Director and DCU co-headJames Gunnhas made it very clear from the start that his intent withSupermanis tobring back the spirit– the hope, heart, and humor – that embodied theChristopher Reevefilms.If recent comments from Mike De Luca, Co-Chair and CEO of Warner Bros. Motion Pictures Group, are anything to go by,Gunn’s hit the mark, saying of the film, “It’s theSupermanI grew up with.“There’s little reason to doubt the claim when everything we’ve seen so far seems to indicate it is, but what exactly does he mean?
The World Fits ‘Superman’, Not the Other Way Around
The Reeve-ledSupermanfilms stand as thefirst blockbuster superhero franchise, and as such, had the freedom to establish the genre’s definitions.Movies in the 1970swere a decidedly mixed bag, from the twistedA Clockwork Orangeto the celebration of the underdog that isRocky, so there was no one direction to take DC’s iconic hero.Ultimately, they committed to the traditional view of Superman as a paragon of good and a beacon of hope, and Reeve, exuding those virtues with strength and confidence,was the perfect embodiment.
In doing so, the film sets Superman up as someone to aspire to, proof that one could rise above the cynicism and hatred of the world and be better.Reeve’s Superman didn’t fit the world, but rather inspired the world to fit him. Since then, however, the success of anti-heroes and darker figures like Batman changed the genre, and, like the proverbial square peg in a round hole, Superman was no longer leading the charge but was being changed to fit the world, with the character being given a melancholy that was never his to begin with.De Luca’s comments confirm that Gunn is bringing back that original Superman ideal, putting the character back at the forefront of what a hero can be.
Gunn Brings Back the “Superman We Grew Up With” While Expanding Its Vision
The most telltale sign that what De Luca says is true isn’t the footage we’ve seen, but one important aspect of its promotional material: the tagline, “Look Up.“The tagline for 1978’sSuperman, “You’ll Believe a Man Can Fly,” was more than a promise to see Superman’s abilities on screen, but subtly suggests you’ll believe in what that man represents, too. The “Look Up” tagline bypasses the promise of seeing Superman fly – that’s old hat by now – but makes a stronger statement than the original. There’s the literal interpretation of looking up to see Superman,but also to look up from the position we’re in today, mired in the petty arguments and melancholy of today, and, like the Superman we grew up with, and aspire to be more.
The Early Superman Cartoons That Paved the Way for James Gunn’s Take on the Man of Steel Are Essential Superhero Viewing
Superman, now in 3D and Technicolor!
De Luca has the advantage of having seen the full film, but it doesn’t mean that the footage we’ve seen so far isn’t enough to gauge how accurate his claims are. There’s a playfulness to it that’s been missing since Reeve. There’s the sweetness ofDavid Corenswet’s Superman embracingRachel Brosnahan’s Lois and floating above the ground that hearkens back to the relationship between Reeve’s Superman andMargot Kidder’s Lois. One brief scene that sees Corenswet fly in to protect a girl from getting hit by an explosion speaks volumes about Superman fighting for even the smallest ones, like swooping in to save a boy at Niagara Falls inSuperman II.
Even the moments that don’t mirror the “Superman we grew up with” look like they would have fit in perfectly withRichard Donner’s iconic original, had the tech been available. Fighting a kaiju, for example, would have looked stilted in comparison to what can be accomplished today, but it’s not hard to see Reeve’s iteration selflessly taking one on (and better than Nuclear Man fromSuperman IV: The Quest for Peace, to be sure). And just how perfectly would Krypto have fit in with Reeve’s Superman? The inclusion of other heroes, likeGreen Lantern Guy Gardner, is something else that wouldn’t be out of place in the original films.So yes, De Luca is right in his claim, but I would add to that one more thing: “It’s theSupermanI want my children to grow up with.”
