SUPE’S ON

One of the things that bugs me about superhero movies, most of them at least, is that whenever a new movie features, say, a new Spider-man, we have to sit through yet another origin story.

I mean, how many times must we endure the way Peter Parker gets bitten by the radioactive spider? It has been the same with Superman.

In past here-we-go-again theatrics, his planet Krypton is about to explode, so his parents send him in a custom spacecraft to Earth where he’s adopted by a kindly couple on a farm in Kansas and grows up to be Superman. Been there, done that—way too many times.

But in this newest rehash of the caped one’s saga, director James Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) thankfully jettisons all the old tropes and gives us a fresh re-telling of the story we thought we knew.

In fact, the film begins in what could be called the middle. Superman is already grown up and losing badly to an all-but-invincible robot-like creature. And, yes, that’s Superman with a bloody lip.

Already I am intrigued. Because, after all, since Superman first appeared in the comics in 1938, he was largely super-powered, “able to leap tall buildings” and all that, which, frankly, made him boring. There was no vulnerability, except for his weakness whenever in the vicinity of Kryptonite.

This time around, Superman is played by actor David Corenswet, a relative newcomer. He might not have the gravitas of the previous Superman played by Henry Cavill. But unlike Cavill, Corenswet displays a softer side to the character which is a welcome change of pace.

And--surprise--he has a canine sidekick, Krypto. The dog practically steals the movie, so expect lots of stuffed Krypto toys this Christmas.

Also new to the narrative, is a pluckier Lois Lane, courtesy of actress Rachel Brosnahan, who was so winning as the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, in the cable TV series of the same title.

Brosnahan gives a feminist twist to the intrepid Daily Planet reporter. In other words, she’s no pushover in her dogged pursuit of Superman’s true nature, if not identity. Except that it’s soon clear that she and Supes are dating. And in my book, that’s not a bad thing.

Again, the story arc dumps the tired cliché of Lois liking Clark Kent as a friend and not realizing her nerdy co-worker is actually a superhero inside that Brooks Brothers suit. And we don’t have to suffer through Kent’s curious disappearing act whenever duty calls.

The chief villain of the piece is Lex Luthor, played by actor Nicholas Hoult (“The Menu”). Luthor is determined to destroy Superman once and for all. And he employs a staff of tech bros who can manipulate Superman’s enemies with an array of algorithms. Just don’t ask me to explain how.

Hoult’s Luthor is a sinister, frothing-at-the-mouth freak who keeps his enemies in a subterranean gulag, not too subtly suggesting a comparison to a certain world leader who wants to establish prison camps to contain illegals.

However, this movie is anything but political, or “woke,” as some conservative critics would have you believe.

It is in fact the launching pad for a revitalized DC Comics universe designed to give Marvel a ruin for its money. And based on what I saw, the DCU has succeeded in bringing to the big screen one of the summer’s most entertaining cinematic thrill rides.

And so far, the box office numbers would appear to agree with me.