnest, fantastical characters of old comic books just were real people in our world?" It's worked really well for them. We commiserate with Tony Stark’s fear, and cheer when he overcomes that to build the Iron Man suit and begin to protect others. We see literal alien gods attack, but Black Widow and Hawkeye are still out there with the weapons they have to do their best to be heroes. It’s a grounded world, never straying too far from our own even when the most fantastic or horrific of things happen. 

Then, the DCEU starting with "Man of Steel" says "Let's examine how the real world would deconstruct the aspirational, earnest, fantastical characters of old comic books." Superman can't logically exist without causing the types of epic fights that would bring huge body counts. Wonder Woman becomes so jaded at "man's world" that she basically goes into hiding when she can't return to Themyscira. Batman's "no killing" policy falls by the wayside after more than a decade of fighting crime and the death of his sidekick. Zack Snyder himself said that it’s unrealistic to think that Batman wouldn’t start killing people...in a film that is literally about a billionaire genius resurrecting a dead alien to fight another alien and a Greek Goddess formed from clay. That works for some, mixed bag with me.

James Gunn just came along and said, "What if a movie just had the aspirational, earnest, fantastical characters of old comic books as they were?" He brought everything I love about print comic books to life, embracing what makes our American mythology great, and I'm not sure I could be happier. His Superman isn’t quite as confident as Christopher Reeve’s version, but the desire to take what is literally the greatest physical strength a character can have, and focus that into protecting people and things that can’t protect themselves is there in spades. The refusal to give up when the odds are against him, the honest belief that truth and justice ARE ideals worth living by; this in plain language IS Superman. The film embraces not only the deepest meaning of the character but also the amplified, aggrandized world of the comic book. This is a world where giant monsters and extra-dimensional invaders can show up in the skies over Metropolis, and people all but expect it. Because the biggest enemy? It’s the pride, envy, avarice, and wrath of Lex Luthor. 

So, non-spoiler summary: You’re looking for a completely modern, yet utterly traditional version of Superman that will make kids today tie a towel around their neck and run through the house, while giving their parents a good reminder of how good people act, and what we should all aspire to? Here it is. Is it a little goofy at times? Oh yes; but that is a feature, not a bug. These days incredible special effects are a given; a movie having the heart, moxie, and joy worthy of Superman can be harder to find. Yet, here it is. 

Spoilers from here on out!

What Works: 

Almost everything. From the earnestness of David Corenswet’s Superman, to the way the character feels frustration that stopping a war and saving children’s lives can somehow cause political controversy is just dead on. I know there have been choruses of “This movie made a woke Superman,” but the simple fact is the character laid out by two Jewish teenagers who were themselves the children of immigrants was meant to bring justice to those who could not do it for themselves has ALWAYS been this. In 1938 he stopped men from beating their wives and children (first issue even). In 1939 he went after a mining boss putting his workers in danger to get more money. In 1943 he punched Hitler. In 1947 he smashed the Klan. Now, he stops a shady US ally from invading a country and killing children. He deals with prejudice against immigrants. This isn’t new...if there happen to be real-world events that echo that, maybe we should be wondering which side of that we’re on. Be the person Superman would want you to be.

As soon as I heard Rachel Brosnahan had been cast as Lois Lane, I knew we were going to have a winner there. She has all the bravada the character has had since 1938 (remember, Lois too was in Action Comics #1), and is also a top notch journalist. We don’t know she’s a great journalist because she tells Perry she has a Pulitzer; we know it because we SEE her doing the work, asking ANYONE (including Superman) the tough questions, and calling on sources to get to the bottom of stories. We also have her dive in headlong to back up Mr. Terrific (a highlight of the film, that character) to save Superman when he has put himself in the hands of the enemy. Is this the best Lois we’ve seen on screen? Arguably, yes. (I will always have a soft spot for Erica Durance however.)

And Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. Imagine if you took a genius intellect, and it lived in a person with Donald Trump’s fragile ego, Elon Musk’s utter cringiness, and Peter Thiel's unshakable conviction that he must be right. It’s a toss up whether they used that inspiration to make a despicable character, or if they made a despicable character and that happens to have those attributes, but that’s this Lex Luthor. How DARE this immigrant come from another place and get the adoration of people who should be bowing to Lex? Lex is ENTITLED to be the most famous man in the world, so why should people love Superman? This leads him to not only want to kill Superman, but he has to BEST him. He has to humiliate him, destroy not just the man but tarnish the image because his very existence is an affront to Lex. It’s motivation taken very directly from some of the best versions of comic book Luthor we’ve seen (and again, maybe real life). “All-Star Superman,” Azzarello's “Lex Luthor: Man of Steel,” “Superman For All Seasons;” that Lex is who we see here, and Hoult absolutely brings it.

