Good afternoon, everypony, and welcome to another edition of Batbrony Reviews! Been far too long since I last posted a review entry, so I figured it was time to change that, and what better way to change it than with a Batm- I mean, uh, Superman movie!

 

 

Oh hellllllllllll naw, we're not doing THAT again, shoo, shoo, go away! 

 

(Before any Snyder fans attack me, for real, I still actually enjoy the director's cut of BvS, warts and all)

 

 

There we go, baby, that's the good stuff right there!!! 

 

Yes, James Gunn's official first entry kicking off the DCU (which technically has some other entries already given that things like 'The Suicide Squad,' 'Peacemaker,' 'Creature Commandos,' allegedly Matt Reeves's 'Batman' film and 'The Penguin' show, etc.) has just released and seems to be off to a very strong start so far. I've just seen it this afternoon myself, and want to post my first impressions below. Full disclosure, I will try to keep as much of my review spoiler-free as I can, but if you're planning on seeing it in the near future, you can skip to my concluding thoughts.

 

The Story

 

I'm going to keep this section very brief because, honestly, there's a lot of working elements here. In fact, this is actually one of the busiest comic book films I've watched in some time, but for me personally, I didn't think that hurt the film. The best description I've seen that doesn't give anything away is that the film covers the hardest week of Superman's still-early career as a superhero (this film establishes right at the beginning that Superman has been active for about 3 years at this point, and honestly, given that he has probably one of the most well known origin stories of any superhero out there, I loved that Gunn decided we didn't need to see that again when there are probably more iconic depictions of Kal-el being sent off of Krypton at this point in comic books, film, and television). And if you know anything about Superman, you know that even a single week could be chock-full of several threats to the world/galaxy/universe. To be more precise, I would say it also depicts his first truly major confrontation with Lex Luthor in this particular universe as his archnemesis. But I won't get more specific than that since, like I said, there's a lot there and I don't want to spoil it for those planning on seeing it.

 

Now what worked best about this for me was the pacing, and that might sound like a weird thing to highlight, but again, this is where I will turn to reviews that others have written already. Many are saying online that it is paced like a comic book or a 3-4 episode arc of a DC animated show, and honestly, I don't disagree. I think that's a perfect description of 'Superman's' pacing, and for some people that may be a bit quick or frenetic at times, but for me, it felt like everything hit just the right tone. Nothing overstayed its welcome, but you still got slower and quieter moments right when you needed them. To me, it never felt like the movie rushed through anything, but on the flip side it also never felt like it got bogged down too long in any particular setting, tone, or sequence. Again, I don't believe the pacing will work for every single person, and it's possible that when it's released digitally/on Blu-Ray, there will be a director's cut that's maybe 10-15 minutes longer than the just over two hours long film. But for me personally, the story was riveting and felt like it was straight from the pages of Silver Age Superman, the pacing was phenomenal, and, as is to be expected with pretty much anything James Gunn directs, it was amazingly well-directed. Great stuff, and honestly I think for many people it's going to be the kind of movie they may end up going to a second time at least, it's very easy to enjoy and get sucked into this DC universe.

 

The Characters

 

Once again, James Gunn has put together a great cast of characters, and this time in the form of some of the most widely known characters in all of Comic Books. This is where his ability as a director really shines best, because Gunn is just one of those directors who is, almost always, without fail, able to get the best work out of the actors he's cast (whom in turn usually come off as perfect for the roles they were cast in). I'm not going to exhaustively cover every single character, but I will include some highlights:

 

Superman (David Corenswet) - Corenswet delivers a phenomal performance as the Man of Tomorrow, and really feels like the first film Superman since Christopher Reeve with the potential to be considered an iconic depiction of the character by the time he hangs up the cape (no offense intended towarded Brandon Routh, Henry Cavill, or the bevvy of Supermans we've had on television through the years... except for maybe Dean Cain, that guy acts like a tool these days). This is a Superman who tries to find good in everything, and simply loves life itself and all the beautiful things in it. He's not flawless, and that's great; one of the reasons so many people insist that it's too hard to do Superman in film is that they simply assume he's the 'Big, Blue Boyscout' and thus, boring. But that's like saying Jesus is a boring figure in the Bible because he was literally supposed to be a 'man without sin' and guys, if you've ever read Scripture, you know that's hardly the case. Superman is most difficult to write when people forget that he is a PERSON first and foremost; if you simply nail that element down, realize that this is not an infallible person, but simply a remarkable person not because of his superpowers, but rather his capacity to love others and life as a whole, you've got the ingredients for one of the greatest and probably still the most important superhero in the history of modern, comic book superheroes. Gunn understands this to a T, which is why I will always be happy to his depiction of Supes as long as he decides to work with the character. Honestly, I can't wait to see Corenswet's next turn in the role, it was that good and one of the best I've ever had the pleasure of seeing.

