Film: Superman
Cast: David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, Trevor Newlin, Will Reeve, Alan Tudyk, Grace Chan, Bradley Cooper, Angela Sarafyan, Dinesh Thyagarajan, Michael Rooker, Pom Klementieff, María Gabriela de Faría, Sara Sampaio, Tatiana Piper, Stephen Blackehart, Giovannie Cruz, Bonnie Discepolo, Neva Howell, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Zlatko Buric, Martin Harris
Director: James Gunn
Rating: 3/5
Runtime: 130 min

Superman, the latest instalment in the ‘man-of-steel’ franchise has writer-director James Gunn, the most successful comic-book movie director ever, helming it and that in itself raises the level of curiosity way high. And I must say this is the most engaging and entertaining Superman movie in a long time though it might not exactly be a new take on the most iconic superhero. This umpteenth incarnation of the popular superhero, with David Corenswet as the Man of Steel, moves on without retreading the origin story.

Other than his metahuman abilities Superman is just as conflicted a human as you and me. He too feels the pain of rejection from the very people he is trying to save…and when they turn on him because of some suspiciously tainted evidence, his regret is deeply felt. The tainted evidence relates to what his parents Jor-El & Lara Lor van had intended for him on Earth. This Superman gets the emotions right.

Before we see Superman we get a very brief 300 year old history, in text form, explaining the arrival of metahumans on earth. The conflict here is about Jarhanpur, a country which has a resemblance to Afghanistan, being overtaken by Boravia (which could be a stand-in for Russia). Superman, who flew in to help the people of Jarhanpur returns back , all battered and bruised, seemingly on his last legs. That may be the first time in the film but its not the last.