If you need a barometer for how big a deal the release of the latest iteration of SUPERMAN was in my world consider this–a buddy couldn’t think of anything he’d rather do on a milestone birthday than see it, and even moi somehow found the financial resources to get my butt into an actual theater on opening night to make it happen for both of us.
And I’ll say this from the get-go–bottom line, it was all worth it. It’s a highly stylized visual treat in every sense of the word. Fortunately, the source material is entrenched and familiar enough for almost anyone to at least have some degree of familarity with the basics. But depending upon what generation you may fall into, your actual baseline may vary. And mega director James Gunn, in his debut outing as master of the DC Universe, wisely chooses to provide entry points for just about anyone to access. 
While the specific setting of a physical newspaper housed in an Art Deco building may seem out of place in 2025, it”s populated by what appears to be exclusively a young hipster staff that would seamlessly fit into Union Square or Silicon Beach. And while the familiar strains of John Williams’ iconic score for the Christopher Reeve era provide audible comfort food for those introduced to the Superverse in that era, the choice to largely eschew the details of the origin story and plop this Superman immediately into a world filled with the challenges of social media judgement and punk rock worship gives today’s target audience their own generational foundation to build upon. And it’s immediately clear that whatever limitations of the pas-de-deux between the title character and Lois Lane that existed in prior versions is history–it’s evident from the outset that not only is this version of our trailblazing journalist fully aware of who co-worker Clark Kent is, she’s clearly had his super you-know-what thrilling her for a while.
All this is set amidst a plot line where Superman is having more than a few bad days at the office, largely inflicted by his old nemesis Lex Luthor, portrayed with a recognizable degree of megavilliain sinisterness by Nicholas Hoult who eerily resembles both Michael Rosenbaum’s tortured and conflicted version in WB’s SMALLVILLE and yep, a certain real-life incel with a whole bunch of issues. If you’ve read Jason Zengerle’s recent guest opinion THE RUTHLESS AMBITION OF STEPHEN MILLER (and if you’ve yet to, you absolutely should) the physical and emotional parallels are eerie. 
And yep, it sets the stage for a series of events that appear to be more ripped-from-the-headlines than perhaps Gunn and team originally intended for them to be, as ROGER EBERT.com veteran (and the founder’s one-time on-screen co-star) Richard Roeper keenly observed:
When Superman is detained and roughed-up by masked agents who slam his face into the pavement before locking him up in a detention center alongside hundreds of other prisoners, including a separated family and a woman whose “offense” was writing a negative blog about Luthor, the modern-day, real-world parallels are striking—and legitimate social commentary.
And Gunn himself threw a few more matches onto that fire with a few observations of his own which among others THE DESERET NEWS’ Valerie Jones picked up on yesterday:
(T)he film’s director…said that “Superman” is about “an immigrant that came from other places” and “basic human kindness,” adding that the movie was “about politics” and “about morality.” Gunn, who directed Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” trilogy and is currently the head of DC Studios, discussed the upcoming movie in an interview with the U.K. paper The Times last week.
“I mean, Superman is the story of America,” Gunn told The Times. “An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country, but for me it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost.”
When The Times asked whether the movie might be perceived differently in a blue state, such as New York (on which the fictional Metropolis is based), or a red state, such as Kansas, where the character of Clark Kent grew up, Gunn said he thought it would. “Yes, it plays differently,” he said. “But it’s about human kindness and obviously there will be jerks out there who are just not kind and will take it as offensive just because it is about kindness.”
And of course, this has crept into the promotional narrative, so much so that SUPERHEROHYPE’s Nicholas Tan observed yesterday that it may very well deter Gunn’s real mission–to somehow save Warner Brothers Discovery from its own self-inflicted destruction:
A new report has lowered its Superman 2025 box office predictions for its opening weekend…(W)hile the movie is still expected to dominate the box office for the next two weeks, launch projections have continued to decrease as we have gotten closer to its launch. The box office projections for Superman 2025’s opening weekend is $125 million to $150 million, which is roughly a 10% decrease on both its lower and upper predictions. More specifically, the site believes that the movie will rake in $135,350,000 for its three-day weekend forecast. We have to put an asterisk there, though, because the report includes predictions from Thursday, June 10, to Sunday, June 13 (so it’s technically a four-day prediction). For exact numbers, it projects that Superman 2025 will earn $23,900,000 on Thursday (including Amazon Prime Early Access), $37,170,000 on Friday, $39,720,000 on Saturday, and $34,560,000 on Sunday.
