Please note that this review will contain significant spoilers. Please click off if you don’t want the movie to be spoiled. The first few paragraphs will be spoiler-free.
The beginning of something special. DC Studios and James Gunn released their first film of the DCU’s Chapter One: Gods and Monsters phase, and oh boy, is it fantastic. The film was released on July 11 in theaters around the globe.
Superman was a film that was created with already a huge weight on its shoulder, as there is a certain fandom that loved the previous Superman, so having to be released with that weight on the shoulders was a huge risk.
It looks like that risk has paid off as well as the film has grossed $122,000,000 at the domestic box office and $95,000,000 at the international box office, grossing a massive $217,000,000 against a budget of $225 million.
Overview
From the moment it was announced, I believed in this movie and I had faith that it would do well, I just didn’t expect that it would do THIS well. I spoke to people who went as far as to say it would flop and it would do badly, but I had faith.
Even when the trailers came out, my excitement grew, and I loved everything I saw from the trailers, the announcements of the cast, and more. You know, after what James Gunn had created with Marvel involving the Guardians of the Galaxy, and then again with Peacemaker for DC, I had no issue with him taking on Superman.
After seeing the movie, it looks like this new DC universe is in very safe hands with James Gunn at the helm of things, as he’s already given love to obscure characters, and I can not wait to see what else he does.
Story
The story centres around the early years of Clark being Superman. We see the story begin with Lex going all out in his crusade against Superman and how he must be stopped. Lex has even gone as far as to create a war between two nations because Superman stopped it previously.
We see how the story progresses and how one bit of manipulation and not understanding Superman, the humans are easily swayed and begin to hate on him because of a message that his Kryptonian parents delivered, and actually believed that Superman would take control of the Earth.
The story also showcases just how much Lex is obsessed with taking down Superman as he’s spent years looking at the battle sights of Superman, where to find a mere hair strain so he could create the perfect weapon against him.
The story also showcases that while Clark is indeed an alien, he is more than a human, having been raised right, he’s able to love, to be scared, and more just like normal people and this was a big part of the story throughout the film as Clark just wants to be the perfect who stops that bullet that will kill someone, to stop people from dying. This is his humanity coming through; this is what makes Superman.
Characters
David Corenswet as Clark/Superman. This was such a perfect casting for multiple reasons. Firstly, he absolutely nailed the Superman look, feel, and the way he spoke. The way he portrayed each side of this character was perfect, the slight changes of how he walked, spoke, and even the hair. If he isn’t my #1 Superman, he’s 2nd.
Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. This man is a generational hater. Nicholas’ portrayal of Lex Luthor reminded me so much of the animated cartoon Lex and the later seasons of Smallville. I think it’s safe to say Lex’s crashouts within this movie were sublime.
The Justice Gang. Generally might be the perfect trio of heroes to bring into live-action. Each character stood out but out of the three, Mr Terrific stood out the most. This man aura farmed for an entire scene and the way he portrayed himself was perfect. Edi Gathegi finally has his redemption from a comic book character.
Nathan Fillion and Isabela Merced were both fantastic. Respectfully, I’m glad we got Guy instead of Hal or John as the lantern in this film. The rest of the cast, especially Rachel Brosnahan, were absolutely great to see as well.
For the full cast list, you can visit IMDB by clicking here.
Hype
I said from the moment this film was announced that it would do well and that James Gunn would craft something great, and it’s exactly what has happened. $217 million thus far in the box office as of writing this.
Favorite Moments
1. The opening scene where we see a badly beaten Superman ask Krypto for help. Seeing how active and hyper Krypto is a great portrayal of how I expected the dog to be. I also loved seeing Superman’s robots have to hold him down so the sun could crack his bones back into place to begin healing him properly.
2. Superman and the Justice Gang are taking on a Kaiju. Seeing Superman being the gentle soul that he is, wanting to take it to an intergalactic zoo or to kill it in a gentle way, while the Justice Gang just wanted it to be stopped.
3. This entire scene where Superman comes back and speaks with Lois, and she’s asking where he has been, and he responds by trying to find Krypto, while in the background of the shot, the Justice Gang is fighting a multi-dimensional imp.
4. The entire fight scene between Superman and Ultraman. Seeing this was a brutal fight and you could tell the differences, it wasn’t just the same moves, Superman truly had to think and use his head to stop Lex from controlling him, so he could end the fight.
5. Mr Terrific’s aura-farming moment at the base. Seeing how he was able to use his tech in such a fantastic way was amazing, and seeing him just able to move around freely while dismantling an entire base of villains was unbelievable.
Dislikes
I generally do not have any dislikes about this movie.
Recommend?
1000% yes. The movie is a fresh new start for the DCU, and James Gunn has delivered a perfect start.
Verdict
First of all, I’ll say James has created such a fantastic film with Superman. He’s nailed every single point about this movie, about the characters, and he has not outdone himself with jokes like he can do with Guardians. The movie is grounded and truly is a fresh beginning.
Rating: 9.9/10
Superman is available in cinemas worldwide. You can visit here for more information on Superman.
The Review
Story - 9.5
Action - 10
Quality - 10
Structure - 9.5
Characters - 10
Entertainment - 10
Antagonist - 10
Hype - 10
9.9
Amazing
First of all, I'll say James has created such a fantastic film with Superman. He's nailed every single point about this movie, about the characters, and he has not outdone himself with jokes like he can do with Guardians. The movie is grounded and truly is a fresh beginning.
