The Man of Steel returns…with a crash landing. One of the first in a new series of films, Superman is a brand-new rendition of the Kryptonian superhero, in a whole new situation. Caught off-guard for the first time in his life, Superman has lost a battle to Lex Luthor, and with it his own public image. Superman is a story of discovering one’s true purpose and understanding what it means to be human.
The movie starts off with a written recap of how Superman prevents Boravia from invading Jarhanpur, but is soon defeated in Metropolis by a metahuman known as the Hammer- secretly Lex Luthor’s creation, Ultraman. Retreating to the Fortress of Solitude with Krypto, Superman recovers with help from his robots and a fragmented message from his Kryptonian parents. Luthor, aided by the Engineer, restores the missing half and broadcasts it, revealing Jor-El and Lara’s shocking directive for Superman to conquer Earth. While the Justice Gang helps him battle Luthor’s schemes, public opinion turns against Superman, who surrenders to the government only to be imprisoned in Luthor’s secret pocket universe. With Lois, Mister Terrific, Metamorpho, and Krypto’s help, he escapes, and Jonathan Kent reminds him that his choices- not Krypton’s orders- define him. Luthor escalates matters by destabilizing reality itself, but Superman and his allies stop Boravia’s invasion, defeat the Engineer and Ultraman, and close the rift. Luthor is exposed and arrested, Superman’s name is cleared, and he reaffirms his humanity with Lois and his adoptive family.
Personally, I’d say this film is a far cry from the last few Henry Cavill Superman films. It’s a lot more lighthearted, and includes a lot of banter between the heroes of the film. But above all that, it’s about knowing what’s right. Over the course of the movie, Superman’s fighting for the good of the people, because that’s what he believed the message from his parents said. When it’s revealed that their intentions are the opposite, however, Superman starts to doubt everything he does. It’s only when Jonathan Kent tells him that only Clark’s actions define him that he starts acting like himself again, and uses that to defeat Lex. Not only that, but he learns that there’ll always be someone to watch his back. That person is Lois; when Superman was arrested, she was the first one who actually did something to try and help Clark clear his name. She even entered Luthor’s secret prison to help break Superman out! Afterward, when she and Jimmy discovered Luthor’s schemes, she was the first to pitch a news story to expose him. Across the movie, Lois has gone out of her way to help Superman in each situation he finds himself in.
Visually, I like the new Superman more. Corenswet’s Clark seems to put a lot more effort into disguising himself as a dorky reporter than pretty much every other Superman so far…and it seems to work. As Clark Kent, Superman looks entirely different: his disguise’s curly hair, slightly slumped posture, clean-kept suit and his “hypno-glasses”, as Green Lantern calls them, is a far cry from his iconic red-and-blue outfit, confident composure and sleek hair (along with the signature curl). The only thing I wish is that Clark as, well, “Clark” got more screen time than just arriving at work after the preliminary battle. Also, his powers have had a deep refresh in CGI, most notably his X-Ray vision. While it seems to be a power he can’t turn off when he’s portrayed as Henry Cavill, I’d say he has a lot of control over it here, “turning it on” in some cases and “off” again when he’s not using it, like when he’s tracking Mr. Terrific’s T-Sphere as it goes down a kaiju’s drain and blows it up from the inside. Ouch. Most of Supes’ moves have become even more badass, too, especially the scene where he wipes out all of Luthor’s soldiers with his laser vision in one fell swoop.
I’d also say that some of the other additions to the film were very enjoyable to watch. Krypto himself needs no explanation: just imagine the worst-trained dog you’ve ever seen. Then, make him a white mutt with a cape, ten times worse at obeying commands, and give him the powers of the Man of Steel. That’s Krypto in this film. Even for a CGI creation, he’s every bit as energetic as you’d think he is. Mr. Terrific is also a prominent supporting character here; he’s the only one who helps Superman and Metamorpho escape the pocket dimension, and is smart enough to close the universal rift without any help, all while leaving quips and sarcasm along the way. In fact, the entire Justice Gang is one of the greatest, er, gangs I’ve ever seen. Don’t even get me started on Green Lantern’s…creative…way of stopping tanks.
Overall, I’d say Superman is one of the greatest DC films we’ve gotten in a long time. Seeing this iconic hero be cast in a negative light like this is honestly very refreshing, and his learning to fight for what he believes is right makes him possibly the greatest Man of Steel we’ve had in a long time.
