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Questions about James Gunn heading a new era of comic book films for DC have posted whether he could handle the biggest names in comics. Taking on Superman is no small feat. A lot of people have been skeptical that his brand of directing of comic book movies, something that excelled the Guardians of the Galaxy. And despite his directing style in things like Guardians, Suicide Squad, and Peacemaker being different in tone than what we've seen from Superman, Gunn has shown that he is quite capable of changing it up for a different kind of hero. Superman is a blast of a film, while staying true to the character, and defining his own Superman story for a new audience.

Eschewing yet another origin story and build up to Kal El becoming Superman, we're dropped in the middle of this comic book world with Superman already operating as hero in Metropolis. There's no new intro to Lex Luthor, our main villain, and in fact, the film opens with Superman having lost his first battle and Luthor already operating as his manipulative villainous self. All of this does an excellent job of speeding us along to the current story in a film that, while a tad overstuffed and full of plot, is never the less a welcome change. And the film very much feels like a comic book film, almost as if we've been dropped right in the middle of a comic book.

For some, this might not be necessarily welcome, especially if you were smitten with the Snyder-era DC films. It's almost the opposite of those, being a very bright and colorful movie, with a Superman that is kind of silly and very much human. He speaks like us, has emotions like us, and is flawed like us. He very much loves humanity and it drives his characterization. And while Superman may be a titan on Earth, Gunn has managed to make him highly relatable while still maintaining his status as Superman. David Corenswet does an excellent job as giving us this kind of Superman and is incredibly likable as the character. This is in great contrast to Rachel Brosnahan as Lois, who is a more cynical and suspicious in comparison to Clark. This creates an excellent dynamic to their relationship that becomes the focus of where they are here. Their scenes are enjoyable in a different way, one that isn't quite as romantic, but a more realistic approach to something that might be as complicated as the world's greatest hero and an average human woman, both with different moral viewpoints. Superman is supported by The Justice Gang, name pending, consisting of Mr. Terrific, the Guy Gardner Green Lantern, and Hawkgirl. Everyone is excellent in their respective roles, though Mr. Terrific is the stand out and factors much more into the plot. Also a standout is Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, someone very much in tune with his villainy, but a more emotional and obviously psychologically damaged version, someone aware of his own mental flaws and equally embraces them. And then there's Krypto, who turned out to be adorable, even though he's a menace. I thought maybe the scenes involving him would bother me, but they turned out to be entertaining, though the movie probably could have stood to tone down just how chaotic Krypto can be.

While such a large cast might seem a hinderance, everyone here gets to shine and it can come from even the smallest of moments. While the plotting could have stood from some trimming, it never feels like a detriment. Likely, how much of the abundance of story bothers the audience will be up to each viewer. All of this is coupled with some great action that you'd expect from Gunn's comic book movies. We do get some riffs on stuff he's done previously, with some scenes I noted reminded me of other action scenes he's crafted. Some have complained about the effects in the movie, but nothing stood out that bothered me.

Overall, Superman is very enjoyable and welcome movie in a time when comic book movies have come to feel stale and worn out. DC has finally managed to produce something that stands out far more than the current crop of Marvel offerings and is off to an excellent start. With Gunn having proven he can handle not just what we've come to know about his previous efforts, but a superhero of a different variety, I am confident in what he has to come for DC and WB's future.