The Superhero Movie That Crashes and Burns

The success of last year’s Superman film proved there was still some interest in comic-book movies, all these years into their Hollywood-blockbuster dominance. The director James Gunn reintroduced viewers to the aw-shucks costumed champion, this time trying to make a name in a cynical, contemporary landscape, and Gunn’s approach made the classic superhero ideals of truth and justice feel fresh instead of corny. Tucked into the story was another caped crusader: Superman’s chaotic cousin, a hungover and bedraggled 20-something possessing none of his goody-two-shoes poise.This was Supergirl (played by Milly Alcock), and now she is getting a movie of her own. Part of the new crop of DC Comics movies, this latest installment is designed to build out a wider, interconnected franchise, much as Marvel did years ago. DC already unsuccessfully tried to expand its cinematic footprint a decade ago, with a grim and muddy trilogy from the filmmaker Zack Snyder. Supergirl, directed by Craig Gillespie, swings at the brighter tone Gunn brought to Superman. If Superman is the ultra-responsible face of the franchise, Supergirl is supposed to be his messier, relatable counterpart. Yet Alcock’s charming performance cannot elevate Supergirl beyond franchise filler—a disorganized character study meant only to extend a universe.Supergirl is, on paper, aiming for something knottier than a typical comic-book adaptation. The titular hero was born on the doomed alien world of Krypton, growing up in a shielded city that managed to survive the planet’s initial destruction. When that last bastion falls and she finally arrives on Earth in a spaceship, she’s a teenager mourning a family and civilization she knew and loved—as opposed to her cousin, who departed as a baby and has no memories of his home world. Supergirl’s grief sends her binge drinking across the galaxy to dull the pain of losing Krypton.[Read: All end-of-the-world menace, all the time]Looking at his previous work, I can understand w