Rarely do I anticipate a movie’s release so excitedly or for so long as I have James Gunn’s Superman. In these seven months since the first trailer that I’ve been waiting, I have shockingly rekindled a love for superhero movies that has seemingly hit its climax tonight, in glorious IMAX, which I don’t think I’ve experienced since our elementary school field trip to the downtown IMAX theater. Superman had a lot to live up to—months of speculation and expectation—and I’m happy to report that, while not exactly what I had pictured this film to be, it was wonderful nonetheless.

The factors that drew me to this movie were obviously its best parts. The music was effectively and emotionally realized by John Murphy and David Fleming, deviating from John’s iconic score in most instances and reserving the original motives for the film’s grandest moments. The visuals were striking and compelling, with visceral action sequences that moved so complimentarily to the characters. Neither Donner’s Superman nor Snyder’s Man of Steel understood and honored the do-gooding as well as Gunn’s did.

David Corenswet totally embodied Superman, as did Brosnahan with Lois; the characters felt lived-in and natural, even if it was these actors’ first times portraying these characters. Nicholas Hoult was also delicious as Lex Luthor; not only was he nefarious and evil, he was so easy to hate! Perfect! Speaking of lived-in, jumping into the world of Superman (and of many Metahumans), rather than yet another origin story, was a deft move by Gunn. It allowed him to envelop the audience in his desired comic-book feel; this felt like it was ripped straight from the pages (that I’ve never read…so sorry!).

The overarching themes were delivered clearly and effectively, even in a somewhat messy story with lots of characters and lore that Gunn did his best to explain in the moment, and they’re themes that I love: our actions and choices make us who we are (I loved this especially in the context of Kal-El’s immigrant story—to understand the immigrant based on their actions, not their background) and goodness conquers all, of course—Superman’s main axiom.

I was also surprised and (eventually) delighted by how Gunn didn’t take this world too seriously—the movie was incredibly funny without sacrificing its vivid sincerity, both situationally and dialogically, and while I did have to warm up to it, I totally did by the end and was loving it, as was our theater of obsessed fans. Superman was fantastic and possessed a reverence for its comic book beginnings and a prioritization of the superhero’s role as a bringer of hope that I think an entire decade of superhero films had trouble capturing, and I’m glad Superman was the hero to bring those values back.

The main reason that Superman specifically was the catalyst for my renewed interest in superheroes was because of his insistence on goodness, hope, and service to others. He’s a hero that’s incredibly easy to root for and to strive to be, and Gunn understood that. Not only that; Gunn made a fun, fast, inspiring, and powerful film honoring that very alien and his values. DC is back, and with visions as clear as these, I’m glad Gunn is at the helm. Can’t wait for Supergirl next year!