Luthor was kind of boring. For me he was the worst version we've seen. I like Hoult, but he didn't bring a twist to it like Eisenstein's loopy tech billionaire or Spacey's excellent Hackman homage. Hackman remains the guy, but he's a tough act to follow.
Ooof. Can't agree with this. Felt like it was the most true-to-comics version of Lex we've had. Spacey copying Hackman's oddity was okay but was copying a very non-Lex idea of the character, and Eisenberg's Lex is... eh. Even Clancy Brown is almost his own thing. A fantastic thing, mind you, but he's almost more of a tiger and not the snake I always like Lex to be (I really,
really liked Mark Rolston's version in
Young Justice). But I love how energetic and emotional this Lex felt; not just a cold, calculating creature but one who is just actively petty and terrible
and knows it. He's not just setting things up, but he's so active in what he does compared to the others. His little actions, like actively looking for someone to threaten in front of Superman, his monkey-troll farm, his little pokes like calling him a Martian or quietly insulting Krypto in the office scene really work for me. He's vindictive and angry, and I love that Superman points it out and he like "Yeah, I know it!" and goes on to completely self-justify it. It was fantastic. Watching him glow with pride when they almost suffocate Superman to his tears of anger when he's beaten... just great. Of all the performances in the film, his was maybe the biggest standout.
And I think that's part of what I like about this film: the characters are emotional. Reeves was ultra-self-assured, Routh was wrapped up in a mild angst, and Cavill... was kind of cypher, wrapped up in existential looks. And I liked Cavill a bunch; I liked
Man of Steel and even argued for it back in the great flamewars around that movie (Man, those were terrible). But Corenswet brings range and emotion that really sets him apart, and I think it helps make his Superman sing. It makes him relatable in a way that most movies don't seek to make him without sacrificing who the character is. He
feels like a well-meaning dork even when he's Superman, and I think it really helps the film that he always feels like Clark, even if he doesn't wear the glasses too much in this movie. When he's going at it with Lois because he's looking at the international problem in a more simplistic, direct way and Lois just keeps inviting complication, when he's arriving back to his apartment down because he couldn't find Krypto and we get the second Lois conversation, him getting furious at Lex for stealing Krypto or having an existential crisis over why he was sent to Earth... all that stuff really
works.
The rest of the cast is great to varying degrees: Fillion and Gathegi are fantastic as Guy Gardner and Mr. Terrific, two characters I'm a massive fan of (just look at my avatar) and I think they both have individual voices rather than just sounding like the same lines from two different people. Sadly Merced doesn't get nearly as much with Hawkgirl, though she does well with what she does get. Brosnahan is a fantastic Lois and the rest of the speaking Daily Planet staff are great in their roles (Poor Ron Troupe...). Ma and Pa Kent are great for what they are, though I would say they are less rubes and more
rustic. I love this Pa Kent's talk with Clark and I love Ma calling him a mush.
Overall, it's a great movie. There are a few quibbles I have (the pocket dimension fight could maybe have been 20-25% less long would probably be my big one), but despite having a whole bunch of parts it doesn't feel cluttered or messy. They give a lot of characters little parts rather than trying to give everyone some storyline or something and it ends up working. Might be my favorite superhero film of the last 15 years.
