Superman (12A) |Close-Up Film Review

For me Superman will always be Christopher Reeve, the first actor I saw in the role.  But David Corenswet fits the bill nicely.  He’s tall,  well built, nice looking with a boyish charm, and cute, dishevelled, curly hair when he’s being Superman’s alter ego Clark Peters – he’ll do nicely.

 He’s also for the first time vulnerable.  At our first sight of him, he’s been beaten up  after losing his first battle and is lying wounded in an icy landscape.  He’s rescued by a dog, Krypto, whom I have privately christened Superdog, and who’s based I’m told on director Gunn’s own rescue dog.   Krypto drags him along to what looks like a sort of meta human A & E manned or rather robotted by robot doctors, who sort him out and send him back into action 

In Gunn’s new take on the story Superman’s history is as read – all that bit about being sent to earth by his parents and so on.  We start right in the middle of his career as a meta-human – though that back story does then re-assert itself in unexpected ways.  Rachel Brosnahan, giving a sparky performance.as his Daily Planet colleague Lois Lane, who already in this version knows who he is and their relationship is establishing itself in a lively manner – though they don’t go flying together.

Superman enemy number one Lex Luther is now a rich and corporate, Musky  technocrat with an impressive technology and team at his wicked command and played by to the hilt by Nicholas Hoult – bald as an egg but still handsome and commanding. 

It appears in this version of the universe that Earth has acquired a few more meta humans on Superman’s side – not quite sure of their names nor when and how they arrived but then I don’t follow all the comic book mythology.  Luther though has an even more impressive lineup in opposition, most particularly a young woman known as the Engineer (María Gabriela de Faría), who sports an interesting hairdo and an impressive range of weapons that she creates from her own body.

The plot largely involves Superman trying to prevent an aggressive, Slavonic sounding country from invading a small defenceless one – echoes of Russian and Ukraine anyone? – and a plot by wicked Lex to discredit Superman.  And along the way, poor old Superman gets beaten up again several times.  

The film is as to be expected rich on digitally produced spectacle – monsters, the destruction of Metropolis and its magical restoration plus more – but one of the more human and touching moments comes when Clark, without clicking the heels of red slippers, like Dorothy, goes home to Kansas, where he has a touching reunion with his now ageing earthly adoptive parents  – two lovely performances from Neva Howell and Pruitt Taylor Vince

There are number of new characters who will almost certainly crop up again in future episodes of the franchise.   Alan Tudyk as Gary, a robot with character, who is part of superman’s support network, has the promise of being another R2D2, while Krypto the superdog has endless possibilities.   He is claimed at the end of the film by Supergirl (Milly Alcock) – where did she come from?  I’m told she’s Superman’s cousin from back in the Krypton days.  Anyway she pops in and then out, scooping up Krypto as a Supergirl’s best friend, so I guess he’s going to co-star with her in a Supergirl movie to come.   Woof, woof.  I love him.