Monday Movie Mania - Superman (2025)

I'll be blunt--this isn't going to my typical review. Usually, I try to highlight the thing I like/dislike in a flick without giving too much away. But since a lot of incel trolls are trying to paint this movie with a political brush, well, I'll be honest. When kindness is considered a political flaw or liability in the United States, then frankly, we've seriously lost our way as a country.


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SPOILERS!


A LOT OF SPOILERS!!


GO READ THE FUCKING COMIC BOOKS BEFORE YOU BITCH IN THE REPLIES!!!


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Okay, now that I got my irritation out of my system...

PROS
1) David Corenswet was absolutely adorable as both Clark Kent/Superman. It was lovely to see him played as a person instead of a god. Deep down, he's a sweet Kansas farm boy who still says "Yes, sir", "Thank you, ma'am", and "Please". He just happens to have some cool powers. I say this because he reminds me of someone I knew as a kid. Except Tommy and I both grew up on farms in Ohio. And this Clark resembles my son who is currently 25, the same age as Clark in the movie. The young adult who's finally realizing the world isn't perfect, you can't make it perfect, and you just need to do the best you can. But there's a reason Superman is still referred to as the Big Blue Boy Scout, and Corenswet sticks that landing without any schlock or wink-wink at the camera.

2) Rachel Brosnahan was awesome as Lois Lane! Feisty without a chip on her shoulder as in some other portrayals of Lois. James Gunn had the balls to show her and Clark in a real relationship with all the attraction and insecurities that come with it. She and Clark actually have an argument on screen!

3) I can't say enough about Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. I've followed this young man's career for the last 14 years, and he just gets better and better. There's been a lot of really good actors who have been the Man of Steel's greatest enemy, but Hoult's the first Luthor that actually felt dangerous on screen.

4) Krypto. As a dog parent, I recognize Clark's frustrations and love when it comes to your beloved pets. But with the furbaby having superpowers, those emotions are ratcheted up. However, when Clark tells Krypto to "Get the toy", all of us dog people know exactly what was going to happen, and it did, and it was fucking brilliant!

5) Gunn brought back Eve Tesmacher and Otis from Superman (1978) in a delight nod to the Richard Donner film.

6) Wendell Pierce as Perry White and Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen were pitch perfect! They even address the stupid glasses controversy at the end of the film, admitting in a humorous exchange they knew Clark and Superman are the same person.

7) Thank you, thank you, thank you to John Murphy for reworking John Williams' main theme from Superman (1978)! It is the fucking definitive music for the character.

8) Even better, Gunn's story didn't kill Jonathan Kent! Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell were incredibly Midwestern average and sweet as Jonathan and Martha Kent, which is why Clark is incredibly Midwestern average and sweet. This is not a putdown, because the Kents aren't any different from our neighbors in Ohio. Just folks working hard, raising their children, and paying their bills. Though watching Krypto trying to get the cows to play with him was so fucking cute!

9) This wasn't yet another introductory exposition which been done to death. I mean, how many times to we have to watch Pa Kent, Uncle Ben, and Mom and Dad Wayne die? This was a new story that acknowledges other metahumans exist right up front. We had appearances from Peacemaker, Metamorpho, Hawkgirl, Mister Terrific, and Supergirl.


CONS
1) My one and only gripe was having Guy Gardner's Green Lantern in this film. I've hated this character since his JLI days (which was when I was introduced to him), I still hate him, and out of all the Lanterns, he's the last one I'd ever put in a movie. Seriously, I would have preferred fucking Kyle Raynor over Gardner the Asshat! On the other hand, it's not Batman/Bruce Wayne who is Clark's shadow. Guy Gardner is what Clark could have become if Jonathan and Martha were shitty parents and didn't give him a solid moral foundation.


Folks, go see Superman (2025)! Take the young people in your life to see it. In a world where Kindness is Woke, and Woke is a political slur, it's refreshing to see a movie centered on Kindness. Superman saves the world, his cousin's dog, and a squirrel in a glorious act of kindness! And I think Mister Rogers would have approved. I give Superman (2025) a MILLION stars out of 10 because it's the type of superhero movie--no, it's the type of story the world needs in an age of fascism.