Superman Wants to Sound Grown-Up But Has a Child-Like Earnestness and Naivety
There’s a scene in James Gunn’s reboot of Superman, when my entire theatre held its breath. In what seems like a third-world country’s civilians on the brink of being attacked by a neighbouring nation’s armed forces – a few children hold up a flag and start chanting the name of the man of steel. If you’re even remotely curious about world affairs, you might see parallels. How you respond to this moment might dictate the rest of your reaction toward Gunn’s film. It’s a weighty bit, in a film that mimics the idealism and the wonder of a children’s film.
A third-world nation waits upon an alien raised in America (co-incidentally white), the kind of messaging that Gunn’s film doesn’t seem ready to grapple with. However, looking at the children staring at the artillery of a ruthless, vengeful military, one would imagine the race of their saviour is the last thing on anyone’s mind. They want it to stop, and for someone to protect them. Superman, in this case, becomes a symbol, more than a person, a nation, or any amount of international aid. He reflects humanity at its most selfless, conscientious. At least in the movies, the children will be saved. It’s the kind of wish-fulfilment mainstream filmmaking is all about.
A still from Superman.
On one hand, while it’s brave for a film of this scale to indulge an ongoing international conflict, what also irked me about Gunn’s film is how quickly the sombre moment is besieged by Gunn’s snappy repartee. Wanting to dip its toes in topicality, only so much to inspire think-pieces about its politics, Gunn’s film is more preoccupied about wanting to be seen having a dialogue than actually having one. At the same time, there’s also a straight-shooting sincerity that almost tips over into childlike naivete. Like when Superman (David Corenswet) is sternly questioned by Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) about his ‘authority’ to mediate an international conflict, he simply says “People were going to die!” The end product is a film that wants to use the vocabulary of a child, and yet wants to sound all grown up.
There isn’t a lot of formal inventiveness in this reboot, except for the way it delivers Superman’s mythology in the film’s opening minutes. Hitting the ground running in a world where Superman is already known, he oscillates between saviour and outcast while trying to stop Lex Luthor’s plans for global domination. Even at their best, I’ve never found Gunn’s films (Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy) making a dent on me as a viewer. It’s probably the abundance of green-screen, but this hasn’t been the case in James Cameron’s Avatar films. They’re almost curated to a fault, especially the pop culture name-dropping.
A still from Superman.
Therefore, it isn’t surprising to see Gunn’s film – supposed to start a new era of DC movies – showcase its corporate-tested wit, the cuteness of a dog called Krypto, the charming lovers’ quarrel between Clark and Lois (who knows about his alter-ego) all lined up one after the other, without a moment to breathe. It’s a watchable film, but rarely essential.
I found myself quite taken by Superman’s less-stoic, more-feeling portrayal by Corenswet, with all the moral indignation of someone doomscrolling – simply unable to make much sense of it. It’s a more commercial, accessible performance than Henry Cavill in the Zack Snyder films. Brosnahan brings an unapologetic manner to the way she plays Lois, but the film doesn’t reciprocate her fearlessness — boxing her as a generic ally, who turns up in unexpected places. The banter between the rest of the superheroes (or metahumans, as the film refers to them) — Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl (Isabella Merced) and Mr Terrific (Edi Gathegi) is Marvel-coded, and therefore momentarily amusing and instantly forgettable.
A still from Superman.
Nicholas Hoult playing Lex Luthor with all the shades of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg and any other reckless, noteworthy tech bro is shortchanged as a committed, deeply envious Salieri to Superman’s Mozart. A special actor in his own right, I wish Hoult was given more to play around with except tapping into the campiness of the role. The exaggerated Southern accent by Ma and Pa Kent might be an ‘authentic’ depiction, but it borders on parody.
I liked the one bold move in the film that shatters Clark’s image of his biological parents — and the resultant conversation with his adopted father. “How you chose to listen to the rest of the message, says more about you” — he tells Clark. The throughline of Gunn’s reboot to combat cynicism with empathy and othering with compassion, is an earnest thought for a world more paranoid than ever. But it eventually gets diluted by the pressures of kickstarting a cinematic universe. Maybe it’s too much responsibility to shoulder for a superhero film these days, to hold a meaningful conversation. A bit like one man spinning the earth in the opposite direction by flying around it, to turn back time so he can save a loved one, as die-hard Superman fans will recall.
*Superman is playing in theatres.
This article went live on July twelfth, two thousand twenty five, at fifty-four minutes past four in the afternoon.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
