Director: Richard Lester*
Cast: Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Ned Beatty, Margot Kidder
Have I Seen it Before: Sure. I mean, I don’t think I’ve watched this theatrical cut since the release of Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006).
Did I Like It: There was a time when I would place this film above Superman (1978), but I’m not sure I feel the same way now. Focusing the plot in on Zod (Terence Stamp) makes the whole thing have a flow that the first film doesn’t have, with all its bouncing around from B-sci-fi movie, to John Ford on the farm, before finally becoming the superhero movie it had promised.
What I think it really does is make the text idiot-proof. This version of the movie still works, but there’s a better version out there**. All I can hear now are the long shots with Luthor far in the background where somebody’s doing a B-minus impression of Hackman for the ADR, or the B-minus copy of a John Williams score***, and it all culminates in that moment where Superman (Reeve) wraps up the whole plot by befuddling his enemies with a cellophane shield****.
Ultimately, the whole thing is kind of a B-minus affair. The series is going to take a real dip from here on in, but I think maturing might be coming to the realization that the ’78 original is the better film…
In as much as maturing can incorporate opinions about superhero movies.
*I’d use this opportunity to lodge my protest about the whole Lester/Donner kefuffle, but there’s no way we’re going to get out of this review without hitting the top a handful of times anyway.
**And it’s not like the Donner cut is without flaws. There’s a whole-ass scene (it’s crucial, and a far better way for Lois to prove Clark is Superman than what we have here) that’s just taken from Reeve and Kidder’s screen test.
***At least this film is being honest about who’s doing the music here. I’m looking in your direction, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987).
****Honestly don’t remember if that shield thing appears in the director’s cut, and at this point, I don’t really want to check.