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 I find myself going to the theater less and less these days, but somewhere inside me, a voice of hope cried out and said that I needed to see the new Superman movie on the big screen. I had to satisfy my curiosity. I know technically its not the first installment of the rebooted DCU, seeing as The Suicide Squad, Creature Commandos, and Peacemaker S1 are all now confirmed as canon, but Superman ‘25 feels like the first major swing at whats to come for this cinematic universe going into the next half of the 2020's and beyond.
 
2025 Superman cleanses the palette after the bitter taste Man of Steel 2013 left me with. I had fun every minute I was seated for this iteration, which is rare these days for me with any new film. The quality of the superhero genre has been in steady decline for years now, but this film is a worthwhile exception. It's high stakes, it's hopeful, and much to my liking, it doesn’t waste time with a first act origin story that almost everyone already knows (although it does play with it a bit deeper into the film, in a way that I thought was very dark and clever.). The stylistic choices for aesthetic, directing, and cinematography all felt reminiscent of reading a comic book in a specific way I haven't really seen before. It was refreshing. Krypto is utilized exceptionally throughout the film, and as a fan of the 2000s cartoon, the kid inside me really liked getting to see the super-powered dog side-kick on the big screen.  The film is color graded & lit exceptionally well, which really helps sell the heavy usage of CGI. Marvel could definitely take notes on that these days. 
 
This new DCU feels lived-in, rich with color and charm, showing an Earth that is semi-accustomed to meta humans and space aliens. It justifies the existence of its heroes and villains well. There's plenty of on-screen text and expositional dialogue to catch you up on characters you maybe aren't familiar with. I loved the opening title cards, a less skilled filmmaker would've definitely wasted 20-30 minutes showing all of it before the real storyline begins. We launch right in, seeing the aftermath of the first major time that Superman has been bested in combat. It keeps the film the perfect length, and makes The Hammer of Boravia a compelling adversary. 
 
David Corenswet is the standout acting performance in this film, he brings a blend of goofy charm & stoic heroism that I loved. I’d never seen him in anything before this, so I arrived at my showing fairly skeptical, but wow, that guy nailed it! He plays the character powerful and masculine, whilst carrying the sensitivity and honest heart of Clark Kent through every trial and tribulation he faces, both in and out of costume. Rachel Brosnahan plays a great Lois Lane, the way she interacts with Clark in this one feels very reminiscent of the original Richard Donner Superman 1. Her performance choices are integral to the success of many of the best dialogue scenes in the film. Since I've been watching a lot of the ABC television show Castle lately, seeing Nathan Fillion appear as the most deranged Green Lantern ever put to screen gave me a good laugh. Nicholas Holt is a fantastic Lex Luther, taking bits and pieces of all the performances that came before him in the decades past, and making this version powerfully his own through the prism of them. He’s doing some of his career finest work in a few scenes, and he delivers some of the best rage baiting I've ever seen. Edi Gathedi (who I vaguely remember from his small role in XMen: First Class) gives a heft and power to Mr Terrific that I thought was dope.

The film is not without its little moments of cringe and jokes that fall flat, but it moves so quickly that you never have time to get bogged down by it, or over-analytical about anything. There's no awkward pauses for the audience’s laughter, and no needless lingering on a bit. To me that's one of the most effective forms of cinematic comedy within the genre. The pacing of this film moves and grooves at the wave of James Gunn’s magic wand. It feels like the start of a much larger tapestry within that man's mind, and i’ll be back in theaters for whatever comes next.
Superman is a damn good time.