This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Milly Alcock in a scene from "Supergirl." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)

Early into “Supergirl,” the second feature-length adaptation of the DC Comics character, someone asks why it’s ‘Supergirl’ and not ‘Superwoman.’ The answer is never given, proving the question, like the film itself, to be entirely pointless.

In this version of the character, which first appeared in 1959, Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl, is a miserable, burnt-out party girl on Earth. Her only source of love comes from Krypto, the wily super-dog who is also a companion to her cousin Superman. When Krypto is poisoned by a rotten extraterrestrial, Supergirl goes on a rescue mission that takes her on an intergalactic journey.

It fittingly begins with Krypto urinating on a photo of Superman (a self-fulfilling prophecy the film achieves in seconds) and just keeps getting worse from there.

Kara Zor-El was originally given her first solo vehicle in 1984. Also titled “Supergirl,” that movie was incredibly silly and had a plot involving a witch, a glowing orb and a possessed construction vehicle. Yet, I’ve always been fond of it, due to the charming lead performance from Helen Slater and the magical score by Jerry Goldsmith.

I’m also a fan of Melissa Benoist’s take on the character, which was the centerpiece of the “Supergirl” TV series that aired from 2015-21 on CBS and The CW. Considering how good Benoist is in the role, she should have been pursued for the lead in this film, but I can only imagine what she would have thought of the screenplay.

Milly Alcock had a lot to take on and the film’s failure is not entirely her fault, but this is the opposite of a star-making performance. Margot Robbie survived playing Harley Quinn, so perhaps Alcock can also overcome this performance, which is as off-putting as the film.

David Corenswet also makes sporadic appearances as Superman, a year after his winning starring role in James Gunn’s otherwise shaky “Superman.” The Superman appearances are so spare and have so little to do with the plot, Corenswet’s participation is less a special appearance than a contractual obligation.

Jason Momoa’s lively turn as alien bounty hunter Lobo is too infrequent to save the movie. Seeing Momoa with glowing red eyes is, no joke, my favorite thing in this entire movie. A better idea would be to give Momoa his own Lobo movie and not waste his presence and abilities here. Considering how Momoa stole “Fast X” (2023) and is proving to be a durable movie star and film actor, it’s a shame that his scenes here, like Corenswet’s, feel like hastily added reshoots.

So do the origin scenes, which tell the familiar story of the destruction of Krypton but to much less effect. The last time I saw this moment portrayed (which is to Superman lore what the murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne is to Batman), it was in “DC League of Super-Pets” (2022) and it made me cry. Here, we’re seeing, yet again, an event so overly familiar, it was originally performed by no less than Marlon Brando.

The action sequences don’t sell this and neither does the attempt to give Supergirl and her movie lots of ‘tude. Some choice soundtrack cuts from Rilo Kiley and Halsey are wasted on fight sequences that are chaotic but never exciting.

Director Craig Gillespie made the wonderful “Lars and the Real Girl” (2007) and “I, Tonya” (2017) but his gift for offbeat narratives eludes him here.

There’s so much missed potential in “Supergirl,” particularly in the failure to turn this character into a feminist superhero. I’d love to see the DC Comics equivalent of “Thelma & Louise” (1991) but what emerges is one of the all-time worst comic book movies.

“Supergirl” is worse than “The Flash” (2023), “Steel” (1997) and almost as bad as “Suicide Squad” (2016). Yes, it’s as bad as “Superman III” (1983), and yes, the 1984 “Supergirl” is far better.

The cinematographer is Rob Hardy, a frequent Alex Garland collaborator whose work I’ve loved in the past. I’m unsure what happened here, as this is the ugliest American movie since “Battlefield Earth” (2000). I’ve seen post-apocalyptic nightmares more beautiful than this.

(1 out of 4 stars)

Barry Wurst II is the founder of the Hawaii Film Critics Society and teaches film classes at University of Hawaii Maui College.