Superman (2025)
Director: James Gunn
Screenwriter: James Gunn
Cinematographer: Henry Braham
Production Companies: DC Studios, Troll Court Entertainment, The Safran Company
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: 11 July 2025
Runtime: 2 hours 9 minutes
MPA Rating: PG-13
Availability: Theaters
Synopsis
A new era for the DC cinematic universe launches with Superman. Three years into his superhero gig, Superman/Clark Kent (David Corensweet) find himself with a lot on his plate. He’s dealing with the fallout of his attempt to resolve a tense international conflict, combat the evil machinations of the villainous techno-billionaire Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), manage his superhero/workplace/personal romantic relationship with Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), and even deal with the unruly super-dog Krypto. This time, the titular hero will have to rely on more than superspeed and heat vision if he wants to save the day.
Analysis
Superman excellently delivers a fun, thrilling, and spectacular superhero adventure. The story has plenty of interesting twists and turns to keep you on your toes, offers a ton of great action and character moments to keep you engaged, and has so much happen during the movie’s runtime that by the end, you’ll feel like you ate a three-course meal. In terms of tone, Superman is mostly light, but it hardly ever comes across as silly and knows when to get serious. Characters feel like accurate representations of their comic book counterparts without coming across as over-the-top caricatures. And last but certainly not least, fights feel ripped straight out of a comic book: they’re filled with vibrant colors, fantastical CGI elements and effects that increase the spectacle of the action, and feature powerful characters delivering unique and powerful attacks at breathtaking speed. In sum, the movie has you on a rollercoaster from start to finish.
The film also does solid character work that grounds the world and makes the viewer more emotionally invested. Starting off with the character the movie is named after, this version of Superman bears the idealism and immense capacity for caring for others that the character is well-known for; however, he also has plenty of naiveté and arrogance that stem from his lack of experience. The film has Superman go through a series of trials that force him to reckon with core aspects of his identity, which in turn leads to him becoming a more mature person and hero, yet still retain his more aspirational traits. Then there’s Lois Lane. While she may not get as much screentime as Superman, I appreciated how she was her own smart, inquisitive, headstrong, and sarcastic person, as opposed to being just Superman’s love interest. Lois also plays a key role in the film, and even has her own character arc. Now, it’s no secret that what ties Superman and Lois together is their romantic relationship, and here the relationship feels genuine. This a relationship involving two people with very different personalities and skillsets, occasionally struggling but nevertheless recognizing what they appreciate about the other person and finding reasons to stay together. The movies’ other characters are also well fleshed out. As I mentioned before, characters feel authentic to their comic book roots but aren’t so over the top to be implausible; plus, their interactions with each other are both natural and entertaining. So while the story may be out of this world, at its core Superman remains a movie about people.
While Superman is undoubtedly a strong film, the problem is it feels like a strong sequel to an origin movie we never got. First, there are several key inciting incidents that take place before the events of the film that we only learn about via dialogue. As a result, we have to infer the root causes for certain developments, and even why certain characters and relationships have evolved in a particular way. James Gunn takes the habit of dismissing context so far that he doesn’t even bother showing the beginning of the fight that leads to Superman requiring healing at the Fortress of Solitude at the start of the film. I think I can see where Gunn is coming from: Superman’s origin story and relationships with characters such as Lois Lane and Lex Luthor have been told so many times that he probably didn’t feel the need to hit these beats again, choosing instead to focus on delivering a great Superman story. But at the same time, a viewer’s ability to follow a film depends on how well the director respects the relationship between cause and effect, which is why providing context for events is so important. Additionally, Gunn seems to expect that audiences will just go along with what many would consider to be deep cuts in the Superman canon (e.g., Krypto the super-dog, members of the Justice Gang) again without any context. So, in opting to present an exciting Superman story off the bat, it felt like Gunn skipped the entrée and went straight for dessert.
On a similar note, so many things happen in this film that it sometimes comes across as busy, a key consequence of which is dilution of Superman’s arc. On the first point, the film’s tempo is set to max as one major event hurriedly rushes to another, giving the audience little time to breathe and internalize what they just watched. And you almost get whiplash from the film making serious pivots in subject matter, tone, characters, and setting, in the blink of an eye. And this attempt to cram in as much movie as possible occasionally makes the film feel a bit overwhelming and reduces the importance of certain developments. One development that certainly becomes less substantive is Superman’s character arc. While I previously spoke highly of Superman’s development, nothing about what Superman does towards the latter half of the film reflects his newfound maturity; this is something we are told rather than shown by way of an impassioned speech that Superman delivers to Lex Luthor. Superman’s maturation thus doesn’t have a material impact on the film, meaning that the film would’ve ended in the exact same way even if he hadn’t matured. But admittedly, I’m being nitpicky here: at the end of the day Gunn knew the type of movie he wanted to deliver, and he delivers it well.
Conclusion
In sum, Superman is a an incredibly enjoyable cinematic joyride. It excels at delivering a Superman story jam-packed with epic fights, awesome characters, and great emotional beats – minor narrative structure flaws notwithstanding. I certainly enjoyed watching the film – in fact just writing this review has made me want to see it again – and I look forward to seeing what the future of DC with James Gunn at the helm will bring.