Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Superman.The newSupermanmovie does more right than it does wrong, but I could not let go of one controversial decision. Do not get me wrong, I lovedJames Gunn’s Superman reboot. The film very much feels like a comic book brought to life in the best of ways. The newDC Universeiscloser to the comics than the DCEU.
However, I found one issue with that approach, and while it does not hurt the plot in any major way, I feel like it is one of the worst decisions inSuperman’s movie history. Using the lighter tone of the comics works for the film’s events and most of its characters. However,a certain reveal can’t help but be ridiculous.
Superman Explains How Clark Kent’s Identity Is A Secret In The DCU
The Man Of Steel Hides His Clark Kent Life With One Element
Supermanfocuses on both sides of David Corenswet’s character. Superman’s identity is very much a focal point of the film, as the world debates whether the Kryptonian is a hero or a potential dictator. That said,Superman’s secret identity never comes close to being revealed despite the fact thathe has told the Justice Gang and more that he is Clark Kent.
It turns out that Superman’s trusting nature has a safety net behind it. Famously, the Man of Steel’s only disguise has been a pair of glasses. With them on, people do not seem to piece together that Superman and Clark Kent are the same person, despite how his appearance hardly changes. In the film,Clark wears Hypno Glasses, which mask his identity.
Hypno Glasses Make Superman’s Secret More Convoluted
The Hero Did Not Need Them For His Secret To Work
The Hypno Glasses are not new, as James Gunn pulled the obscure item from the comics. On the one hand, it gives those who were always skeptical about how Superman’s disguise was effective an answer as to why it works. However, I think it makes his secret more convoluted andtakes away some of the magic of the character.
In the past, Christopher Reeve showed with a change of posture and voice howit was easy to make Superman and Clark Kent feel like different people. Corenswet does the same thing inSuperman, which makes it baffling that Gunn would go for such a complex explanation as to why Superman’s secret identity works.
María Gabriela De Faría
Angela Spica/The Engineer
I would argue thatCorenswet’s Superman and Clark Kent look the most different from one another than any other live-action version of Superman. Despite that, the movie still chose to claim that Clark uses Hypno Glasses to alter the way he looks to people. In a world full of fantastical elements,Supermancould have left that one real factor untouched.
