Superman - Too many jokes, Too little steel

Superman

English - Superhero / Action

129 mins

Jio Hotstar

James Gunn is an audacious filmmaker. He rejuvenated the Marvel franchise with the Guardians of the Galaxy films — funny, bursting with personality. Those movies blended music beautifully into the narrative, gave every character a distinct voice and managed to land real emotional beats. That tone worked because those characters demanded irreverence. They were misfits, cynics, broken toys held together by pop songs and found family.

Which is why James Gunn taking on Superman — and with it, the responsibility of restoring the DC Universe — came as a genuine surprise to me. As the film unfolded, the surprise turned into disappointment and the disappointment is justified.

At one point, an uncomfortable comparison crept into my mind: Adipurush. A film that had everything going for it — scale, budget, a revered epic, a lead who was box office draw, and institutional backing - yet managed to completely fumble a relatively straightforward task, ended up with a pretty lousy movie. Gunn’s Superman is nowhere near that disastrous, but disturbingly, it flirts with the same kind of tonal misjudgment. I will say it is just a tad better.

The central problem is this: the film is far too campy. There are too many jokes, too much levity, too little seriousness, too much of other DC characters and strangely, too little Superman. The Man of Steel feels like a supporting character in his own film. In fact, Lex Luthor ends up with more dialogue, more dramatic weight, and more acting runway!

In spirit, this Superman feels closer to the Richard Donner / Christopher Reeve era — warm, gentle, lightly humorous, and more human. In contrast, Zack Snyder’s Henry Cavill existed in a darker, more operatic universe — heavy on action, guilt, and moral burden, and arguably not very kid-friendly. Gunn’s version is softer, lighter, and far more accessible to younger audiences and adolescents.

That accessibility, however, comes at a cost. By leaning so hard into charm and humour, the film ends up doing absolute disservice to our favourite superhero. This is a character built on moral clarity, restraint, and quiet strength. Gunn, for all his talent, seems more comfortable humanizing than venerating him.

Skipping the origin story makes sense; no one needs Krypton explained again. The film almost feels like a Part 2, assuming we already know these people and their relationships. But in the rush to keep things light and brisk, Everything feels rushed, the plot often feels flimsy and the audience taken for granted!

The performances are solid given the material. David Corenswet is likeable and earnest, doing his best with a Superman, written more as a presence than a protagonist. Rachel Brosnahan (from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) makes for a chirpy, sharp Lois Lane - ah yes the OTT version has "the" kiss which was snipped in by the Indian censors.

The standout is undoubtedly Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. He is outstanding -  intense, and madcap. He is also saddled with a lazily written motivation dump that tries to explain his hatred for Superman in five minutes. The worst is when Luthor rattles off tactical jargon — “B4, X16, Z45” — boasting of having memorised thousands of Superman’s moves and the fights are like a Pacific Rim video game - definitely an assault on the viewer’s intelligence.

Ironically, the most effective addition to the film is Krypto, the Superdog — a loveably cranky, cretin who plays a key role. He is delightful and he being the highlight of a Superman movie, tells you something! 

Technically, the film is beautiful. Shot in full-frame 1.85:1, it fills the screen confidently, with rich colours and clean compositions. The cinematography by Henry Braham is elegant. The VFX is generally good as well, some never seen uglies pop up on screen!

The score by John Murphy and David Fleming is a plus. It smartly adapts John Williams’ iconic Superman theme, weaving it into a new musical identity without leaning on nostalgia as a crutch. It may not reach Williams’ mythic grandeur and definitely not the raging highs of Hans Zimmer, but works well for Gunn’s lighter version.

I am always up for new interpretations and characters shown in a different way. But some things — epics, myths, great heroes — demand a certain seriousness of intent. You can humanise them, update them, even question them, but here Superman feels trivialised. For me, the film that mistakes irreverence for insight, charm for depth, and forgets that sincerity is the right choice.