While the Batman v Superman hoopla machine was ramping up, there was actually another movie coming out that I really wanted to see more, but was irritatingly released in a limited number of theatres with none of them being in my home state of Minnesota. That film was a heartfelt and original sci-fi adventure film, Midnight Special. Now, thankfully, it has finally arrived here and I couldn't wait to see it.
Roy Tomlin (played by Michael Shannon) is on the run with his son, Alton Meyer (played by Jaeden Lieberher). Accompanying them is Roy's childhood friend Lucas (played by Joel Edgerton). Alton is an incredible eight year old boy with unique special abilities that include being able to hear all types of radio signals and strong telekinetic abilities, including control over electronics. He is also able to emanate a bright white light from his eyes and his hands that ties in with certain telepathic abilities. Roy and Lucas are trying to protect him from both the Government and a religious cult referred to as The Ranch, both of which intend to exploit Alton's abilities. They are able to discern coordinates from the signals Alton has picked up along with a time table for them to follow to arrive at a designated point at a certain time. Seeing no better option, they decide to follow the coordinates to see where it leads them, picking up Alton's mother Sarah (played by Kirsten Dunst) along the way. In addition to members of the Government and The Ranch, NSA agent Paul Sevier (played by Adam Driver) is also trying to track down Alton out of genuine curiousity about the boy's abilities.
Writer-Director Jeff Nichols really created something special with Midnight Special. He manages to craft a surprisingly tender and thoroughly absorbing sci-fi tale filled with characters I found myself genuinely caring about. In the age of the overblown sci-fi epics with explosions and destructions galore, I was hungering for something like this and it sated that hunger and then some. Nichols sets the bar high for the viewer, dropping us in right in the middle of the action and expecting the audience to keep up as we are quickly introduced to Alton, Roy and Lucas as they prepare to leave their latest hotel room at night and continue on with their journey. The T.V is on with the news playing, letting us know an Amber Alert has been issued for Roy and Alton. They travel under the cover of darkness, Alton in the backseat, reading Superman comics that Lucas bought for him by flashlight (Lucas has good taste in comics, by the way). As the film progresses, more and more gets explained as to the characters relationships are slowly revealed to the audience as well as the full breadth of Alton's incredible abilities. The film carefully reveals the mystery surrounding Alton's abilities and his place in the universe, leading to an awe inspiring finale that wisely doesn't try to explain everything completely, but gives enough clues that the audience can fill in the details.
The performances across they board are quite good. Michael Shannon is great as Roy, a man who is willing to do absolutely anything to protect his son. The relationship and bond portrayed between him and Jaeden Lieberher is fantastic and provides the heart of the film. Joel Edgerton is likewise great as Lucas. I've become a huge fan of Edgerton's and will literally watch anything he is in. His character of Lucas, who was a state trooper and a upstanding man of the law, has a tough time breaking it, but then takes one look at Alton and reminds himself why. Jaeden Lieberher gives a fantastic performance as Alton, who is able to portray this mysterious young boy and all his incredible abilities in a really credible way. This was an important role in the film because if you as an audience didn't believe in this boy then it wouldn't work, but Lieberher pulls it off wonderfully and you buy why these people are so determined to protect this boy. Kirsten Dunst isn't given as much to do as Alton's mother, but makes every moment count, her emotional state speaking volumes with just a glance. Adam Driver is great as Paul Sevier, a million miles away from the villainous Kylo Ren he played in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, he is rather someone who is genuinely interested in Alton's abilities, but has no interest in exploiting them, but rather to understand them as well as Alton's place in the universe.
Overall, Midnight Special is indeed something special. I think I can confidently say at this point that this will be on my best of the year list. Thoughtful, heartfelt and intelligently written science fiction has become a rarity these days as big alien battles and mass destruction has taken it's place at the multiplex. If, like me, you are burned out on empty special effects epics more interested in spectacle than character, then I give this film my wholehearted recommendation as one worth checking out.
Batman v Superman was the hotly anticipated pairing of the two biggest DC superheroes in a battle royale to see who comes out on top. Or at least that's what the title would have you believe. The actual result is something of a muddled mess of a movie.
