The superhero genre has been going through something of a rough patch. Under the primary creative control of Zack Snyder, the DC Cinematic Universe had kind of hit a creative and financial wall. Audiences were losing interest and if Warner Bros. wanted to save the brand, they needed to restructure and rebrand. They ultimately hired producer Peter Safran and director James Gunn, best known for his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy for Marvel. You may also remember Gunn also made perhaps the most successful movie of this most recent DC Studios era, 2021’s The Suicide Squad. But of course, that film was released mid-pandemic and despite being a critical success, it didn’t make money. But under Gunn’s creative control, we’re starting over from scratch. The first film in his rebooted series is a new version of Superman, with a completely different cast and tone than the recent Henry Cavill Superman movies. And it’s good enough to make one care about the superhero movie again.

We are introduced to Superman (David Corenswet), the Kryptonian alien whose planet was destroyed, and was sent to earth as a baby and raised by two Kansas farmers. He assumes the identity of Clark Kent, and works at The Daily Planet newspaper in the city of Metropolis. He met and fell in love with reporter Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) there, and she keeps his secret. The public is already aware of Superman, and tyrannical billionaire Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) is obsessed with bringing him down. Once Luthor infiltrates Superman’s Antarctica compound and kidnaps Krypto, the superhero dog, Superman must call in the help of some friends to make things right.

Superman (2025) is everything I could have wanted in a superhero movie, and it perfectly captures a tone that has proven elusive for so many filmmakers in this genre. It remembers to be a good time at the movies, first and foremost, but also feels like a radical shift for the superhero movie. It’s been a while since one of these films has been this vibrant, this colorful, this energetic, this utterly joyful. The tone is light, zippy, borderline chaotic, and always fun. It’s also not an origin story – we meet these characters seemingly midway through the story we know, and yet there’s nothing here that I found confusing, as someone who doesn’t know much about the comics. This film never did what I was expecting it to, and I was thoroughly entertained, even enchanted, the entire time. If Gunn, Safran and co. can maintain this energy and this momentum for whatever comes next, the superhero movie in general has a bright future ahead of it. This is the strongest argument against superhero fatigue I’ve seen so far, and I would happily watch several more films in this universe, from this cast and creative team.

David Corenswet first made a strong impression in two not-great Ryan Murphy Netflix projects, Hollywood and The Politician. I loved both of these series, even if it’s hard to ignore the fact that neither reached its full potential. I’ve been a fan of Corenswet’s since then, and I’ve been waiting for him to have the kind of breakout role that made everyone finally pay attention. And it only takes one look at him to know he’s the perfect actor to play Superman. He’s got a very specific charm that knows no limits, the dashing good looks and swaggering presence that you want from an actor playing Superman, but Gunn’s script is smart to let him have warmth and vulnerability. Every aspect of his existence – his relationship with Lois Lane, his relationship to his adoptive parents, the way he’s perceived by the world around him – Corenswet finds a way to make all aspects of this character matter and feel immediate and exciting. I need to see this film a few more times before I can say this with any real authority, but I think Corenswet might be my favorite version of this character. David Corenswet is a movie star, full stop, and I cannot wait to see him finally have the moment he’s earned.

Corenswet’s chemistry with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star Rachel Brosnahan is electric and exciting. Brosnahan is also probably the best version of the Lois Lane character that I’ve seen so far. She’s beautiful and charming but she’s no fool. She’s got agency and a strong intuition and she’s always two steps ahead of any man in the room. I’ve seen so many versions of this story sideline the Lois Lane character, and Brosnahan’s version of her could easily headline her own movie. There’s an extended scene early on that’s essentially a small-scale dialogue between Clark and Lois, where she attempts to interview him as Superman, and smaller moments like this are indicative of why this thing works so well. You learn so much about these two people from this exchange – who both of them were before they met, where this relationship stands, and why their points of view have shifted apart from each other. Lois Lane has been the damsel in distress in many versions of this story, but a significant chunk of this movie involves Lois having to save Superman. And this film sort of plays not unlike a romantic comedy, and I love that about it.

Nicholas Hoult also knocks it out of the park with his portrayal of Superman’s nemesis Lex Luthor. The most recent version of this character, played by Jesse Eisenberg in Batman v Superman, was almost like a parody of what audiences expect that character to be. Hoult’s version of this character feels very Elon Musk-coded, and I feel like that’s a smart choice. He’s menacing, sociopathic and has just the right amount of ingrained absurdity. Hoult has just the right amount of insanity in his eyes and is never playing it too over-the-top, which feels like a smart choice. Anthony Carrigan plays Metamorpho, a character who in the beginning exists under Luthor’s control, but slowly begins to evolve, and he made a strong impression as well.

This film also does probably the best job of introducing a new group of superheroes in recent memory. Early on, we meet the ‘Justice Gang’ (working name), a group of superheroes including the Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced). The film doesn’t waste a lot of time explaining who these people are, but their powers and what they bring to the table are apparent pretty much from the jump. I can’t wait to see more of them, particularly Edi Gathegi’s Mister Terrific. We also have the great Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy, one of Lois’ colleagues at the Daily Planet, and if you’ve seen him in anything before, you know the very specific, offbeat energy he brings to everything, and he’s very fun to watch here. Sara Sampaio also plays Eve, Luthor’s vapid, social media obsessed girlfriend who has a past with Jimmy. Her character seemed a bit one-note and borderline misogynistic in the beginning, but I very much enjoyed the way her character evolved. Oh, and Krypto the dog is worth the price of admission alone.

I’ve already stated how masterfully James Gunn manages to nail the tone here, but the look of this film is very inventive and very specific as well. Even though this is, at least, the fourth live-action Superman incarnation, the world Gunn creates here feels like somewhere we’ve never been before. Henry Braham, Gunn’s usual cinematographer, returns here, but the film doesn’t share a visual style with any of his previous work. There’s a gauzy, wistful quality to the camerawork that makes the whole thing feel dreamlike. And Braham manages to pull off some very tricky-looking single-take fight sequences effortlessly. Costume designer Judianna Makovsky, who has also worked with Gunn before, vividly creates a world with these costumes. Production designer Beth Mickle (also in the James Gunn repertory crew) gives the sets here – the interior of the Daily Planet offices, specifically – a genuine and lived-in quality. Mickle also creates some incredibly vibrant and visually stunning digital worlds as well. John Murphy and David Fleming compose the score, and give it the enormity and the gravitas it needs to properly capture the impact of all this.

I’m not sure if James Gunn’s Superman will be everything to every fan and every casual viewer, but I’m not sure it needs to be. I think the work on display here more than speaks for itself, and this is easily the best big-budget franchise movie released so far in 2025. The tone is zippy, light and joyful. The cast is, as a whole, expertly chosen, but I’m hoping this leads to big things for the magnetic and charismatic David Corenswet. I’ve enjoyed previous versions of the Superman story before, but I haven’t seen one like this – a Superman full of wonder, warmth, humor, heart and compassion. Superman (2025) is a reminder of the power of decency and human kindness in a time where audiences are in need of one. It’s big and bold, thoughtful and earnest. It’s full of action and excitement, but there’s a familiar, cozy quality to it that will make it a fun film to revisit in the future. Seeing the film at a ‘fan event’ screening last night with a crowd full of people cheering and reacting to every big reveal, was a truly delightful experience and I would recommend seeing this film on the biggest, loudest screen you can find, with the biggest crowd. Even this viewer, who has been sick of superhero movies for years, can’t wait to go back and see this one again.