Superman - The Movie
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Movie Reviews of Superman - The Movie
Movie Review: More Powerful than a Locomotive....
Summary: 5 Stars
The 1978 film Superman (and its companion piece, Superman II, more a continuation of the first film than a sequel) is, simply, the greatest film adaptation of a comic book character ever. The film is not without flaws, but is essential viewing.It is that for a number of reasons. First is the loving and respectful adaptation of Superman, who is now more than a comic book character. Superman is an archetype, a myth, a folk hero. He is to us Americans what Hercules was to the Greeks, or Sir Lancelot to the English. The makers of this film actually *understood* this, and worked *with* and not *against* the mythic power of the character. (It sounds simple enough, but a generation of filmmakers afterward have failed to grasp the importance of this basic concept.)
Kudos to writer Tom Mankiewicz for taking Superman seriously. Kudos to director Richard Donner, whose work on this film may occasionally clunk along rather than soar, but whose understanding of what makes Superman truly heroic never falters. Kudos to Gene Hackman, for offering us the seemingly impossible--a lovable Lex Luthor. (You'd be laughing right along with this guy, even as he dropped a nuke on your house.)
Kudos to cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth and the special effects team. The effects hold up surprisingly well after all this time. The truth is, Superman was never a quantum leap forward in effects the way, say, Star Wars or The Abyss were. The genius of this film was, and is, to emply a variety of effects--wires, bluescreen, miniatures, animation--to depict the same scene, then quick cut from one to the other. The viewer was, and is, usually not given enough time with any one effect to figure out how it's done. The eye is fooled into accepting the vision.
There is real magic here, but it didn't come from the special effects lab. It came from the heart and soul of Christopher Reeve, who plays both Superman and Clark Kent to perfection. In the end, it is Reeve that makes the movie credible, who makes you care. Check out the scene in Lois Lane's apartment where Reeve changes from Clark Kent to Superman and back again in a matter of seconds. There're no special effect at work, just Reeve using his voice and his body. That, my young friends, is what we used to call "acting." Even in the age of CGI, It still has the power to knock you over.
Movie Review: An Epic Film!
Summary: 5 Stars
Watching Superman The Movie is an experience. Not only are you treated to a film good for the kids, but there are also many moments that will thrill adults. The movie is filled with emotion, action and incredible excitement. The movie opens with long introductions about Superman's past and his time growing up on Earth. We are treated wish such scenes as his launch into space, his "naked" discovery on Earth and his "calling" to go north. All of this fills pretty much the first hour of the film but we are never once bored.
Once the action moves to Metropolis, it is almost like a whole new movie. The interaction between Lois and Clark is simply priceless. Their early scenes together build on what is to come, even moving into Superman II. Margo Kidder was perfect for this role. She just had the right look for Lois: attractive without being a Super Model. It was just so sweet how Superman took to her. We are also introduced to Lex Luthor and his gang. Gene Hackman was perfect for this role and he really steals ever scene that he is in.
The thing about Superman is that it has an epic feel to it and it never looks back. From the launch of "baby" Superman to the climatic ending sequences, we are drawn into the story. The witty dialogue is also one of the best aspects of the film. Whether it is the nonchalant comments from Superman (i.e. "Bad Vibrations") to the famous, clap inducing "You've Got Me? Who's got you?" you never feel that any of the film is scripted. And the special effects, while dated (the miniatures LOOK miniature), are also extremely good.
The DVD version is an absolute joy. You get 9 minutes of new footage, including more scenes in the Fortress of Solitude with Marlon Brando. There are several behind the scenes looks and several trailers and cast bios. The enhanced sound is also very impressive. When the credits at the beginning started to appear and then fly by, I was just taken back! I wasn't expecting it at all and it was a taste of things to come. You can even hear shards of kryptonite flying through space after Krypton explodes.
Superman The Movie is one of the best comic book movies in the same tradition of greats like Dick Tracy and The Shadow. If you or your kids have never seen it, this is a must have. If you have, relive the magic again.
Movie Review: STILL THE BEST!!!!!!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
