The first critical verdicts are now official for DC Studios’ much-anticipated sci-fi epic, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. The film has officially broken the consecutive “Fresh” streak of James Gunn’s newly minted DC Universe (DCU) with a polarizing 56% on Rotten Tomatoes before its theatrical release.
The film is an adaptation of the acclaimed 2021 comic book run by Tom King and Bilquis Evely, and it is a major step down in critical consensus from last summer’s Superman, which had a stellar 83% score. The split reception is the first bit of critical friction for the young cinematic universe.
Milly Alcock’s Punk-Rock Hero Gets Rave Reviews
The reaction to the movie has been very mixed, but critics are in pretty much universal agreement on one thing: Milly Alcock is the real deal.
The House of the Dragon breakout star, playing Kara Zor-El, has been widely praised for bringing a raw, gritty, and fiercely original energy to the titular superheroine. Alcock veers far from the traditional, clean-cut take on Supergirl. Instead, she leans into a deeply traumatized, cynical, and “punk rock” version of the character, a girl who watched her home planet burn and who is actively running from her past.
Alcock has been praised by reviewers for carrying the emotional weight of the story, especially her onscreen chemistry with breakout star Eve Ridley as Ruthye Marye Knoll, a young alien warrior on a ruthless quest for vengeance.
Guardians Effect, Visuals Dividing Critics
The film is sharply dividing audiences and critics with all that’s going on around its stellar lead performance. Supergirl, directed by Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya, Cruella), eschews conventional Earth-bound superhero tropes for a Mad Max-inspired space western aesthetic that’s cosmic.
The gritty industrial landscape is refreshing to some reviewers, but a large portion of negative reviews cite structural identity issues in the film. Some leading critics have observed that the movie seems less like a faithful adaptation of its source material and more like a derivative copy of James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, weighed down by incoherent editing and an over-reliance on musical action sequences.
Also, the movie’s third act has faced considerable backlash over how it looks. The first two acts do well to root the story in a unique, localized atmosphere, but the grand finale apparently turns into an overwhelming, muddy mess of dense digital effects and uninspired CGI backgrounds. The villain is flat and underdeveloped, and this has been pointed out as a frequent, major weak point that prevents the emotional narrative from really landing.
What This Means to the Changing DCU?
As the first live-action DCU project that studio head James Gunn did not write or direct himself, the mixed score has, of course, sparked intense debate among fans over the franchise’s creative direction.
Screenwriter Ana Nogueira, who penned the script for Supergirl, is also currently attached to write the upcoming Wonder Woman and Teen Titans feature films for DC Studios. Some worried fans are wondering whether the lower score will affect those future screenplays, but industry insiders say that Gunn is still very confident in Nogueira’s creative vision.
Ultimately, Supergirl feels like a cult-classic space adventure, not an unqualified critical darling. While its structural narrative choices, bland villain, and visual aesthetics may prevent it from achieving cinematic greatness, Milly Alcock’s powerhouse performance guarantees the character has a deeply promising, fiercely compelling future in the DCU.
Aman Rawat covers entertainment stories across movies, television, streaming platforms, music, celebrities, and pop culture. His reporting keeps readers updated on what’s trending, what’s releasing, and what’s making headlines in the entertainment world.