 

 

There's just something right about Superman high-fiving a bunch of kids

 

Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) - Brosnahan was quite exceptional as intrepid reporter Lois Lane. If anything really stood out, I'd say it was the fact that Lois, more than any other character in the film, is readily willing to go toe-to-toe with Supes in terms of questioning whether or not he really has everything figured out, but even so, she never abandons him or loses faith in him. It's that right balance you want from Lois, where she can be hard-edged and prickly, but still at her core a good person who just really loves Superman and doing the right thing. I don't know yet if Brosnahan will ever be considered an iconic figure in this role - especially compared to, say, Margot Kidder - but all in all, I loved her take on the character as well as how involved she was in trying to help Superman save the day (we are DEFINITELY a long, long ways away from 'damsel-in-distress 24/7 Lois Lane' that's for sure). I saw one person remark that she just breathed the role, and I would agree, she just seemed like a very natural fit at playing this character.

 

 

Not even gonna beat around the bush, Supes and Lois have some GREAT romantic chemistry throughout this film. Bruce and Selina, take notes. 

 

Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) - while people will probably spend most of Corenswet's time as Superman debating whether they like him or Christopher Reeve more, I personally don't think there can be any debate that Nicholas Hoult is THE best Lex Luthor we've ever seen on film (yes, even better than Gene Hackman's phenomenal turn as the character). As many on the Internet are jokingly saying, this guy is the ULTIMATE hater, specifically of Superman. But holy shit, does it ever work. When his A game is on, you totally get why so many people would collaborate with Lex to help him advance his schemes (besides the paycheck of course), he can definitely turn on the charm factor when he needs to even though he is still convinced that everyone else in the room is an idiot next to him. But his seething hatred of Superman and everything Superman is about, his entitlement, his pettiness, his need to control anything he's set his eye on and get even with anyone he feels has crossed him... it's ALL there. Really, at this point, the only Lex to me that compares to this take on the character (and might still be better than it, but only because he got to perform the role for so long) is Clancy Brown's impeccable take on the character in the 90s and early 00s DC Animated Universe. An incredible supervillain performance, right up there with the likes of Heath Ledger's turn as the Joker, and I can't wait till we get to see Hoult's Luthor next square off against Corenswet's Superman.

 

 

Behold, Lex Luthor, SUPREME hater extraordinaire!

 

Krypto the Superdog - Krypto is an unhinged, flying ball of fur, saliva, and chaos and I am here for it. Definitely a welcome addition to superhero films and I am so happy noted animal-lover Gunn had the balls to use a flying dog with super strength as much as he did here, it's just pure, comic book goofiness and I love it.

 

 

The last thing you see before all your ribs get broken by this adorable ball of fur and chaos!

 

Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) - I knew Jimmy Olsen was going to be in the film, but honestly it was a real breath of fresh air how much he was in this movie. In fact, I'm not sure if I've ever seen any live action Superman film do as much with Jimmy Olsen as this film does, he sometimes gets lost by the wayside sadly, which is a shame since he's got a pretty insane and zany character history. I won't spoil how Gunn uses him, but it's pretty amusing the subplot he's given him and I look forward to seeing how else this version of Jimmy may feature in future DCU projects.

