EDITOR’S NOTE: Op-Eds detail the views of their writers and are not representative of the stance of the paper. Publication of Op-Eds is not tantamount to an endorsement of their content.
WARNING: Massive spoilers for “Superman” (2025)
One of the most popular modern film genres is that of the superhero blockbuster, with Marvel Comics benefitting the most with this trend. Several of their films — “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “The Guardians Of The Galaxy” — have been incredibly successful.
But despite their stiff competition, DC has also made a plethora of successful films, including their most recent movie, “Superman” (2025) directed by James Gunn and released on July 11th, 2025. As of now, the film has grossed well above $600,000,000 worldwide and garnered generally favorable reception from both critics and audiences alike. The film has shaped up to be quite successful, at least domestically and critically, as it seems to be performing well in international markets.
The film starts with the titular character, Superman (David Corenswet), after a battle with a new entity called The Hammer of Boravia, controlled by Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). As a result of Superman’s involvement in the conflict between Boravia and Jarhanpur, controversy rises over Superman’s personal viewpoints due to the United States’ relationship with Boravia. This culminates in the president of Boravia, Vasil Ghurkos (Zlatko Buric) criticising Superman for his decisions.
Afterwards, Superman, assuming his identity of Clark Kent, works at The Daily Planet with fellow reporter Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo), with the former asking Clark for an interview as Superman, which leads to more controversy arising. Eventually, Lex Luthor uncovers a message that Superman’s parents had sent when he was an infant, stating that Superman was meant to conquer the planet he was sent towards. This realization breaks Superman, causing him to surrender himself to be imprisoned in a pocket dimension.
With Superman imprisoned, the war between Boravia and Jarhanpur worsens as innocent people are losing their lives and the land of Jarhanpur is being lost to Boravian soldiers. Luthor’s demeanor eventually catches the attention of Eve Teschmacher (Sara Sampaio), who decides to work behind Luthor’s back, exposing various secrets including a plan to claim some of Jarhanpur’s land for his own personal gain.
Eventually, Lois Lane and Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) free Superman – who was weakened due to kryptonite – and a fellow prisoner, Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan), who then created sunlight out of his own body to escape the pocket dimension with his son Joey. All the while, the Justice Gang consisting of Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Mister Terrific, and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced) resolve the conflict in Jarhanpur.
While Superman tries to recover, Luthor finds out about Superman’s escape and attempts to reopen the pocket dimension, only for it to cause reality to begin collapsing. When Superman sees the threat, he tries to prevent it, eventually being stopped by Ultraman, who is revealed to be a clone of Superman created by Luthor to murder him.
Once Ultraman is defeated, Superman arrives at Luthercorp. Luthor reveals that his plan to deal with Superman entailed instigating the conflict between Boravia and Jarhanpur. While Superman attempts to deal with Luthor, Mister Terrific manages to prevent the rift in reality from destroying Metropolis. Once the day is saved, Luther’s plan is exposed and he is taken to prison. With Luthor thwarted, all of his prisoners had escaped from his pocket dimension prison as the film ends with Lois and Superman sharing one last interview.
Some things I like about this film are what Superman represents as a beacon of freedom and hope for everyone. This is shown in an earlier scene where a lizard monster is stopped by Superman as he attempts to save the life of a squirrel, as well as putting his own life on the line to save Metamorpho’s son and the civilians of Jarhanpur.
I also enjoyed how Lex Luthor was portrayed, as his hatred of Superman was consistent in being his defining motive. One last thing I admired is how the story of Superman’s heritage ultimately does not define how he acts as a person. Instead, the film proves that he, despite his origin, is a human being with hopes and dreams. My only problem with the film is the lack of focus that characters such as Jimmy Olsen get compared to characters like Ultraman and Vasil Ghurkos. Overall, “Superman” is a simple, yet enjoyable and realistic portrayal of several timely issues in our society, while creating a beacon of hope for improvement.
