Supergirl works best when it focuses on Kara Zor-El as a person rather than as a plot engine. Craig Gillespie’s film understands one crucial thing from the start: Kara is not Clark Kent, and treating her like a female version of Superman would be a mistake. Clark was raised on Earth with love, stability, and a clear moral foundation. Kara remembers Krypton. She remembers the destruction of her world, the loss of her family, and the pain of surviving something no one around her can fully understand.
While the film is inspired by Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s critically acclaimed 2021 miniseries, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, audiences will quickly realize this is not the traditional, sanitized Kara Zor-El of mainstream television. More importantly, comic fans will immediately pick up on a massive structural twist to her origin: instead of being the older cousin trapped in suspended space stasis, this Kara is officially younger than Superman. Rather than escaping Krypton as a teen ahead of Clark, she is born on the drifting, radioactive ruins of Argo City after the planet’s main explosion, meaning she has no memory of his birth parents or their old world. Instead of a wholesome female clone of Superman, the source material embraces a battle hardened, cynical survivor forged by the trauma of watching her world bleed out a radical character shift that the movie successfully carries over
That emotional foundation is where Supergirl is strongest. Milly Alcock gives Kara a wounded, rebellious spark that makes her feel completely distinct within the DCU. The film’s biggest problem is not Kara’s emotional journey. That part works. The problem is that everything built around that journey, from the plot mechanics to the pacing to several major conveniences, never feels as strong or as carefully thought through.
Kara Is Not Superman
The film leans into Kara as a cosmic wild child, someone who travels to red-sun planets so her powers are dampened enough for her to get drunk, party, and avoid sitting with her grief. That detail is one of the smartest ideas in the movie because it immediately tells us who she is and what she is running from. Her reckless “girly pop” energy is not just personality. It is a coping mechanism. The film even makes a point to identify not only each planet Kara visits, but also the type of sun or suns orbiting it, reinforcing how deliberate her self-destruction has become. Clark has found his home, his people, and his purpose. Kara has not, and more importantly, she is not mentally or emotionally ready for that kind of commitment.
Alcock grounds that energy with real sadness. She makes Kara fun, messy, guarded, and emotionally bruised without turning her into a hollow anti-hero. There is a birthday-related trigger that forces Kara to confront the grief she has spent years suppressing, and those moments give the film its clearest emotional purpose. We understand why she is the way she is. We understand why she drinks, lashes out, drifts, and resists connection. On a character level, the movie gives Kara a strong and compelling foundation.
That is why the film becomes frustrating. Alcock is doing the work. Kara’s emotional arc makes sense. The movie simply does not surround her with a story that is strong enough to match her.
A Stylish Space Western With Real Energy
Visually, Supergirl has plenty of personality. Gillespie brings a dusty, high-energy, space-western feel to the film that occasionally recalls the texture and movement of Mad Max: Fury Road. The alien worlds feel rougher and more physical than the usual polished superhero backdrops, and the film clearly wants to operate as a cosmic road trip rather than another standard save-the-world comic book movie.
There are some genuinely cool flight moments, and the costume and character design work stands out espcially all of the unique alien and creature design and looks. Kara looks great on screen, and the film often frames her with the kind of scale and iconography the character deserves. Even when the visual effects become a little too vivid or obvious in certain places, the movie still has a recognizable style.
Jason Momoa’s Lobo also brings a welcome jolt of chaotic, heavy-metal energy. He gives the film a personality boost whenever he appears, and his presence fits the stranger, rougher cosmic world the movie is trying to build. It is very clear this is a character Momoa was born to play. Even though Lobo does not have the biggest role in the film, he completely shines whenever he is on screen.
There is also a fun bit of voice work from British actor Paul Hunter as the Wormhole Bus Driver, a small role that adds to the film’s offbeat texture. You appreciate those brief moments of humor and wit, especially in a film that did not get much crowd reaction overall. Krypto also remains a chaotic scene stealer, but this time the film gives that chaos more emotional purpose. His role brings out the backstory, heart, and loyalty behind Kara’s journey, reminding us why dogs truly are a woman’s best friend. And of course some brief cameoish moments by David Corenswet’s Superman checking in on his cousin time to time with his typical hope and warmth persona.
Krem Steals More Attention Than Expected
Matthias Schoenaerts as Krem of the Yellow Hills and the leader of a ruthless gang of genocidal space pirates known as Brigands was the biggest highlight for me. The character’s motivations do not fully work, and the script does not give him enough depth to become a great villain, but Schoenaerts makes him consistently watchable. His charisma, wit, design, and screen presence give the film a sharper edge whenever he enters the frame.
That also points to one of the movie’s bigger issues. The villains and chaotic side characters often feel more entertaining than the central quest itself. Krem and Lobo bring the spark the film keeps reaching for, while Kara’s road trip with Ruthye Marye Knoll, played by Eve Ridley, does not always carry the same energy.
Ridley is not the problem. The issue is how Ruthye functions in the script. She is meant to pull Kara out of her emotional spiral and give the story its revenge-and-justice engine, but she often feels more like a tool designed to crack Kara open than a fully realized character with a satisfying arc of her own. Because of that, the emotional work with Kara lands, but the journey around her can feel hollow.
A Character Study Trapped in a Swiss Cheese Plot
The biggest weakness of Supergirl is its story logic. The movie succeeds as a character study of Kara’s trauma, loneliness, and emotional defenses, but the plot holding that character study together is full of gaps, conveniences, and forced turns.
Too many pieces feel like they exist only because the story needs them to. Certain developments arrive with frustratingly specific timing. Some locations, villain choices, galactic rules, and story beats line up in ways that feel less organic and more like the script forcing characters to the next checkpoint. When a movie asks the audience to invest in a cosmic revenge journey, the internal logic has to feel airtight enough that viewers are not constantly asking distracting questions.
That is where Supergirl struggles. The emotional truth is there, but the narrative mechanics are not. The film has the foundation for a powerful story about a survivor trying to stop running from herself, yet the larger adventure feels thin, convenient, and oddly low on memorable moments.
For a movie involving Supergirl, Krypto, Lobo, Krem, cosmic worlds, and an interstellar revenge mission, there should be more moments that make you sit up and react. Instead, the runtime is noticeable. You feel the film stretching itself out, not because the character work lacks value, but because the plot does not generate enough urgency to support it.
Still Searching for the Sun
Supergirl is not a bad movie. It has a strong lead, an interesting emotional angle, stylish visuals, some cool flight sequences, and entertaining supporting energy from Matthias Schoenaerts and Jason Momoa. More importantly, Milly Alcock proves she can carry Kara Zor-El forward in the DCU. She understands the pain, messiness, humor, and loneliness that make this version of Supergirl worth watching.
But the film around her is underwhelming. It gives us a compelling Kara, then traps her inside a story but the film itself feels too thin, too convenient, and too uneven to fully soar. The emotional material works because we understand exactly why Kara is broken, guarded, and reckless. It is everything else, the plot, pacing, stakes, and logic, that keeps the movie from becoming something special.
As a character introduction, Supergirl gets Kara moving in the right direction. As a full standalone superhero film, it lands closer to fine than fantastic.
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I’m a dedicated aficionado of all things movies, pop culture, and entertainment. With a passion for storytelling and a love for the silver screen, I’m constantly immersed in the world of cinema, exploring new releases, classics, and hidden gems alike. As a fervent advocate for the power of film to inspire, entertain, and provoke thought, I enjoy sharing my insights, reviews, and recommendations with fellow enthusiasts.