 

 

Jimmy Olsen: The reluctant rizz god of Metropolis and the DCU

 

Ma and Pa Kent (Neva Howell and Pruitt Taylor Vince) - I've seen some people online saying they think Ma and Pa Kent are a little too "hokey" or "country" for their tastes, but I really dug their portrayal here. Similar to how the death of Batman's parents can be overdone to death sometimes in its ENDLESS depictions, the Kents can sometimes get held up and put on too high of a pedestal, at which point they just come off as unrealistically saintly. Probably the worst instance of this I've seen would still be the ridiculously unnecessary death of Pa Kent in Man of Steel. Gunn, however, has done an excellent job depicting them simply as good people who, first and foremost, didn't want to get anything out of raising Clark Kent as their own, but just wanted to be good parents to him and help him become a good person in turn living a good life for himself. They felt like the Ma and Pa Kent I grew up watching on Superman: The Animated Series, and believe me, that is HIGH praise. If anything, my only complaint about them is that they weren't in the film more, I could have easily done with one or two more scenes featuring them, and you can tell it meant a lot to James Gunn trying to nail his depiction of those two, especially given how much he's talked about Superman as formative for him and how important we know family is for him, not just based on this film but past ones he's made as well. I also just really liked that they weren't played by A-list celebrities, I just don't think that's necessary for Ma and Pa Kent when they are supposed to be salt-of-the-earth farmers from Kansas. Here's hoping we get to see more of them in future installments.

 

 

Honestly these two were adorable, definitely one of the best film depictions of Ma and Pa Kent we've ever gotten

 

The Justice Gang, i.e., Mr. Terrific, Green Lantern (Guy Gardner), Hawkgirl (as played by Edi Gathegi, Nathan Fillion, and Isabela Merced) - These guys were great. Again, don't want to spoil HOW they are used or feature in the film, but when the first trailers for this movie started dropping, I think a lot of people were very concerned that the presence of major metahumans like Mr. Terrific, one of Earth's Green Lanterns, and Hawkgirl in a SUPERMAN film was going to overstuff the movie and disrupt the primary narrative. I have seen some reviewers who feel that way to an extent, but for me personally, the presence of the Justice Gang was very welcome and it felt like almost all of them were used JUST enough. They certainly didn't change this from, first and foremost, being a Superman movie at its heart, but they added just enough that I think anyone would love to see more of all of these characters. Mr. Terrific was probably the biggest standout of the bunch in that he was probably the biggest supporting character of the film, but I gotta give props to good ol' Nathan Fillion (who, fun fact, has actually played the OG Earth Green Lantern before, Hal Jordan, in animated form), his turn as Guy Gardner was quite hilarious but he managed to play a nice balancing act of showing both the heroic and prickish aspects of Guy Gardner. I would have loved to see just a teensy, tiny bit more Hawkgirl, but I grew up with the JLA series of the 00s and am a sucker for any good portrayal of Hawkgirl (even if this wasn't Shayera Hol Hawkgirl, but rather, Kendra Saunders), but all in all I have no complaints about the Justice Gang, they were a very welcome presence in this film.

 

 

Don't let the hair fool you, Nathan kills it as Guy!

 

 

Best supporting character of the film, seriously, Mister Terrific is AWESOME!!!

 

 

She may not be Shayera Hol, but I'd love to see more of this iteration of Hawkgirl (plus like most of the Justice Gang, she definitely got a massive crowd pleasing moment in the film)

 

Supporting and Background Characters - I'm not going to mention any other specific characters by name, either because they didn't fill a large enough role or simply because I don't want to spoil the role they fulfill in the film, but probably the highest praise I can give how the supporting and background characters are used in this film is that they all, even the smallest roles, help bring this new take on the DC universe to LIFE. I've seen a lot of people on social media comparing the feel of Gunn's DC world to how Sam Raimi's Spiderman films brought that universe to life, and I actually think that's a pretty apt comparison. Both directors seem to understand that superhero films aren't just about enjoying the heroes themselves, but the worlds they inhabit, and in order to fully bring those worlds to life you need a whole lot of strong supporting and background characters to help you do just that. Gunn has always been very effective in his worldbuilding in previous superhero films, so this is hardly new for him, but it was so refreshing to see it done so strongly here. Probably the last time a DC film made me fully feel this way about the world it was depicting was Patty Jenkins's first Wonder Woman film, but this film pulling it off felt especially impressive given how large the world it was depicting was.