BATMAN, SPIDERMAN, AND THE HULK HAVE BEEN HAVING THEIR MOMENTS IN THE SUN, BUT THIS FILM IS STILL THE BEST SUPERHERO MOVIE EVER MADE AND HAS STOOD THE TEST OF TIME. IT APPEALS TO EVERYONE OF ALL AGES. CHRISTOPHER REEVE'S PERFORMANCE IS SIMPLY OUTSTANDING AND JOHN WILLIAMS' SCORE JUST MAKES YOU GREAT ABOUT THE MOVIE AND THE CHARACTER. THIS FILM REMAINS LOYAL TO THE ORIGINAL STORY. IT STARTS OUT ON THE PLANET KRYPTON WHERE SUPERMAN'S FATHER, JOR-EL,GIVES A WARNING THAT THE PLANET WILL EXPLODE WITHIN 30 DAYS,MAYBE SOONER. THE COUNCIL COMPLETELY IGNORES HIS WARNINGS AND ORDERS HIM TO REMAIN SILENT. BUT JOR-EL WAS NOT ABOUT TO SEE HIS NEWBORN SON DIE WITH THEM,SO HE BUILDS A ROCKETSHIP AND SENDS HIM TO EARTH TO SAVE HIS LIFE. THE MOVIE THEN SHOWS CLARK KENT AS A TEENAGER TRYING TO FIT IN WITH THE OTHER KIDS. BUT BECAUSE OUR SUN GIVES HIM GREAT POWERS, IT IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR HIM TO DO SO. AFTER HIS EARTHLY FATHER,JONATHAN KENT, DIES OF A HEART ATTACK,A PIECE OF CRYSTAL FROM HIS KRYPTONIAN ROCKETSHIP "CALLS" TO HIM. HE KNOWS THAT IT IS TIME TO LEAVE HOME,AND HE'S PROBABLY NOT SURE WHY.HE JUST FEELS IT.THE CRYSTAL LEADS HIM TO THE NORTH POLE (I'M ASSUMING IT'S THE NORTH POLE)AND BUILDS HIM A KRYPTONIAN STYLE FORTRESS.THERE, HIS REAL FATHER,JOR-EL,APPEARS BEFORE HIM AND SPENDS THE NEXT 12 YEARS EDUCATING HIM ABOUT THEIR WORLD AND WHO THEY ARE.HE REALIZES THAT HIS CALLING IS TO HELP HUMANITY AND BECOMES SUPERMAN.WHEN HE MOVES TO THE CITY OF METROPOLIS,HE BECOMES A REPORTER FOR THE DAILY PLANET NEWSPAPER,AND BEFRIENDS FELLOW REPORTERS LOIS LANE AND JIMMY OLSEN.IT ISN'T LONG BEFORE LEX LUTHOR,A NOTORIOUS CRIMINAL,ENTERS THE PICTURE.HIS PLAN IS TO TAKE CONTROL OF A COUPLE OF MISSILES AND DESTROY CALIFORNIA.BY DOING THAT, HE HOPES TO BUILD HIS OWN WEST COAST AND MAKE A FORTUNE. SUPERMAN IS THEIR ONLY HOPE TO SAVE CALIFORNIA AND BRING LUTHOR TO JUSTICE,AND HE SUCCEEDS.THIS FILM IS SO MUCH DIFFRENT THAN SOME OF THE OTHERS.THE OTHER FILMS RELY ON GREAT SPECIAL EFFECTS AND EXPECTS US TO JUST ZONE OUT ON EYE CANDY,WITH NOT MUCH OF A STORY. SUPERMAN HAD AWESOME SPECIAL EFFECTS, THAT STILL HOLD UP TO THIS DAY, AND HAD A STORY JUST AS POWERFUL. A NEW SUPERMAN FILM IS IN THE WORKS, AND IT HAS SOME BIG SHOES TO FILL.Movie Review: A True classic that's hard to match
Summary: 5 Stars
Superman may be over 20 years old but it's still not out-dated and works for todays audience. It's a true classic with Christopher Reeves 100% becoming not only the role of Superman but Clark Kent as well. He's the best Superman and also the best Clark Kent. He had the bumbling reporter thing down pat better than Brandon Routh did in Superman Returns or Dean Cain in Lois and Clark. He also had great chemestry with Margot Kidder who played Lois Lane. The scene where he takes her flying with him is still magical and special. Eventhough I really liked Superman Returns, the scene where he flys with Lois is easily forgettable compared to the scene in this movie.
The film also has the late great Marlon Brando as Superman's dad Jor-el in the beginning of the movie. In the Fortress of Solitude Clark is able to learn everything that he needs to know about his father and where he came from. He then becomes Superman and makes himself known to the world by saving Lois Lane. His skills are about to be put to the test by Lex Luther (Gene Hackman) who's about to start world chaos.
Gene Hackman makes a really good Lex eventhough he was stubborn about wearing a bald cap or even shaving his mustache for the director. It's funny how Richard Donner got him to shave though. He put on a fake mustache and told Gene he'd shave if he did. Gene shaved and said "you're turn" and Richard said "ok" and just pulled off the mustache. Gene looked at him mad but then started laughing. I remember Richard Donner talking about that on a director show. Anyway Gene at least wears the bald cap for like a second at the end of the movie and in the beginning of Supeman 2. He shows that Lex doesn't need to be bald the whole movie to still be an evil and calculated mad-man though. He still did the part well. While Ned Beatty is also excellent as his dimwitted side-kick Otis. With this movie being so well made and being a great start to the Superman franchise. It's very sad that part 3 and 4 were failures. Christopher Reeves deserved a much better last Superman movie than Superman 4 since he was the perfect Superman.
Movie Review: About Time
Summary: 5 Stars
Personally, this is one of the movies I wanted on DVD when I first got my player. Of course, being new to the DVD, I figured they'd have just about every movie possible converted to DVD. I figured wrong and was so disappointed that I bought what figured to be the next best thing... the BATMAN DVD. I figured wrong again. All I know is BATMAN better be the next super-hero flick to get the "special" treatment. If they did the same thing as SUPERMAN, I would not have minded a long and predictable wait. I have watched my SUPERMAN DVD atleast 5 times all the way through including the special extras, and it has to be the best "special edition" movie I've bought since FIGHT CLUB! The documentaries are unbelieveable and definetely something I was looking forward to more than watching the new footage. It still amazes me how they made Superman fly! The added scenes are the second best special item on the DVD. They don't ruin the movie at all but actually explain and make original scences more interesting, if not better. Another item is the screen tests. They can be interesting to watch, sometimes. The rest of the time you can actually feel embarrassed having watched the entirety of them. These screen tests are however pretty enjoyable. The only complaints you can give this DVD is the following: 1.) Warner Bros. need to get with it. The cardboard case they offer may save them some big bucks compared to plastic cases, but everybody I know hate them. They are too easy to break, especially the inside that holds in the DVD. Those always seem fragile until they do break. Plus... 2.) They fit everything on one disc using both sides, making the disc more delicate (smudges, scratches, etc). I am still angry about the GOODFELLAS DVD I bought which forces you to flip the DVD halfway through the film. But the special features on SUPERMAN are worth the flip. In closing, I believe everyone will give their personal recommendation on this DVD. Everyone, somehow or someway, is a big Superman fan. For a true comicbook fan, this is icing on the cake. Bon appetite!