Introduction
One of the posters for Supergirl features the titular character in her Supergirl suit, a very stylish trench coat, and oversized sunglasses. I can’t take my eyes off it, and not because I want to ogle Milly Alcock, who plays Supergirl.
At first glance, it’s a wink at the classic image of Superman pulling his shirt apart and revealing his super-suit underneath, just before rescuing someone in need. Except that her sunglasses give off a tone that she’s hedging on doing the rescue. As do her hands in her pockets, like she’s in no hurry to remove the jacket and get down to business. And she’s looking off to the side rather than at us, possibly considering choices. Is someone really in need of assistance, or is that a fresh churro she smells? It’s the kind of poster that dares you not to watch the movie.
When we left the Superman film, we got a glimpse of Superman’s cousin, Kara (Supergirl), stumbling drunkenly into Superman’s fortress of solitude, looking for her dog Krypto.
Synopsis
Supergirl picks up with a montage of Kara getting drunk, waking up hungover in her spaceship, and repeating this cycle over and over again. Much to my delight, we quickly learn that Kara is not on Earth, but is barhopping from planet to planet. Each planet she visits orbits a red star, whose light renders her superpowers inert, allowing her to get absolutely sloshed. My delight is that the audience isn’t stuck with another Earth-bound movie.
By the end of this prologue, Kara ends up agreeing to assist a young girl named Ruthye (Eve Ridley) on Ruthye’s quest to avenge the death of her family. Ruthye wants to kill Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts), the leader of a band of space pirates called the Brigands who is responsible for orphaning Ruthye. Kara’s motivation isn’t one of altruism – she accepts that the universe sucks. But Krem poisoned Krypto and Kara has three days to get the antidote from Krem to save Krypto.
If you’re wondering why Kara doesn’t just fly Krypto to a yellow star, it’s because the healer looking after Krypto says if they try to move Krypto, it might speed up the poison. Don’t think too hard about very obvious solutions to transporting Krypto without “moving” him (they have interstellar spaceships but not levitating gurneys?), the healer said what she said.
Discussion
On top of the delight of this being essentially a space movie, it’s refreshing that stakes in this film are simply saving a dog and maybe killing a space pirate. No sky beams. No cities, planets, or universes about to be destroyed. No supervillains trying to take over everything. Not even a kidnapped princess being forced to marry some evil fiend.
With stakes so low and simple, the audience is free to enjoy the rest of the movie without having to absorb the weight and morality that tend to come with all those higher stakes. Instead, we get to enjoy the movie for what it is – a fun, entertaining, summer blockbuster. Those lower stakes also leave room for a ton of character and world-building for this fledgling DC franchise.
If you aren’t already a Superman or Supergirl nerd, then you probably have no idea about the different effects of different colored stars on Kryptonians. I sure didn’t. I knew from past movies that yellow stars gave them superpowers, but I had no idea that red stars made them normal or that green stars slowly killed them. Yeah, there are green stars in Kara’s universe. Now I’m excited to find out what purple, pink, and silver stars do. The possibilities are endless.
Further Analysis
We also get what is easily the best film version of the destruction of Krypton. This time, instead of just Kal-El (Superman), Kara, a dog, and a couple of criminals surviving, an entire city survives. For a while, at least. Kara is in that city, but eventually has to leave to survive and it breaks her. Suddenly, all of the drinking and shrugging off her concerned cousin’s calls makes a lot more sense. As does her fierce, if not suicidal, determination to save Krypto. It’s a lot like John Wick, but without a stupid car attached…and the dog is still alive.
It might sound like the story leans a little too heavily into two orphaned ladies looking for revenge, which is why they cast Jason Momoa as Lobo, an alien bounty hunter. This is a fantastic casting decision for two reasons. One, now they can’t resurrect Momoa’s Aquaman from the thank-you-for-putting-it-out-of-its-misery DC Extended Universe that preceded Warner Brothers hiring James Gunn to turn DC Studios around. Two, Momoa was as born to play Lobo as Ryan Reynolds was to play Deadpool.
I had never heard of Lobo until seeing this movie and I am instantly a fan now. If Lobo in the comic book is a massive humanoid, dressed like a Kiss groupie, and lobbing snark with a no-fucks-to-give aura, then the movie (and Momoa) nailed it.
Conclusion
You’re probably going to see some poo-pooing over this film being another rote Superhero movie. I will readily agree that it’s not mind blowing. But much of that has to do with The Avengers setting an impossibly high standard. Deadpool as well.
More importantly, Supergirl does everything we want a summer blockbuster to do. Great special effects. Lots of action. A whole lot of laughs. Fun characters that immediately draw us in. Solid storytelling. Hints at a what’s coming in future movies (without even doing mid or post credit scenes). It allows us to escape for a couple of hours into a different world and enjoy a good time. Dares us, even.