 

 

Miscellaneous Items

 

Music - while this is an original soundtrack, it was, frankly, a stroke of genius to simply reuse John Williams's 'Superman Theme' as the underlying Superman theme song. I mean, it will probably forever and always be THE most classic superhero theme song in the world (not even the likes of bangers like the B:TAS theme or the Avengers theme song come close to surpassing its classic quality), so why wouldn't you use it in your film if you have a perfectly good reason to (and the legal rights to use it, to boot!). Probably the only other thing I'll note about the music was that, once again, James Gunn had to work in at least one 'needle-drop' scene in there, but like most of his past needle-drops it was a very cool, honestly one of the best scenes of the movie. It just felt very unique seeing that aspect of Gunn's films in a DC one, but I liked the way he incorporated some of his favorite tunes into this film all the same.

 

Visual Effects - having grown up in the 90s and early 00s, I feel like we're getting to a point with visual effects for comic book movies where filmmakers are no longer worrying about just HOW far they can push the visual effects, but rather, how much they can make the visuals fit the characters. I'm not trying to sound dismissive of past ways that superhero films have pushed the envelope visually, nor pretend that earlier filmmakers didn't care about getting the right look for these characters. But nowadays, with how many superhero films there are (not simply in the past decade but going back several decades at this point), it's no longer good enough to simply go, "well, we had excellent visual effects." For superhero films, for my money, the most impressive visual achievement now is making your film visually consistent with what these characters should look like based on their source material. Many superheroes require different kind of visuals, as such; Batman, for instance, will always probably require a certain level of practical effects for his solo outings since, well, that just fits the character. He's supposed to have gadgets that, by and large, COULD actually exist, and audiences love seeing a Batman that visually appears grounded in reality to a certain extent. Superman, on the other hand, is kind of tricky because historically, he engages some of the most outlandish foes in the DC universe (and even Lex Luthor, grounded as he is, comes up with some pretty nutty ways to fight Supes). You need to strike a good balance of everyman Supes with 'stopping several disasters that could destroy Metropolis and/or the world in a given week on a regular basis' Supes, and those two types of visuals are VERY different from each other. Here, it really felt like Gunn visually made this entire film feel like a comic book brought to life; I have seen other superhero films that I would consider to be more visually impressive before, but so many visuals in this film felt like they were ripped straight out of a comic book, and I loved that.

 

Final Thoughts

 

One word of warning I will offer to those who have yet to see this film; if you haven't already, you need to prepare yourself for a film that is NOT an origin story. This is Gunn's formal introduction of THIS iteration of the DC universe, but it is not a world new to Superman or metahumans; in fact, it does a really nice job right from the start of the film establishing that metahumans have been around in this continuity for centuries, and that Superman himself has been active for about three years at this point. We're still figuring out if Matt Reeves's and Robert Pattinson's Batman will officially be THE Batman of this universe, but it sounds very much like James Gunn has been pushing for just that, and honestly I'd be here for it.

 

Me personally, I say go along for the ride. DO NOT act as though you need to research a hundred different comics before watching this film to understand everything; Gunn's been introducing audiences to characters they're not familiar with for years, particularly in his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, so this is hardly new for him, and the film does a nice job of hold the audience's hand JUST enough. If there's a character you don't recognize, just look it up afterward; honestly I've heard a lot of people say the film was even more enjoyable on rewatch, and that's probably because they're more familiarized with these characters after their first viewing.

 

If you are a diehard lover of all things DC, however, you may want to invest in an HBO Max account now (I'm hoping I can reactivate mine soon, that's for sure). A good chunk of this universe is going to unfold on HBO Max, and while that's somewhat unfortunate, from what I've heard most of the projects they've put together so far are excellent (i.e. shows like Peacemaker and Creature Commandoes, for example).

 

Overall, this was not just a great Superman film for me, but it very much felt like the Superman film we all need right about now. It embodies the most important qualities of Superman and does a phenomenal job at depicting how beautiful a character he really can be when you focus squarely on his humanity and love of life in the universe. Is he the big blue Boy Scout? Yes, but he always will be, and here it's in the best way possible. Superman is back, and just as great as he's ever been (and you know that's high praise coming from this Bat-fanatic). If you have seen the movie already, or see it soon, feel free to share your thoughts on the film in the comments below. That's all I've got, folks, until next time, everypony, this is Batbrony signing off. I'm off! *cue dramatic exit*