It is quite a bold swing to do what James Gunn has done here. Restarting an entire cinematic universe and doubling down on its obscurities and eccentricities. Beginning said universe with the brand’s most iconic hero but pulling him out of his traditional comfort zone. Aiming for an old-school return to form of the character but also laying him thick into a jarringly comedic and hyper-kinetic story structure. A lot has been said both worrisome and promising about Gunn’s vision of Superman and the DC Universe as a whole, and what he’s delivered here is a wild mixed bag that still feels untested.

Perhaps time will tell how evenly shaped or disastrously incoherent this franchise under Gunn’s eye will be, but judging based on Superman alone, it may take some adjusting. Those that long for the Donner version will get it in shades, mostly in the spot-on casting of both Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman (David Corenswet) and Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and their chemistry, but whereas that film flourished through novelty, simplicity, and cinematic wonder, Gunn’s version is launched into chaos, tackling monstrous carnage on a daily basis, literally never given a chance to breathe, nor letting the audience either. 

The general synopsis is pretty bare-bones: Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) uses his team at LexCorp to throw Superman through constant physical challenges while also twisting public perception of him, harnessing everything at his disposal to get the world to turn against him and other beings like him. Lex is man of science and money, believing that superhumans are an abominations undeserving of respect given that the gifts that makes them special are given to them unearned. But within that premise, there is a conflict of war between two fictional Middle Eastern countries, a battle of personalities with the intrusion of the Justice Gang (yes, Gang) led by Green Lantern, Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), a misleading piece of history involving Kal-El’s parents, Lois heading  an investigation with Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) under The Daily Planet, and a host of supervillains all working with Lex to take Superman down. All the while filled with cameos and world-building references to the larger super-world Gunn is creating from the ground up.

Superman is an impossibly busy film, rarely pausing to give us an idea of who Clark Kent is, seemingly only interested in Superman. The film begins in the middle of the action, with Superman beaten and bruised, landing outside his home in the snowy Arctic and being dragged inside by his lovable but hectic canine pal Krypto, an element that successfully separates itself from prior cinematic iterations, especially for dog lovers. From there, the film never lets up, and Gunn films it all with spectacle, though also with an occasionally garish moving camera style that feels more improvised in its experimentalism than controlled and confident. His humor, as it is with the Guardians of the Galaxy series and The Suicide Squad, is a signature touch that often lands within individual scenes, but begins to exhaust by the halfway point. Gunn assumes you know everything about these characters and their relation to one another before the film even begins, which is true in some sense, but these versions are still new to us and these talented actors could use a bit more growth and exploration.

Corenswet is magnetic, signaling spiritually the hunky charisma of 1990’s Brendan Fraser. It’s refreshing to finally have a Superman with a personality after a decade of Henry Cavill’s blank stoicism. Brosnahan was a no-brainer casting choice for Lois and perfectly captures her spunk and whip-smart attitude. Hoult is menacing as the classic villain Lex Luthor, really understanding his sense of tortured genius ego, although it does seem to be a role he’ll grow into more as time goes on. He still lacks the gravitas star-power of Gene Hackman or even Kevin Spacey to really make that role pop. If traditionalism is more your speed, Superman: The Movie (1978) still exists as the definitive depiction of the superhero. Gunn seems to want to push the character forward into the new generation at a lightning speed, though it’s manic energy often resembles ADHD throwing everything at the wall at one time. A lot of hits the wall thankfully sticks even though he comes dangerously close to knocking the wall down.