Last year we saw the return of Superman to the big screen, along with a small cameo from his cousin, Supergirl. Now, Supergirl, aka Kara Zor-El, makes her first solo feature film appearance since 1984’s Supergirl. She has been a regular character throughout DC comics since 1959, often appearing alongside her cousin or off on her own adventures and with various storylines and alter-egos. Based on the 2021-22 Woman of Tomorrow comic book miniseries by Tom King and Bilquis Evely, Supergirl takes flight to find her feet amongst the up-and-comers in the new James Gunn-led DCU. Does she manage to make her own mark, or does she remain firmly in Superman’s shadow?

Director: Craig Gillespie
Writer: Ana Nogueira
Cast: Milly Alcock, Eve Ridley, Matthias Schoenaerts, David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham, David Corenswet, Jason Momoa

Warning: there will be spoilers for Superman (2025) and the Woman of Tomorrow comic book series.

Presumably after stopping off on Earth to pick up her dog Krypto from her cousin Clark Kent’s, aka Kal-El’s, aka Superman’s (Corenswet), Fortress of Solitude, Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl (Alcock), takes off to find planets with red suns that dull her powers, and therefore her metabolism, so she can drink to her heart’s content for her 23rd birthday. Along her intergalactic pub crawl, she meets Ruthye Marye Knoll (Ridley), a young girl whose family have just been callously murdered by the brigand Krem of the Yellow Hills (Schoenaerts). Krem and his cohorts also take girls from their families and force them into helping them continue their bloodlines (to put it very lightly). Ruthye implores Kara to help but Kara refuses until Krem poisons Krypto and Kara needs the antidote. Also owing to her own past in which she lost her parents after the destruction of Krypton and their subsequent ill health on a remaining piece of the planet that contained the last people of Krypton, Kara and Ruthye set off to track down Krem and end him once and for all.

The Woman of Tomorrow comic series is absolutely wonderful, providing a fresh take on Kara that moves away from her being this positive force alongside Superman into darker territory. Supergirl writer Ana Nogueira followed the comic’s anti-heroine dive into how Kara more realistically deals with loss and grief, making the film more thematically complex and, in some ways, interesting than Superman. Where Superman shone a light on his chosen family and his leaning on them for support, Supergirl revolves around Kara’s self-imposed isolation and inability to deal with the far more difficult hand she’s been dealt. There’s a depth that we haven’t really seen on-screen before for the Girl of Steel, making her more relatable than ever, and the pacing of the story never feels slow, with the action interwoven quite expertly with the drama and more emotional moments. The film also has a strong feminist angle, standing against the men that dare to take whatever they want, though it is all perhaps a little too on-the-nose at times, as well as possibly sends a message that regular women (i.e. human women) cannot fight for themselves without particular powers to make us stronger. Kara’s eventual acceptance of her flaws and unwillingness to let Ruthye become victim to the same fate is an easier aspect to relate to.

Some have mentioned a certain Guardians of the Galaxy tone and aesthetic to the film since the initial trailer’s release, and while that is a fair comment, they’re not similar enough to make a sturdy comparison (and Guardians writer/director and DC Studios co-CEO/-chairman James Gunn was only a producer on this film). The sets look and feel distinct to this universe and are well-suited to Kara’s need to lose herself amongst the rabble (and are very much inspired by the incredible artwork in Woman of Tomorrow). The aliens she encounters, while maybe not the most unique looking, bring some character to this new DCU that has only been touched upon in Superman and a little in the Peacemaker and Creature Commandos TV shows. Kara’s super-suit is modelled after Clark’s and the suit she wears in the comic, and it really is an excellent rendition of her own costuming that balances durability with, for lack of a better phrase, looking cool (and, truth be told, knowing her cape was made from some of the leftover material that made Christopher Reeve’s cape for Superman [1978] brought a little tear to my eye).

In my opinion, Kara has always been well cast in her various iterations, but I don’t think there are many actresses that could pull off this version other than Milly Alcock. She’s got the perfect amount of wit, strength and depth that brings Kara to life, not to mention being generally bad ass. Eve Ridley is a superb Ruthye, giving her the spark that she needs in this somewhat coming-of-age that she experiences. We also have another Game of Thrones-universe alumnus (alongside Alcock) in the form of Jason Momoa, who has clearly shed his (not all that well received) Aquaman skin in favour of the immortal Main Man, Lobo. This was, finally, the right casting for Momoa, as he physically and characteristically suits Lobo. With Matthias Schoenaerts as a despicable Krem and David Krumholtz and Emily Beecham as Kara’s (less megalomaniacal than Clark’s) parents, the cast is rounded out nicely for some good antagonism and solid backstory for Kara. It’s also nice to see David Corenswet have a few scenes as Superman, too.

Supergirl might resonate more with fans of Woman of Tomorrow, as it may not be what most audiences will be expecting (unless they’ve paid proper attention to her Superman cameo). Although the story on the whole has more depth than Superman, it also may not be as attractive or humanistic a story as that of Clark’s. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though: Supergirl is more of a space fantasy (spantasy!?) in a world of its own compared to Superman. Kara might not be as strong a force alone, something she is coming to realise, but as an introduction to the DCU and future main roles in films alongside her cousin, I think Supergirl does justice to this more modern and complicated version of Kara, and I’m expecting some earth-shattering head-butting with Superman.