(T)he report aims to account for family and kid appeal particularly those “outside major metro and coastal areas where DC films tend to perform strongest.” However, it notes that Superman 2025 has become a political football after James Gunn said that the film is an immigrant story about America. This could have an impact on sales “across middle America with conservative-leaning fans and parents,” which “is exactly where this film needs to play with above-average appeal to reach higher projections.”
To anyone who actually can be so close-minded–probably many of the same that are clicking the like button on the White House’s official tweaking of the movie’s poster–I’d merely remind them of the same thing my giddy birthday buddy observed: Superman’s NOT A REAL PERSON. By definition, he’s NOT AN IMMIGRANT. Immigrants come here on their own volition to seek a better life, they don’t get wrapped up in a spaceship to escape a planet about to blow up. I assume at some point you actually knew that, dipsh-ts.
Maybe we emerged with more favorable opinions because we chose to view it in our own parallel universe–a recurring theme in the movie. We sprung for the extra bucks to experience it in REAL 3-D, complete with kinda styly glasses and rumbling reclining seat that was, to me, well worth the $30-plus price tag, if only this once. The movie’s also available in IMAX and an even more immersive experience akin to a Universal Studios ride. We also saw more than a few uberfans who sprung for the special packages that included immediately cooler-than-not T-shirts with the reimagined “S” logo and a mega-sized popcorn being sold in a container that looks like an old-fashioned newspaper kiosk. So maybe the WBD/DC marketing machine built in a few safety nets to offset whatever powderkeg Gunn may have chosen–or had chosen for him–to ignite.
Fortunately, the movie’s got a lot more moments that are popcorn-worthy, specifically the welcome inclusion of, as Superman cagily references, “a few of his friends”. ROTTEN TOMATOES’ Erik Amaya deep dove into that impressive array in the extended preview he dropped last month:
(T)his Superman is different. It will feature other superheroes. For All Mankind star Edi Gathegi appears as Mister Terrific, an inventor with a brilliant mind, free-floating “T-Spheres,” and a sense of fair play. He is typically allied with the Justice Society of America — the oldest superhero team — as is Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl. In fact, the winged warrior and Gathegi’s characters take their visual cues from the JSA comics of the late ’90s. It remains to be seen if they will represent the group, last seen on screen in Black Adam, or claim membership with another team. Both can be seen in the teaser and trailer using their abilities in dynamic moments.
Frequent Gunn collaborator Nathan Fillion takes on the role of Guy Gardner, a sometimes Green Lantern who is a fan favorite despite his regressive attitudes and extreme ego. As seen in the teaser, the actor sports Guy’s classic bowl cut — a conversation starter in the months since the video was released — but his more militaristic Lantern costume has been revamped and features a surprising amount of white. Also, we wonder how Guy could make his first appearance in a feature film without the infamous “one punch” moment? (Granted, Batman landed that blow in 1987’s Justice League #1.)
Anthony Carrigan, known to Gotham fans as Victor Zsasz, plays Metamorpho, a wilder DC Comics character from the 1960s who can transmute into various elements and has been portrayed as both goofy and intensely serious depending on the circumstances.
And no discussion of this would be complete without a heaping helping of praise for Rachel Brosnahan’s Lois Lane. Somehow, she manages to blend elements of the many predecessors in the role–ranging from Margot Kidder to Teri Hatcher and even a little Phyllis Coates and blends some Elaine Benes and yep, Midge Maisel banter into it. Not to mention the kind of feistiness and willingness to be confrontational that would more than fit into a Preston Sturges classic and removed from the shackles of a 1960s era wardrobe reminds us that Brosnahan is one pretty hot shiksa to boot.
Spoiler alert: Despite some pretty dark moments, it all works out in the end. World gets saved, girl gets hunk, boy gets dog (yes, Krypto’s also back, and as we see not a moment too soon). And unlike so many experiences I had with Gunn’s previous MCU works, I actually stayed fully awake for the whole experience. That alone has me raving a bit more zealotically than I usually do–more so than, say, Roeper’s somewhat muted 2 1/2 stars. I’m recommending seeing it to just about everyone.
And yes, that includes Stephen Miller.
Until next time…