Superman

There’s not much super about Superman, the latest slick and stylish attempt to reboot perhaps the most famous superhero origin saga of them all.

Rather than live up to its namesake, however, this new adaptation from director James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) seems conflicted and confused, with its big-budget spectacle often contradicting its more character-driven approach to the story, and its playful tone compromising its efforts to be satirically relevant or socially aware.

Thematically and conceptually ambitious, it’s more dazzling than dull, although from a narrative standpoint it strains to make meaningful contemporary upgrades to the mythology — reconsidering the legacy of its invincible “metahuman” title character in a world where his undaunted heroism is complicated by online skepticism, knee-jerk moral outrage, bureaucratic red tape, and rampant xenophobia.

Meanwhile, Gunn reimagines Metropolis and its people for an alternative social-media age where printed newspapers are still a primary news source. That’s where we find Superman’s alter-ego, journalist Clark Kent (David Corenswet), breaking stories while romancing colleague Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), who knows the secret of his dual identity.

His nemesis, of course, is Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), a power-hungry young billionaire whose lucrative contract for holding some of the city’s most violent criminals in his high-tech prison offers the ideal opportunity to frame Superman as an outsider by manipulating the truth about his past.

From there, Superman’s biggest battles are against his own vulnerability as he seeks to clear his name and reconcile his alien heritage amid a maze of corporate greed, political corruption, technological overreach, widespread conspiracy theories, and fickle public opinion. Draw parallels to today’s ideologically divided landscape at your discretion.

Without dwelling on the subtext, Gunn’s thoughtful yet chaotic screenplay steamrolls through some logical gaps while dutifully revealing a handful of sidekicks to set the stage for inevitable spinoffs and sequels to come.

Corenswet (Twisters) is a charming Superman with both brains and brawn, topping a world-saving ensemble that includes Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific, and Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl.

More reminiscent of the breezy 1978 film than its subsequently darker big-screen iterations, Gunn’s effort dials back the large-scale set pieces, relatively speaking, until the obligatory high-stakes final showdown with the fate of humankind in the balance.

By that time, despite its high-minded ideas, Superman has become a rather ordinary comic-book movie, struggling to remain grounded while rarely taking flight.

Rated PG-13, 129 minutes.