Supergirl Review: Milly Alcock Soars in Solid DCU Movie
Look out! James Gunn’s DC Universe continues on the big screen. After 2025’s Superman reintroduced us to the Man of Steel, we now have Supergirl, a film about his much more chaotic cousin. Milly Alcock plays Kara Zor-El, a young Kryptonian celebrating her 23rd birthday by partying on planets with red suns where she can get drunk. She lives and dies by her oversized sunglasses and her dog Krypto, and soon finds herself taking on the villainous Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts).
Despite being directed by Craig Gillespie, Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies feel like a massive influence on Supergirl, from the production design to the characters to the costumes to the needle drops to a solid middle finger joke. While Superman was mainly set in Metropolis, Supergirl puts us in new worlds and outer space, introducing more aliens and seedy backdrops into this universe. With a bit of a Star Wars flavor thrown in there, Supergirl is entertaining and fun to watch, even if it doesn’t do anything too groundbreaking.
Alcock is perfectly cast as Kara. She brings such a brilliant energy to the film and offers a humorous contrast to Superman/Clark Kent. While he’s generally a goody-two-shoes who doesn’t even say many curse words and has an optimistic view of humanity, Kara describes him as a “frickin’ nerd.” She didn’t grow up on Earth, and her backstory has shaped her into a very different person. In her words, “He sees the good in everyone, and I see the truth.” She drinks a lot and has built a hardened shell, but remains a good person willing to fight for truth, justice, and…whatever.
Clark and Kara could not possibly be more different, with Clark encouraging her to come to Earth and be a hero for the citizens of Metropolis. But Kara lives in a trailer, takes care of her dog, and is far less interested in being a traditional superhero. However, we meet Ruthye (Eve Ridley), a young girl whose family has been murdered by Krem, and she seeks vengeance. After a man in a bar steals her sword from her, Kara fights him off and returns the sword to Ruthye, all while in a drunken state.
From here, the story can feel conventional. Ruthye wants Kara to help her in her quest for revenge, but Kara refuses. However, when Krem arrives and shoots Krypto with a poison dart, Kara realizes she must track down Krem as well to get the antidote to save her dog. It becomes personal, and the movie brings in a ticking clock of 72 hours before the poison kills Krypto. The ticking clock isn’t mentioned often enough to feel urgent, but the attempt is there. The story of a young girl seeking revenge on the people who murdered her family, along with the tale of a capable hero forced to team up with a child, are both tried-and-true formulas—formulaic for sure, but they nearly always make for interesting stories.
Even if at its worst, Supergirl can feel like an imitation of other superhero movies, it can also offer a decent amount of fun. One of the more inspired casting choices that has been discussed for years is Jason Momoa as bounty hunter Lobo. A longtime fan of the character, you can tell how passionate he is about portraying the character well. He brings a lot of his trademark energy to the role, while also introducing an unpredictable energy to the film that’s very welcome.
One of the strongest elements of Supergirl is how it shows more of the destruction of Krypton and what got Kara to be where she is today. One of the most compelling scenes is one that Kara shares with her father, Zor-El (David Krumholtz), where Zor-El tells her how important she is and why she must live. The scene is entirely spoken in the fictional language of Kryptonian, but it’s one of the most sincere moments in the film. Both Alcock and Krumholtz are delivering emotionally driven work that really allows you to feel what’s going on.
Another asset to Ana Nogueira’s screenplay is how it manages to organically weave in feminist themes. The villains are human traffickers, trafficking women to continue an all-male race. Again, it’s not too revolutionary for a blockbuster to include ideas like this, as Mad Max: Fury Road did the same, but Supergirl does a superb job of making the two lead characters, Kara and Ruthye, potential victims of this trade. These are real-world issues that manage to fit into this setting. Also, as Kara isn’t dressed in her classic costume for most of the film, this movie really does feel like a story of becoming—she must embrace who she was always meant to be.
One of the weaker elements is the villain. Krem is ruthless and will kill men, women, and children, but that’s not enough. He’s one-dimensional on the page, and his portrayal feels like any evil human trafficker in any action movie. As far as powers go, he’s nowhere near as strong as Supergirl, nor is he a memorable villain. And while Ridley gives a good performance, Ruthye also needed a more interesting personality and some humor to really shine.
Overall, Supergirl manages to deliver a good amount of entertainment, particularly in the action sequences. Besides Alcock and Momoa, nothing is truly exceptional. You’re going to get more of what you love from the superhero genre, but there are many superhero movies with better action, better comedy, and better needle drops. Gillespie does fine work, but as far as music choices go, he’s no Gunn. Claudia Sarne’s musical score simply gets the job done, but it’s in the shadow of Superman, which has one of the most iconic theme songs in cinema history. This is middle-of-the-road superhero cinema that doesn’t do much wrong and gives you a good time at the movies.
SCORE: 7/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” A successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
Disclosure: ComingSoon attended a press screening for our Supergirl review.
Source: Comingsoon.net