If we’re cutting through the noise, Gunn’s Superman fails not because of politics or “muh tone,” but because it’s hollow slop masquerading as sincerity. It pretends to have heart but never earns it. The story is overstuffed with side characters (played by Gunn's personal friends as always) & half-baked subplots, yet somehow still feels small. Nothing lingers. Scenes jump from quippy banter to melodrama to slapstick like it’s terrified of silence, terrified of letting a moment breathe.

The characters are rough sketched outlines, not sculpted. Clark smiles a lot, but there’s no weight to anything he does. Lois is reduced to soundbites, Lex barely registers as a threat & is clearly either misdirected or miscast.
Superman himself feels like a mascot more than a character. The film tells you he’s hopeful instead of showing you why he should be. It’s surface level forced charm designed to hit a four quadrant checkbox.

The action is forgettable & shot in a horrible wide lens throughout.
You never feel scale or consequence just blue tinted noise that looks like a Superbowl Car Ad.
Gunn clearly wanted Donner’s warmth, but without Donner’s patience or restraint. He wanted to ape some of Snyder’s grandeur but stripped it of all danger & weight. What you’re left with is something weightless desperate to be liked & worst of all desperate to be safe.

Say what you want about Man of Steel at least it felt like something. It had mythic ambition, It respected the idea of Superman as a figure larger than the frame
Donner for all the camp, understood awe "YOU WILL BELIEVE A MAN CAN FLY".

Gunn’s take? It’s a theme park version of Superman.

Is it the worst movie ever made? No, but it’s a nothing movie.
All smiles, no soul.
Worse than Donner because it lacks his sincerity,
Worse than Snyder because it lacks his conviction.
It’s just there & in many ways that's the biggest failure a movie can ever be....