Watched Superman II (Richard Lester version), Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut and all the great 3-dvd SE extra material yesterday.
This was the first time i saw The Richard Donner Cut and it was amazing! From now on, it is the only version iīm going to watch.
The Christopher Reeve/Marlon Brando Fortress of Solitude sequences are fantastic, breathtaking stuff and Reevesī best Superman scenes. The story just makes sense when you finally see it as it was ment to be. Hackman is 10 times better in the Donner version and itīs also a bit more violent.
Lester did shoot few excellent action sequences and i thank him for those but the Donner Cut is a masterpiece!
Any thoughts?
Next: Superman III.
Posted by Johnny Roarke is reckless (Member # 9826) on :
Never seen any other version than the theatrical cut, but this certainly got me interested.
I have Superman The Movie and Superman 2 on dvd myself, but they're both releases from over a decade ago. Superman The Movie is the so-called extended director's cut and features lots of extra's, spread out over 2 sides of the double-sided disc. Superman 2 is the theatrical version, and the trailer is the only thing that has been included on the disc. There have been several new, upgraded releases since, both on dvd as well as blu-ray. Apparently there were two Superman blu-ray collections released, one in 2011 and the other in 2012. The first one an 8 disc box set. The other a 5 disc box set. Unfortunately, for some reason both seem to be out-of-print by now.
I'll keep an eye out though.. when they happen to turn up again, i'll make my move. Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
Fairly good timing for such a thread, given Superman celebrates his 75th anniversary in June (although I'm not sure of the exact date Action Comics #1 hit the streets). I have the extended cut of the original film myself with the extensive special features; one appreciates all the hard work that went into making a man fly seeing how pretty much everything had to be created from scratch.
And yes, the Donner Cut is the better one; here, the humor seems more natural for one thing, and it's nice to see apparent plot holes that we'd seen for years finally get filled in. We can only imagine what other tales we might have gotten with the character if Donner and the Salkinds hadn't fallen out (for example, as long as the rights were cleared with Jack Kirby, wouldn't it have been nice to have Superman against Darkseid on the big screen?)
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Superman vs. Darkseid wouldīve been awesome!
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Superman III (1983)
Watched Richard Lesterīs Superman III and The Making of Superman III documentary yesterday.
Well, letīs face it. Itīs a comedy. Itīs a silly silly movie but itīs never boring.
Hackman is no more so we have Robert Vaughn as the filthy rich villain Ross Webster. Like Lex Luthor, he also has two stupid sidekicks: Annie Ross as Vera and superhot Pamela Stephenson as Lorelei. I loved Stephenson also in Finders Keepers and need to get more films she stars in.
Wouldnīt you like to save her?
And then we have Richard Pryor. This is a Richard Pryor movie, just check out the trailer and you will see it. I love Richard and heīs excellent during the first half, too bad that he hasnīt got much to do during the second half.
Chris Reeve as Superman is a co-star in his own film. His return to Smallville (loved Annette OīToole) and that evil Superman thing are just sub-plots.
Lester goes OTT few times with his silliness, especially the opening sequence and the traffic lights scene make me cringe.
Overall, itīs a fun, decent sequel but what this movie needed is a better villain.
Next: Supergirl
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Supergirl (1984)
Watched Supergirl yesterday and i have to say that it was kind of lame. Starting with that original movie poster above, the Statue of Liberty is holding the torch in her left hand!
The plot is very average but i liked the special effects. Especially when the invisible power closes and attacks at the dorm, was nicely done. Of course i wouldīve liked to see more school/drom scenes.
Helen Slater is decent and cute as Kara/Linda/Supergirl but i didnīt like Faye Dunawayīs and Brenda Vaccaroīs overacting. And how vain Selena was, fighting over that brainless hunk Ethan (Hart Bochner) She couldīve had any dude in the world!
Not even close and definitely no cigar!
Next: Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
Superman IV was directed by Sidney J. Furie and stars Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Mariel Hemingway, Jon Cryer, Jackie Cooper, Mark McClure, Sam Wanamaker and Mark Pillow as the Nuclear Man.
It was nice to see the familiar cast again and it was good to see a real supervillain again. Those were the good news.
Ilya Salkind had sold the Superman franchise to Golan & Globus of Cannon Films and they were in trouble at the time.
From Wiki: "Unfortunately, Golan & Globus had so many other films in their pipeline at the time that their money was spread too thinly to properly accommodate what became Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, released in 1987, forcing the film's veteran director Sidney J. Furie to cut corners everywhere"
The flying sequences look pretty bad and you can see wires in many scenes. The craziest scene includes Nuclear Man taking Hemingwayīs character into space without any gear and she survives!
Many scenes were cut and deleted (the dvd includes lots of unused material)
I donīt know if you can call this movie a disaster but itīs pretty damn close!
Richard Donner said that if they hadnīt fired him while he was making Superman II there could have been a very good Superman movie franchise. Too bad that it turned out a pretty messy one.
Posted by skatexedge (Member # 5712) on :
Superman II Richard Donner cut is the superior movie over all of them! The first version sucks in comparison.
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