Superman review: ambitious, imperfect and charming

So here we are, with a new Superman film in the year 2025, that grapples with US involvement in foreign wars, immigration, techno-fascism and the mythos of divine purpose. No, it’s not a perfect film, and it often handles these complex themes clumsily, but at the very least I have to applaud James Gunn for being so ballsy with what is such a well-known, beloved IP – and one that is often used to represent the fascist ideal of the Übermensch.

This Superman says ‘you know this story already’ (which is true, unless you’re new to Earth, in which case: welcome! Might I suggest turning back?), and begins in media res after a big battle that culminates in an astonishing loss for the man in cape and tights. From there, it tells the tale of a disillusioned space himbo reckoning with his divine purpose – a purpose which is now at odds with his clean poster-boy image.

He’s an alien, which means in no uncertain terms that he’s an immigrant, and his recent escapades of deus-ex-machina-ing a brewing war between two countries has left a sour taste in the mouths of the American public. So, Clark Kent (David Corenswet) is about to learn what it’s like to be a government scapegoat.

Plus, there are some cool aliens, snappy sidekicks, and a flying dog! Cue the pop punk needle-drops!

Watch the Superman trailer:

Superman has always been political

Superman takes place in an alternate universe, albeit one that resembles current deeply troubling conflicts and wars, with added superhumans and extra-terrestrials.

The fictional countries involved are Boravia, a vaguely Eastern-European land, where the tyrannical President Vasil Glarkos rules from his opulent blue and gold mansion adorned with giant minarets, and Jarhanpur, a vaguely Arabic land that we only see briefly, characterised by impoverished-looking folk starring helplessly at a barbed-wire border fence.

Superman’s decision to ‘stop the war’ is spurned by Boravia’s attack on Jarhanpur, which President Glarkos insists is because Jarhanpur houses dangerous terrorists that their people need to be ‘liberated’ from. Superman tries to end the conflict by destroying Boravia’s tanks – but unbeknownst to him, tech magnate Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) is the supplier of said tanks, and the US government’s hands are firmly in his pockets. That’s about as explicit as you can get in a film designed to be a mass-appeal money maker!

After his fall from grace, Superman dusts off the boots and gets back to his day job as Clark Kent: a journalist for the Daily Planet. There, we meet his long-time paramour Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), and trusted friend and co-worker Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo). For now, Lane and Kent’s relationship is a secret, and she is privvy to his secret-identity ruse where others are not.

Together, Brosnahan and Corenswet have great chemistry, and their blossoming ‘what are we?’ romance is very sweet. The dynamic really soars, however, when Lois challenges Clark’s pie-in-the-sky idealism, pushing back on his insistence that his actions are always good because they have the right intentions.

As a journalist, it makes sense for her to ‘question everything’, and thus her characterisation here feels true and nuanced. You should listen to your girlfriend, Clark!

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Superman, the ‘Justice Gang’ and co.

David Corenswet really is a picture-perfect Supes – sweet as apple pie, cute as a button (but chiselled with out-of-this-world bone structure), and so, so dumb. Audiences will no doubt love him, but be equally frustrated by him, which is how it should be for superheroes.

His charm is very much enhanced by his Kansas foster parents, who are just salt-of-the-earth adorable, played by two unknown actors who look like they could have been plucked out from behind a stall at a regional fair.

Krypto the Super Dog, while an obvious kid-friendly addition to the lineup, is a fluffy and scruffy highlight, winning hearts as he jumps rambunctiously on a very injured Superman, destroys expensive Justice Gang tech, and flies after ‘super squirrels’. Try as you might, you simply can’t hate those big brown eyes.

As Lex Luthor, Nicholas Hoult sadly leaves a lot to be desired. Though his connection to real-life techno bros like Elon Musk (who we could start calling X Luthor) is obvious, I found myself hoping for an all-timer, over the top villain performance.

What happened to the days of going full camp and chewing the scenery like Krypto chews capes? Instead, Hoult’s Luthor is rather cold and subdued, which I fear doesn’t really earn him the right to have such cunty eyebrows.

The rest of the cast is rounded out – if not overstuffed – with two more villains, three secondary superheroes (including sci-fi fave Nathan Fillion in a heinous wig), a handful of extraterrestrial creatures, robots, and Daily Planet staff. While it’s commendably ambitious to try to cram so much world-building in one film, it does feel a little like riding a crowded train to Comic Con without adequate ventilation, i.e. it’s kinda stinky.

Super style

The art deco-inspired production design is a nice callback to the 1930s origins of the the Man of Steel, and to an art style that emerged from the industrial advancements between WWI and WWII and represented a time of change and a desire for opulence in the States. It reveals the dissonance at the core of this Superman’s journey; a struggle between realism and idealism.

James Gunn’s unmistakeable tongue-in-cheek style is always there, for better or worse (in that it could be mistaken for a Guardians of the Galaxy crossover-spinoff-whatever). The quips come thick and fast, and the anempathetic needle drops do grate a little.

The visuals are obviously built for the big screen, with the shiniest CGI that money can buy. The film is meant to be seen in IMAX, after all. While initially impressive for its sheer scale – and the welcome use of bright colours that have been absent from DC adaptations for decades – the dizzying whip-zoom camera style does get tiresome.

If more scenes were allowed time to breathe, perhaps by trimming off some of the VFX fat, it would give us time to connect more with the characters and appreciate their individual journeys. Alas, I know this wish falls on deaf ears, because the majority of the superhero film-going crowd are there purely to gawk at the latest special effects, and there’s slim chance that Hollywood will ever stop catering to that demographic.

Just how super is this guy?

Superman excels when it’s explicitly political, debating the ethics of journalism and skewering the role of the United States military in global unrest – all of which it does lightly, as you’d expect from a comic book blockbuster that’s aiming for a four-quadrant appeal (and Chinese box office money), but it’s enough to be noticeable and for that I applaud James Gunn.

Where it falls apart is in the last act, where ultimately it falls victim to that ever-present American saviour myth: yes, Superman’s involvement in a foreign war went very badly one time, but maybe if he does it again the right way he’ll be a global hero. Cue the swelling of violins and victorious trumpets!

Then again, I don’t know what I expected from a mainstream comic book film. If Superman can’t be the hero we expect him to be in the end, fanboys would riot! And as we’re finding out more and more these days, folks don’t want to let go of the belief that the right people can resolve any conflict – no matter the cost.

Superman is in cinemas from 10 July 2025.

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