Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [HD DVD]
![Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [HD DVD]](/images/Superman-II-The-Richard-Donner-Cut-HD-DVD-B000I2JKE2-L.jpg)
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Jackie Cooper, Marlon Brando, Ned BeattyBrand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Director's Cut, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.40:1
Running Time: 115 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-11-28
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [HD DVD]
Movie Review: A Gift to All Superman Fans
Summary: 5 Stars
This is more of preview than a review, but I think you'll find the information useful.
Superman fans paid a heavy price for the misguided firing of director Richard Donner with all of Superman I and 70% of Superman II already in the can. The resulting version of Superman II we all endured was re-shot by the far inferior director Richard Lester.
The film was a financial success, but it was a mess. It was far too campy and, despite an interesting premise, it was the beginning of the long downward spiral of the franchise.
The unseen footage that Donner shot was widely believed to have been lost or discarded, but luckily for us, it wasn't. Using footage from Lester's version to fill in any gaps, this version is going to be a dream come true for Superman fans. So, in the year that saw the return of Superman in Bryan Singer's faithful film, we will get to see the late Christopher Reeve strap on the tights one more time.
2006: Superman Returns....Again.
Summary of Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [HD DVD]
Warner Brothers Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut - HD-DVDThe Version You Have Never Seen!
Unwittingly released from "Phantom Zone" imprisonment, three super-powered Planet Krypton criminals (Terence Stamp, Sarah Douglas and Jack O'Halloran) plan to enslave Earth - just when "Superman" (Christopher Reeve) decides to show a more romantic side to Lois Lane (Margot Kidder). Gene Hackman (as Lex Luthor) also returns from the first film and with a top supporting cast, witty Richard Lester direction and visuals that astound and delight. "Superman II" saves the day any day you watch it.
The Richard Donner cut of Superman II is an infamous legend come to life. Director Donner shot most of the sequel at the same time as his first blockbuster film, but somewhere along the line, the producers and studio lost confidence and brought in Richard Lester (The Three Musketeers) to rework the film, and receive sole credit. For years fans speculated on how different the final film was from Donner's original until an underground copy appeared showing a fully formed feature. In an unprecedented move, Warner Brothers officially embraces this alternate version. For those who have not been part of the rumor mill, know that Donner shot all the footage with Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman). You can find blow-by-blow descriptions of what is new/changed elsewhere, but most of the changes deal with Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder as the comic-book couple. Donner's cut provides alternate scenes for how Lois tests her hunch that Clark is Superman, the moment he reveals his identity, and how Lois unlearns that truth. Thing is, Lester's reshots are stronger, adding weight to the romance between the two, lifting the picture's stature. Lester also added the dandy Eiffel Tower opening. Donner's chief additions are in the Fortress of Solitude, where Marlon Brando returns to teach (Susannah York, as Superman's mom, appears in the Lester cut). The producers cut Brando's footage so they wouldn't have to pay him millions. The Brando/Reeve scenes continue the father/son dynamic of the first film. There is a great lesson in editing--Lester's less is better than Donner's more--when you compare how Kent turns back into Superman after losing his powers. The Donner cut is completely formed but does use some rehearsal footage, new effects, and some pieces shot by Lester. The history of cinema has many of these stories of movies reshot, hijacked, and changed from the original version, but here the underdog wins and Donner gets his chance to change history, even adding a note in the end credits about the use of fur and smoking as regrettable choices of the time.
Director Donner and creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz have a jolly good time revisiting their past on the commentary track. You get a clearer picture of who shot what, but the two have nothing good to say about Lester's edition. Donner doesn't go much into why he was dropped, just a difference of opinion and the need not to pay Brando. He also explains why the déjà vu ending of this edition was used in the first movie and a new ending would have been thought up for part 2. A quick featurette looks at how Michael Thau and a small crew reconstructed the film and compares several scenes from both versions. Also added are additional scenes shot by Donner but not used, most with Hackman. --Doug Thomas
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