Film Review - Superman (2025)

When I first saw the trailer for this, I already had a sense of unease about the approach they were taking. But I brushed it off, assuming the trailers were just doing their job by building hype and that the film itself would be different.

Then I went to see it. And I was wrong.

This film tries so hard to do so many things at once that it becomes a total mess, both tonally and in terms of story. I understand the need to appeal to a broad audience, especially if you’re aiming for summer box-office numbers, but this feels more like a box-ticking exercise than a movie with a vision. Some early reviews have praised James Gunn for having creative freedom, but to me, it seems like the pressure of handling such an iconic character got the best of him. In the end, he played it safe.

Now, the story - bear with me while I try to lay this out - is set in a world where the existence of metahumans has become normal. People have somehow accepted the constant, looming threat of planetary destruction and behave like casual bystanders watching chaos unfold outside their spotless windows. In this world, Superman is surprisingly ineffective. He keeps getting beaten by foes that often seem weaker than him and his idealism reaches absurd levels. At one point, he pauses mid-battle to save a squirrel from being crushed, which takes the silliness a step too far. His relationship with Lois Lane is falling apart, and after he intervenes in a foreign war, his already fragile public image takes another hit. This gives Lex Luthor the perfect chance to push a new narrative and launch his own enhanced superhumans as replacements for Superman.

If that wasn’t enough, the film also throws in multiverse pockets, a giant monster, a Justice Gang, a jellyfish-like shapeshifter and a fully animated super-dog.

Tonally, the film swings wildly. It’s bright and playful one minute, then bleak and grim the next. At one point, they wind up in a kind of interdimensional prison created by Lex Luthor, where a pixelated river flows into a black hole. It feels like a level from Minecraft, not a Superman film.

Yes, the film tries to modernise the character for a younger audience. But the original Superman had a sense of wonder. It struck a balance between humour, action and romance without overplaying any one element. This version feels patched together and gutless, completely detached from the moral weight that made Superman compelling.

There’s one scene early on (a conversation between Clark and Lois) where the film hints at something thoughtful. They talk about what it means for Superman to get involved in a war, and what a super-weapon represents for each side. It’s a moment that could have anchored the entire movie. Instead, it’s quickly tossed aside in favour of bland humour, loud action and cartoonish CGI.

I wanted to like this. I thought there was a chance to bring Superman back in a way that would resonate with today’s world. The opportunity was there for a classic good-versus-evil story filled with meaning, heart and a bit of fun. But this film guts everything Superman stands for. It turns him into a naive, indecisive bystander, stripped of the ideals that once made him inspiring.

As for the post-credit scenes, I couldn’t care less. I’ll politely bow out of any future instalments and return to the comic books. Red trunks and all, they still did a better job than this mess.