Following Superman's at-home release, several scenes from the super-powered blockbuster have been heavily scrutinized now that audiences can pore over every second, revealing any and every minor CGI imperfection, awkward line reading, or film mishap. James Gunn's new DC movie has been widely celebrated for revitalizing the character and kicking off his renewed vision for the DCU on the big screen, but it also has not been without its critics.
The David Corenswet-led DC Comics epic has drawn criticism from some for its ultra-colorful world, lackluster CGI in moments, and James Gunn's signature 'heart on his sleeve' style of movie-making. These complaints have only intensified as the movie comes home with its digital release. Being able to watch the film in the comfort of one's home has allowed these detractors to hone in on what they did not like about the new movie.
Superman is available for digital purchase. The 2025 superhero spectacular from Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn tells the story of its titular Man of Steel three years into his career as Earth's most powerful metahuman, as he comes under fire for the first time following a hate-driven spear campaign by villainous billionaire Lex Luthor. The movie stars former Twisters actor David Corenswet as its central hero, along with Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane.
The 4 Most Scrutinized Superman Scenes
Ending Speech
One of the biggest points of contention since Superman's theatrical release was the ending speech given by Corenswet's Man of Steel.
In this moment, Superman confronts Hoult's Lex Luthor for one final time, waxing poetic about how he, too, is human, just like Lex and not an alien, as the movie's central villain (and many others both on and off the screen) has seen him for years.
This moment is Superman at its most earnest, drawing tears out of some but making others roll their eyes into the backs of their heads. This speech is essentially the movie's thesis statement, but some have seen it as a little too on the nose, with Corenswet's titular hero laying out precisely what the movie has been about for the audience.
Some have complained that Superman's outright statements about what everyone is thinking lack subtlety. The same message could have been conveyed through some subtext in another scene, perhaps between Clark and Lois or Superman and another character.
X-Ray Vision 'Plot Hole'
Over the course of Superman's just over two-hour runtime, fans are treated to the full spectrum of the Man of Steel's vast array of powers. However, one super-powered ability was a craw in the side of some moviegoers, especially those who have had more time to think about the new film.
During Superman's epic battle with the bumbling kaiju in Metropolis, Supes watches on as Edi Gathegi's Mister Terrific takes down the hulking beast. In this moment, Corenswet's DC metahuman uses his X-ray vision to watch Mister Terrific's T-Spheres detonate inside the stomach of the kaiju, sending it tumbling toward the ground.
While the use of X-ray vision is all fine and dandy as it happens, it leaves lingering questions. Specifically, it makes one wonder if this version of Superman could do that, seeing through the beast's thick skin to focus in on Mister Terrific's T-Spheres, how is it that the character goes the entire movie without knowing a clone of him is hiding under a thin fabric suit in Ultraman?
If the character can selectively see through parts of whatever he likes, he should have been able to see that, under the Hammer of Boravia and Ultraman suit, it is a clone of him doing Lex's supervillain bidding. Perhaps Lex imbued the character's armor with an 'anti-X-ray vision' coating or something, but that is not explained in the movie.
Daily Planet Staff Celebrating
Another place where fans have seen some cracks in Superman comes late in the movie, as the Daily Planet staff celebrate Superman's victory over Lex Luthor and the closing of the inter-dimensional rift that had ripped its way through Metropolis.
In this particular sequence, Lois Lane and her fellow Daily Planet coworkers cheer, jump for joy, and hug each other in slow-motion from behind the glass of Mister Terrific's T-Sphere ship.
The scene is not the most egregious moment in the 2025 Superman reboot, but after focusing on any one element for a bit longer, some fans have started to complain about it. The most significant point of criticism comes from the acting in the movie's celebration scene.
Words like 'inauthentic' or 'fake' have been thrown around to describe the performances in this moment, with some claiming they can tell the cast is not looking at anything here and are being told to react joyously (and not doing a good job).
Lex Luthor Command 'Plot Hole'
The last of these heavily scrutinized scenes is not actually a scene at all, but rather something that persists throughout the film: Lex Luthor's commands to Ultraman. In the movie, Hoult's central big bad does not fight Superman one-on-one but instead issues commands to the terrifying Ultraman from atop the LuthorCorp tower.
Some have taken issue with this particular narrative device, wondering how it is possible that Lex has time to see what Superman is doing, issue a command, and have an employee input that command all before Superman can react to what is happening.
It is a logical question to ask, that is, if Lex was reacting to what Superman was doing, but that is not exactly what the character is doing with his Ultraman commands. Instead, as explained by Terence Rosemore's Otis Berg early in the movie, Lex has been studying Superman since he came onto the scene three years ago, developing each and every one of these fight moves for battle.
That means the character is not exactly reacting to what the Man of Steel is doing in battle but instead predicts what Corenswet's Boy in Blue will do next and issues a command based on that.
