Warning: This text incorporates main spoilers for “Supergirl.”
Courting again to the character’s origins in DC Comics, Supergirl has all the time been involved with the query of how one can differentiate the hero from her extra well-known cousin. It hasn’t helped that she’s actually of the identical background, with the identical energy set, and even shares the identical outfit as Superman. Heck, even this newest live-action reimagining bakes that pressure into the very launch of the film — “Supergirl” principally debuts within the shadow of final yr’s franchise-restarting “Superman,” one thing that is nearly made literal with Milly Alcock’s cameo look as Kara Zor-El on the finish of James Gun’s movie.
Evidently, director Craig Gillespie’s “Supergirl” handles this situation by letting its rebellious, self-destructive title character’s character dictate a lot of the motion. Proper from the get-go, Kara is hungover, disaffected, and content material to wander the galaxy from one alien dive bar to the following along with her canine Krypto. The makes an attempt by David Corenswet’s Clark to achieve out and politely urge her to return residence, whereas well-meaning, solely additional showcases the divide between the 2. Kara is all piss and vinegar, burying her turbulent feelings beneath an epic bender throughout the cosmos. This could not be extra at odds along with her buttoned-up relative, who solely simply went by way of his personal journey of self-discovery in his personal healthful method.
This results in a film that stands other than “Superman” with its harder-edged strategy — however that power provides strategy to probably the most obvious weak spot of “Supergirl,” as nicely. Though this makes for a novel, standalone journey that is prepared to go to some significantly darkish locations, the film undercuts these goals at nearly each flip. The result’s a haphazard tone, a script that feels at odds with its path, and a Supergirl-sized identification disaster.
Supergirl cannot (or will not) absolutely decide to its darkest storylines
For those who got here to “Supergirl” anticipating this messy heroine to save lots of squirrels from hazard or wax poetic about her emotions as a human being whereas confronting the movie’s large unhealthy, uh, might we kindly direct you to final yr’s aw-shucks “Superman” reboot as a substitute? The second installment of the newly-christened DC Universe may share an identical curiosity in punk-rock attitudes, however its interpretation of that vibe is far much less optimistic than its predecessor. This can be a film coping with the uglier facet of life, the place good values and robust ideas usually tend to get you killed than the rest.
That is greatest exemplified by its central villain, the abhorrent Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaerts). The story establishes Krem because the chief of a bunch of ravaging Brigands with a style for homicide and mayhem, however their true goals are much more disturbing. At one level, we be taught — by way of a throwaway line that is by no means explored any additional — that this band of criminals is definitely a part of an all-male society that depends on trafficking girls and younger ladies to additional their obscure targets. On the floor, this makes all these “Mad Max” comparisons in the early reactions to “Supergirl” make slightly extra sense (full with a bunch of “wives” which can be continually victimized however, crucially, by no means truly individualized right here). In apply, nonetheless, this crassly weaponizes the specter of implied sexual violence to boost the stakes … although with out ever truly having to cope with the uncomfortable realities of this plot system.
The inventive option to merely gesture at this darkish underbelly stands at odds with the in any other case pulpy, crowd-pleasing, needle drop-heavy enjoyable elsewhere — and the lack (unwillingness?) to reconcile these extremes speaks volumes.
Supergirl’s tragic Krypton flashback is its handiest sequence — however even this ignores its darker implications
That reluctance to totally have interaction with the darkness encroaching simply off-screen all through “Supergirl” additionally extends to Kara’s personal backstory, rooted in tragedy and loss of life following the destruction of her residence world Krypton. By now, everybody is aware of the story of how this group of superior beings are unable to stop the tip of their existence. However truly seeing it by way of the eyes of Kara’s mother and father, Alura (Emily Beecham) and Zor-El (David Krumholtz), hits otherwise. This brief story, informed solely by way of flashback as a haunted Kara shares her ache along with her companion Ruthye (Eve Ridley), is by far the very best and handiest sequence in “Supergirl” … with one necessary caveat.
Even right here, director Craig Gillespie and author Ana Nogueira are not on fairly the identical web page. It is heart-wrenching to witness Kara’s idealistic mother and father confront the upcoming catastrophe head-on, and but select to have their daughter Kara anyway (though this hopeful choice is, as soon as once more, solely implied and glossed over with a time-jump fairly than dramatized). However not as soon as does the movie reckon with the optics of Zor-El being the one who makes the decision to interact the power discipline that saves the survivors in Argon Metropolis, but dooms everybody else to a horrific loss of life. As younger Kara grows up within the ruins of an extinct world, “Supergirl” ignores the complicating components of who’s accountable and why — and, no, a stray line of dialogue blaming an unseen Jor-El (performed by Bradley Cooper in “Superman”) does not fairly reduce it.
In the end, “Supergirl” tries to have it each methods — a darker, extra mature tackle a traditional character that does not alienate anybody. As a substitute, it falls woefully brief. “Supergirl” is now taking part in in theaters.
