It’s a bird, it’s a plane… No, its Warner Bros. finally getting SUPERMAN right
By Manisha Ail (Twitter | Instagram)
When the end credits for Superman (2025) started rolling, I was basking in a euphorically happy daze, barely engaging in my sister’s and my Hollywood movie-watching tradition of calling out Indian names from the credit scroll.
The last time a character-driven, comic-book movie had given me such a high was Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins (2005). Nolan’s reboot was a love-letter to an iconic character that resonated with audiences worldwide. When I walked out of the theatre in 2005, my heart was full, because finally, someone who loved Batman like I did, had told his story. James Gunn made me feel exactly like that with his Superman today!
That said, Superman (2025) is far from perfect. It has HUGE plot holes you could drive a truck through, especially if you grew up as a fan of the DC verse. But after the disgraceful way this character had been handled lately, now that they FINALLY got the heart and soul of the movie right, the imperfect window-dressing barely bothered me.
At the risk of pissing off all Snyder fans out there, the DCEU Superman sucked! Man of Steel (2013) was conversely horrifying and boring to watch at the same time, notwithstanding its commercial success. The eventual failure of the DCEU verse is a testament to that. If the only thing that differentiates Batman and Superman in your universe is the colour of their costumes (and not by much), you have already shot yourself in the foot.
There was no tedious back-story to wade through for the world’s most famous illegal alien (remember Snyder’s dong-shaped Kryptonian ships, ugh). Gunn puts us right into the thick of it as the movie starts off with an active-in-field Superman taking heat for stopping a war between two unfortunately named, fictitious countries.
I later read that this storyline had ginned up a lot of controversy, but comic books have always held up a fun-mirror to the real world (case in point: U.S. President Lex Luthor). Right from the get-go with a bloodied and battered Superman being rescued by an unruly Krypto, Gunn had me rooting for his hero.
Focusing on Superman’s learned humanity rather than his biological alien origin made me emotionally invested. In comparison, by the end of Man of Steel (2013), I honestly did not care if Zod defeated Superman or vice versa (I wanted a meteor to smash them both).
The movie has a primary-coloured palette, fights are pictured against clear skies, capes and tights look red and blue, and Metropolis does not look like Gotham. David Corenswet plays a characteristically dorky Superman, with his deep dimple, sexy baritone, and granny panties. He captures Clark’s/Superman’s sincere naivete in a verbal joust with Rachel Brosnahan’s (The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel) Lois Lane, who has a lot more to do rather than being a rescue object for the man of steel.
For all the reviews I had read about the story being too character-dense, not a single supporting cast is superfluous. A special shout-out to Edi Gathegi’s Mr. Terrific, who plays a beleaguered genius surrounded by dummies, to Sherlockian perfection. Wendell Pierce’s Perry White has two lines in the movie, and that is all Gunn needed to establish his character and get me invested in his success. That is storytelling at its finest!
Unlike Marvel however, DC cannot get away with lacklustre villains. Comic book Lex Luthor is my favourite adversary. A plain human powered by righteous anger, he is the Batman of DC villains! Unfortunately, Lex has only had cringe-worthy outings in live-action movies. Nicholas Hoult’s Lex is not my favourite (Michael Rosenbaum in Smallville still has that honour), but his portrayal does redeem this character significantly.
While he gets the dethroned, jealous prince of Metropolis part right, Hoult is simply not menacing enough to be Lex. He is still better than ninety-nine percent of Marvel villains and hundred percent of live-action movie Lex Luthors though.
It is a shame that Superman (2025) missed to garner audiences in India thanks to people losing faith in the DC verse and Marvel superhero fatigue. This was a fun family movie that would have had audiences cheering. My sister who has never read a comic book and never liked Superman, said she would not mind a rewatch, and it is a good product that can convert an agnostic. It took DC twenty years and James Gunn to get it right. Way to stick the new take-off!
Rating: 4 on 5 stars. Superman is currently flying in theaters.
Review by Manisha AilA doctor by profession and a writer by choice. Manisha was published as one of the winners of Write India season 1 and holds a secret love for poetry too. She can be reached at missilemyra@gmail.com
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