The rest of the supporting cast is also wonderful, particularly Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific. For years I’ve wanted to see Nathan Fillion play the Hal Jordan Green Lantern; now I will only EVER see him as Guy Gardner. The whole Daily Planet crew is there, exactly as they should be, and initially, I was a little let down they didn’t get to do more, but they are exactly the atmosphere that makes the scenes they do appear in undeniably the Daily Planet. I am excited to find out more about Isabella Merced’s Hawkgirl. Is she the reincarnated Egyptian Shiera Hall? The Thanagarian Shayera Hol? The RE-reincarnated Kendra Saunders? I have no doubt James Gunn knows and is waiting to spring a doozy on us. 

(There are a lot of characters I haven’t mentioned here, but Jimmy Olsen, The Engineer, Metamorpho, Gary, our brief look ahead at Supergirl...all just dead on.)

And let’s talk about Krypto. The Silver Age staple of Superman comics comes to the screen, and he’s a menace. Anyone who has ever adopted a rescue, and knows how you can love a dog that just actively gives into their trauma at all times can feel exactly what it is to have Krypto. Indeed, my second favorite scene in the whole film is when Superman, in order to find Krypto who has been taken by Lex, is going to turn himself over to the Government in hopes of them taking him where Krypto is. Lois says, “He’s just a dog.” And Superman replies, “Yeah, and not even a very good one. But he’s alone and he’s probably scared.” A perfect look at just who Superman is in this movie.

What Doesn’t Work: Very little. I initially had a little trouble with how hard they lean into the Kents being very stereotypical hick farmers, but the scene with Jonathan and Clark on the porch discussing who Clark chooses to be (which also I think completes the circle with the character of “The Iron Giant” using Superman to come to the same conclusion that HE chooses what he is, not whatever his background is) is pure gold. And, I’m still wrestling with the idea that Jor-El sent Kal-El to Earth as a conqueror. It’s been done in a few comics, usually in “Elseworlds” style stories, but it’s not my preference. Not a deal-breaker, but not what I would have done. It does let us get a good look at the end of Clark reminiscing over the Kents, and them showing how to take joy in simple things. Perhaps by contrast they make this version of the Kents better. 

My last gripe, I wish we’d gotten more of Superman being Clark Kent. When we see him out of costume for the majority of this film, he’s with Lois or his parents who know. There’s really only one scene where we get to see Clark having to play the persona that separates him from Superman, and I like it, but would like to have seen more. One of my favorite scenes in the original Donner film is when Superman has just flown Lois around Metropolis, and Clark then shows up as her date, and considers revealing himself. Christopher Reeve pulls off this change in physicality and demeanor that absolutely shows why no one recognizes him outside the cape. I think Corenswet is capable of that, but we only get a hint of it in Lois’ apartment when he sits up to respond to her calling him Superman with a bold, “Ms. Lane.” Good, very good; but I wanted more.

So, I leave you with my favorite lines in this film, delivered with an earnest truthfulness and integrity that only Superman can be capable of, and encapsulating the character entirely. Confronting Lex whose nefarious plans to disassemble the persona of Superman before killing him has led to great destruction, Superman responds to Lex’s contemptuous dismissal of Superman as a “piece of shit alien,” with this:

“I’m as human as anyone. I love, I get scared. I wake up every morning and despite not knowing what to do, I put one foot in front of the other and I try to make the best choices I can. I screw up all the time, but that is being human and that’s my greatest strength. And some day, I hope you realize it’s your greatest strength too.”

That understanding of humanity; that hope that even this enemy will one day come around to understand how—as the great “All-Star Superman” says—“We’re all in this together, and we’re all we’ve got.” THAT is Superman. That is a character who will endanger himself to help a dog he doesn’t even like that much, or pull a cat out of a tree, or save a squirrel from a kaiju, or...stop a war he has no political right to be in because people were going to die. A character that shows us strength lies not in what a yellow sun can do to an infant from Krypton, but in our own convictions and desire to help everyone, to believe in Truth and Justice. That is what Superman shows us, and makes us want to aspire to be. This movie understands that and gives it to us for two hours in which I don’t think the smile ever left my face. 

This is a movie that makes you want to look up.

(All images are property of Warner’s Pictures, and no infringement is intended.)