Thoughts on James Gunn’s Superman 2025 – All That Hype for THIS??

I was very skeptical about this movie when I first heard that it’s being made, and wouldn’t go to the theaters for this. But then I saw the teaser (I think it came out last year?) and I did feel some hope for it. And I really wanted to watch a movie this Thursday and luckily there was an early screening for it at my local theater. So I randomly booked a ticket and went for it.

Bruh… all that extra money I had to spend on the pre-screening ticket, for THIS??? HUH?

I literally just sat there, with my head in my hands the entire time.

Why? Oh lemme tell you

— SPOILER ALERT —

1. To Begin With… HUH?

The movie kinda just starts—right smack in the middle of something. There’s no real sense of origin, no emotional build-up, no context. It feels like walking into a room mid-conversation. For a film that’s meant to introduce a new Superman to a new universe, this was a very odd, unfulfilling choice. A cold open can be thrilling—but only if there’s enough grounding to make us care.

I mean yes, the superhero fans will obviously know about some origin of the Superman. But, you didn’t have any vision to make your OWN kinda introduction to this major hero, in your OWN reboot?? Basically, from the get-go, I felt out of the loop.

2. Smallville Did It Better

The main thing of this movie – Superman’s biological parents actually wanting him to rule earth – was handled so much better in a TV series two decades ago. And that is astounding.

Smallville from the 2000s, starring Tom Welling as Superman, took their sweet time to build up his character arc. And it showed how the rest of his Kryptonian parents’ message – to conquer this planet instead of helping the people here – affected his psychology, sense of purpose and his relationship with his earthling family really well.

It gave us more emotional depth, more character development, and a way better exploration of Clark Kent’s struggle with identity than this high-budget flick. Gunn’s Superman tries to tell us who Clark is—but Smallville actually showed us, slowly and effectively, over time. Better movie technology doesn’t mean better storytelling, I guess.

3. The “Jokes” Ruined The Momentum

Oh, the classic James Gunn jokes strike again. Lord Help us.

Marvel-style quips? Check. Poorly timed punchlines? Also check. Gunn’s signature humor—while fun in Guardians of the Galaxy—often undercut the tension in Superman 2025. Emotional moments were barely allowed to breathe before someone dropped a one-liner. And sadly, most jokes were not even that funny.

4. Messed Up Storytelling

The whole sequence of scenes in this movie felt a bit of a mess. The film jumps from scene to scene without giving any of it some space to land.

Like I said in my first point, from the get-go, the screenplay felt like a mess. It’s cluttered with scenes that don’t really go after the other. I, as an audience, barely had any time to build up any emotion or thought about the incidents being shown on the screen.

The editing feels choppy, the arcs undercooked. Instead of a well-baked story, we got narrative popcorn—quick, scattered, and ultimately unsatisfying.

5. Wasted Good Actors

Love the actors of this movie in general – Nicholas Hoult specially. Been his fan since Warm Bodies (2013) and he has been picking amazing projects since then, showcasing his range as an actor. And I can tell he gave his heart and soul to play Lex Luthor in this movie. So did Rachel Brosnahan, David Corenswet and others.

However, all that talent and dedication went to waste because of the shitty script and cluttered screenplay. I felt so bad watching them give their all to performances that will never come to fruition.

6. Premature Hype

This film was promoted like it would bring everyone’s faith back to the DCEU. I had been seeing amazing reviews of this movie for a while now. Some called it “better than ever“, Rotten Tomatoes said it’s an “emotionally rich adapatation” that “promises a bright future”, IGN said “gets both the DCU and David Corenswet’s sure-to-be long reign as the Man of Steel off to a great start”, ScreenRant said multiple times how they are so SURE that Gunn’s Superman will be great.

Bruh, all that hype did really get me to believe that this movie will be good. And oh my God, it’s so painfully mediocre and corny…. like, what drugs were all of these critics on?? The letdown is real because the expectations were set way too high, way too early.

7. Cheesy, But for What

Camp can be charming, sure—but this wasn’t charming. The cheesy moments didn’t feel intentional or nostalgic. They just felt… awkward. Like the film couldn’t decide if it was going for classic comic book charm or modern grit, and ended up somewhere lost in between.

8. The Color Grading Was NOT Giving

This whole movie looked like a bad Instagram filter from the 2010s. The color grading was kinda “muted bright”?? Like, it had all the bright colors, but they were filtered down to an awkward palette.

9. Why The “Dumb Blonde” Trope in 2025??

The whole character or placement of Eve was so outdated to me, from the very first scene she was in. There’s this dumb blonde girl obsessed with selfies and social media, and too dumb to realize that she’s dumb, but oh look she actually managed to take these evidences through her selfies!

What in the 2000s….

I felt bad for this girl. Like, why did it feel like she’s being used by Gunn to portray someone he hates in real life. Idk, it was weird.

10. The Kents Were Never This Dumb

From what I know about Kents from both Smallville and the Snyderverse – Jonathan and Martha are always humble, moral and intelligent people. Why did Gunn make them seem so dumb, geriatric and out of the loop? Didn’t they bring this young alien up into a superhero with a conscience?? Come on now.

In this version, they were either weirdly oblivious or strangely naive. Their portrayal lacked the quiet strength and layered wisdom that makes the Kents iconic.

The PROs

The only two things I actually liked about this movie were the dog Krypto and the cameo of Supergirl (Milly Alcock). Loved her in Sirens and I know she’s a phenomenal actor. Now let’s hope the whole Gunn-DC universe doesn’t waste her too.

Well, that’s all I had to say. Go watch it if you want, but it’ll probably be either a disappointment or a one-time watch. Just saying.