Superman

If there was an Oscar for casting, John Papsidera (Oppenheimer, Yellowstone) would win it for the absolute perfection of every actor cast in James Gunn's thrilling new comic book epic, SUPERMAN.

This is the DC movie that we've all been waiting for since 1978, when Christopher Reeve wore the cape so well in his original outing.

I'd never heard of David Corenswet until I saw him in last year's hit "Twisters". He is, without hesitation, the best Superman since Reeve and in some ways, even exceeds Reeve's portrayal, especially in his Clark Kent guise.

Rachel Brosnahan is the best Lois Lane ever. Confident, funny, flawed, she's fantastic.

James Gunn brings the same sense of FUN and thrills that he did to "Guardians of the Galaxy" as he launches into this complete reboot of the DC film world. He makes some bold choices that work beautifully.

First, he skips all the "Superman arriving from Krypton, growing up" back story and skips right to a present day Metropolis/Gotham City.

He also establishes a DC universe in which creatures from other universes are already here. Superman is not the lone super being on Earth.

Lex Luthor, again, perfectly cast and embodied by Nicholas Hoult (Mad Max: Fury Road) already has a giant industrial presence, his LutherCorp mega skyscraper dominates the skyline. Hoult's Luthor is shrewd, intelligent and manipulative on a global scale. Hoult nails it, making Superman's foe much more dangerous than Gene Hackman ever was.

By plopping us down in an established world, it gives Gunn a lot of room to fill and the first half hour, for me, seems a bit overstuffed. I love that he credits the audience with enough intelligence to soak it all up, and by the 45 minute mark, I did. Everything takes off from there, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit some concerns in the first thirty minutes. I should have trusted Gunn, because he ramps the final hour into a fantastic, TRUE COMIC BOOK film.

It's loaded with wild characters.

Nathan Fillion is hilarious as Guy Gardner, the cocky leader of the Green Lantern Squad. He's always there to have Superman's back, as long as he gets credit for it.

Isabel Merced (Alien: Romulus) is a blast as Hawkgirl, who would scare the hell out of me with that shriek.

Edi Gathegi, who fans of Apple TV's "For All Mankind" will know as Dev, is flawless as the technologically brilliant Mr. Terrific, the most balanced member of the wanna be Justice Gang, or whatever they decide to call it, the name is as yet, undetermined.

At the Daily Planet, Skylar Gisondo (Vacation, Booksmart) brings big laughs as Jimmy Olsen, a very social media savvy reporter with some powerful sources.

I could go on all day about the cast. From the leads to the smallest roles, they are the perfect choices.

Gunn knows what we loved about Richard Donner's film and the key notes are all there. Unlike other reboots though, he finds the perfect tone for those notes. When they arrive on screen, the moments are 100% a new take, but feel proud to be referencing the 1978 film and the rich comic book history of Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster.

Superman's Fortress of Solitude, yes. Spectacular.

Krypto! Come on, I'll admit it. When I heard Superman had his dog along for the film, I was very skeptical. Sounded cheesy to me. Gunn made a racoon into a superhero, so why did I doubt what he'd do with Krypto!?! The pup has some of the best scenes in the film, including one hilarious bit in the conclusion involving Lex that only Gunn would stage this way. It got huge laughs and applause from the sold out crowd.

One scene between Superman and Lois takes place in a quiet apartment, with a nighttime battle going on in the background that would have been an action center piece of any other DC film. For me, it was Gunn's deft way of shoving the battles to the background and focusing on the humanity of the story. Thank you, James Gunn.

Frequent Gunn music collaborator John Murphy and David Fleming's score is omnipresent, weaving in John Williams original theme music at all the right moments. There are also a couple of nostalgic visual allusions to the soaring main title credits of Donner's original that made me smile.

Hell, this whole movie made me smile.

Mostly because its left the dark, self importance of the past few Superman films behind, instead celebrating what is good and right about our most morally sound superhero. Other than the Dark Knight films and the original Wonder Woman film, DC has been a slog through boring, turgid self importance for me. Not here.

There are so many old fashioned, joyous movie moments in these 129 minutes that it's impossible not to walk out with a HUGE smile on your face.

It's a star making turn for Corenswet, whose range of emotions as the man from Krypton exceed any other past actor. He's funny, he's pissed off, he's wounded, he's incredibly powerful. At the root of his performance, he's kind.

That turns out to be not only the greatest power of all, but exactly what I've been waiting decades for in a DC movie.

Kindness, Joy and laughs are going to make this one a massive hit this summer. The audience at our preview event went wild with applause as the end credits rolled.

Well earned James Gunn.

Welcome back, Superman.

SUPERMAN gets an A.

Yes, there are two end credits scenes, one sweet and one funny that you'll want to wait for!