Review: Superman

Image courtesy of Warner Bros.

 

I’ll admit, it took me a little while to warm to James Gunn’s “Superman.” I have no problem with comic book movies taking a more lightweight route – not every film has to be overly dripping with gravitas like Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy – and the director’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” films are a case in point on how to mostly do that well.

But in the first few minutes of this new “Superman,” I thought the film was going to end up in  “Superman 3” or “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” territory, but it eventually settles into its groove somewhere around the halfway mark.

It’s around this time that Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi) becomes a central figure in the story. Dressed in an outfit that resembles one of the Warriors (“come out and play-ay-ay”), Terrific joins Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) on a rescue mission and really gets to strut his stuff. From there on, the film became more engaging and engaged – and by that, I mean with the current moment.

It’s been hilarious to watch certain sectors of the U.S. population go into tailspins over this new film featuring America’s most iconic superhero, whom they have now deemed “woke.” At the same time, it’s surprising just how much the film comments on – or is prescient enough to foresee – our current, perilous moment.

At various points in the picture, the term “alien” is hurled at the caped crusader (played by David Corenswet), which we can take to mean “immigrant.” Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) is a tech mogul who wants to create his own corporate technocracy and has captured those he opposes and thrown them into underground gulags in other dimensions.

Meanwhile, Luthor has partnered with a former Soviet bloc-style dictator who has illegally invaded a neighboring country. All the while, a gullible public is easily fooled when the media takes Luthor at his word and allows him to deem Superman a “threat.” I mean, ahem!

And the good thing about all of these elements is that they’re handled in an intriguing and believable manner. These themes are present throughout, but not in a clunky or heavy-handed way.

I’m of the mind that it’s not necessary to reboot comic book heroes every few years when a new actor comes on board – but that’s where we are in current film culture. We’re in the middle of a new Batman series. There’s yet another attempt at “Fantastic Four” later this summer. And so, of course, there’s a new Superman series in which we basically start from scratch.

The good thing about this one is that it’s not an origin story, but instead throws us right into a new story involving these familiar characters. It takes a while for the film to get its groove, but around the halfway mark it finds it and never lets up. This isn’t the greatest “Superman” movie (that remains the 1978 version) and it’s nowhere near the bottom of the barrel (the aforementioned ‘80’s sequels and the “Dawn of Justice” debacle). All in all, it’s a reasonably enjoyable summer movie.