In the spring of 1938, when the figure of Superman made his first appearance in the pages of DC’s “Action Comics #1,” President Franklin Roosevelt’s efforts to combat the Great Depression via the New Deal were at their height. There had as yet been only one world war and Lou Gehrig was still playing for the New York Yankees.
Over the decades since, some version of the Man of Steel has cropped up, time and again, on radio and TV, in movie theaters and video games and has, in short, become a cultural staple. Surely, then, every new spin that could possibly be attempted on this nearly nonagenarian character must already have been tried?
Writer-director James Gunn thinks not. And so we get the reboot “Superman” (Warner Bros.).
The good news is that Gunn and his collaborators have succeeded in painting a fresh and vibrant portrait of journalist Clark Kent’s alter ego (David Corenswet). The less welcome tidings are that — mostly based on smudges of vulgarity in the dialogue — the picture is not a fit one for kids.
Clever humor, it turns out, features prominently on Gunn’s palette. That’s just as well since for most of the roughly two-hour running time of this latest adventure, Superman is on the back foot as he contends with a number of daunting challenges.
To begin with, his longstanding adversary, brainy but evil Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) — here a corporate titan and ethics-flouting tech whiz — has somehow developed a masked uber-warrior with the capability to defeat Superman in battle. Thus we first see Superman as he plummets out of the sky badly wounded after one such dust-up.
Once he recovers, it becomes clear that our hero has also hit a rough patch in his newly-minted relationship with Kent’s Daily Planet co-worker, reporter Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan). Their main quarrel concerns the morality of Superman’s recent intervention in an ongoing clash between two fictional nations.
Additionally, as the plot develops, Superman is plunged into an identity crisis based on unexpected revelations about his revered extraterrestrial parents. Luckily, he eventually gets good advice on this score from his earthly dad (Pruitt Taylor Vince).
Some of the jokes concern the exuberantly affectionate but unruly dog Superman is currently babysitting. Other laughs come by way of the appearance on the scene of a group of metahumans — to use the DC Comics lingo — who may or may not be collectively known as the Justice Gang.
This frequently-bickering ensemble is originally comprised of egotistical Guy Gardner/Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), serious-minded inventor Michael Holt /Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) and spirited high flyer Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced). They’re eventually joined, at least tentatively, by emotionally sensitive Rex Mason/Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan).
Old-fashioned in the best sense, “Superman” celebrates the small-town values with which its protagonist was raised. Yet the screenplay aims for contemporary resonance as well, serving as a parable about the treatment of immigrants and the evils of aggressive war. (Amusingly, its stand-in for Vladimir Putin resembles a post-“Munsters” Al Lewis gone to seed.)
Gunn keeps the romance innocent and the action bloodless. So it’s primarily the script’s occasionally wayward vocabulary that make this enjoyable reimagining safest for grown-ups, though some parents may possibly find it acceptable for mature adolescents.
The film contains frequent stylized violence, a brief scene involving streetwalkers, a couple of profanities, about a half-dozen uses each of milder oaths and crass language, several crude terms and obscene gestures. The OSV News classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
