It’s finally here, James Gunn’s Superman, or Supergunn, if you prefer. I can’t think of a recent movie that’s been talked about so much for months before its release, with both positive and negative commentary. I have to admit, I had my doubts too, after the seemingly endless release of trailers and clips, but now we get to see it in full, and the results are… a little mixed.

As far as the plot goes it’s pretty simple. Lex Luthor is a bad guy who hates Superman, thinks he’s a threat, and so arranges for him to be arrested by staging a series of incriminating events that make the Man of Steel look like he’s out to enslave Earth. With him out the way, Luthor can put his plan to gain even more power and money into effect.

That’s pretty much the entire plot, but the movie takes the long way round in telling it. It’s simply complicated, with Lex Luthor having an incredibly involved plan involving foreign wars, the Pentagon, clones, and a lot of convenience to get what he wants.

There’s a heck of a lot going on here, and it can be hard to keep track of everything that’s happening, as it flicks by so fast. Original the movie was going to be a good twenty minutes longer before a last minute recut brought the runtime down, so I wonder just what parts got cut, and whether some of these storylines got a bit more padding.

As it is, there’s a lot packed into this one movie. It’s not just about Superman, there’s also Guy Gardner, Mr. Terrific, Hawkgirl, and Metamorpho. They are all most definitely in the film, though their input is minimal and they’re more their for the plot’s sake rather than their own characters. That’s a common theme throughout the movie. It feels more like we’re in an omniscient perspective rather than down at the level of these characters. That’s partly because there’s so much “stuff” in here, that there’s never a moment to breath before you’re transported to a new location, a new character, monster or plot is introduced, or it’s time for a big fight scene.

It feels like James Gunn couldn’t quite decide what he wanted to make this movie about, so just grabbed a handful of elements from his favourite Superman comics and mashed them together into a colourful mess.

Naturally this is all overlaid with the characteristic Gunn humour. To be honest it’s not as bad as I thought. It’s all throughout, and Krypto is in far too many scenes, but it’s not the main focus, unlike his other movies. There are breaks taken to let the emotions come through, even if they’re not as common as I’d have liked.

Is this a great start to the DCU then? To be honest, I don’t think it matters all that much. It’s performance at the box office will obviously affect future decisions, but this isn’t the Iron Man of the franchise. It feels more like a single movie that can be built off from later. This isn’t an origin story for Superman, and I’m fine with that. We already saw that last time with Man of Steel, and it feels like something that’s well enough known not to have a big impact when people see the movie.

We’re already deep in the action with “Metahumans” (i.e. superheroes) having been around for years now, and the world painted in broad enough strokes that there’s room for the upcoming movies and shows to fill in the detail.

Is it a good Superman movie then? I’m not a comic reader, so I can’t judge its accuracy and can only rate it as a film, but I’d say, on the whole, yes. It’s big, loud, and filled with CGI spectacle and a wonky script. I’m surprised at the amount of times Superman gets beaten or has to rely on someone else’s help to win. I know he’s not indestructible and there have to be some stakes, but it seems to lack just that one big hero moment for the title character. Maybe this is some sort of message about “working together” or how we all need help sometime, but it would have been nice if Superman stood a little further to the front.

I don’t think this is a cinematic masterpiece that will shine as n example through the ages. It’s not groundbreaking or a marvel of filmmaking, but it has a nice “comic book-y” look to it, some genuinely impressive scenes, and a lot of action.

Despite all of its faults though, I enjoyed it. It’s fun and entertaining, and you can have a good time at the theatre and leave in a good mood, and considering a lot of entertainment today, I consider that a win.