It's been two years since the events of Man of Steel and the world is still trying to come to terms with Superman (played by Henry Cavill) and his place in the world. To some, he is a saviour and to others, such as Bruce Wayne (played by Ben Affleck) and Senator Finch (played by Holly Hunter), he is seen as a potential threat. Things escalate when Superman intervenes on a terrorist hostage crisis to rescue Lois Lane (played by Amy Adams). Several of the terrorists wind up dead, not at the hands of Superman but by a separate security team. As Superman and Lois escape, she is able to retrieve one of the bullets and sets out to use it to try and determine who the security team is run by. Meanwhile, young billionaire Lex Luthor (played by Jesse Eisenberg as a sort of demented Mark Zuckerberg), is desperately trying to get a piece of kryptonite recovered from the Indian Ocean, along with access to the crashed Kryptonian scout ship and General Zod's dead body to use for his own nefarious and secretive purposes. Bruce Wayne has his eyes on the same chunk of Kryptonite, which he intends to use to fashion weaponry to take out Superman. While all this is going on Superman, under his human guise as Daily Reporter Clark Kent, is investigating the Gotham City "Bat Vigilante" aka Batman, which we all know is Bruce Wayne. It's only a matter of time before these two heroes butt heads with Lex Luthor in the background, stirring things up, after all that's why we bought the ticket.
I gave myself a few days to really wrap my head around this film before I wrote my review. There were individual scenes I liked. Anytime Alfred (played by Jeremy Irons) was on screen the movie was golden. This Alfred, technologically savvy and sassy was a bright spot in this film for sure. Likewise, Affleck made for a great Bruce Wayne/Batman and I really enjoyed his interpretation of the character. This is a different Batman than we've seen before. The years and years of crime fighting have left him hardened and on edge. He's violent and one might even say almost cruel. There's hints throughout the film as to what caused him to reach this point, but I wish the film had explored it more, as it was one of the many woefully underdeveloped subplots in the movie. I also loved the interactions between Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince (played by Gal Gadot) (aka Batman and Wonder Woman) throughout the movie. It will be interesting to see how that develops in future films. I also liked that the movie was seriously asking what Superman's place in the world would be and trying to realistically portray what having such a person in our world would be like. Again, I wish the movie had taken the time to properly explore this plot line, rather than lightly touch on it and then throw it away for a callous and grim plot twist.
Now, for the problems with the movie and there are many. I feel like there are pieces of this movie missing that explain things that desperately need to be explained. Character motivations are either scattershot at best, completely illogical or change on a whim as the screenwriter and director dictate. I'm still not sure of Lex Luthor's motivations behind all his scheming. None of it seems to be particularly well thought out and the weird, ticcy performance by Jesse Eisenberg did nothing to clarify it. Eisenberg certainly gives a unique interpretation of Luthor, but not one that seems to sync up with the character as established in the comics or previous iterations. Half-way through I found myself wondering, "Geez, where is Kevin Spacey or Gene Hackman when you need them?" At least Batman's motivations for wanting to take out Superman were made clear (that the damage a gone rogue Superman could unleash outweighs any possible good he could do). Superman also seems to get the short shrift, being portrayed as one of the most passive, downtrodden and woeful heroes seen in recent memory. Between this and Man of Steel, I wonder if director Zack Snyder has even read a Superman comic. I even find myself wondering if he even likes the character and if so why does he seem so bound and determined to keep Superman in the darkness. As a lifelong Superman fan, I find it almost infuriating the way my favorite Superhero keeps being treated by these films. I barely even recognize this character anymore. Henry Cavill does what he can with the part, but he can only do so much with what is on the page, which is not much except I suspect variations of Superman broods or mopes.
Then there is the climax. Oh, baby, the climax. Spoiler warning for anyone who hasn't seen the film yet (although if you've seen the trailers, you've basically seen the entire movie save one last "plot twist" that isn't really a twist to anyone who knows their comics). So, we finally get to the climax and the big showdown between Batman and Superman. Except it isn't a battle because their conflicting ideologies have brought them to this point. Nope, it is thrown together by Lex Luthor, who kidnaps Martha Kent (played by Diane Lane) and forces Superman to fight Batman or else she dies. Ok, let's stop things right there. How the hell did Lex Luthor figure out Clark Kent was Superman?! I'm genuinely asking because the movie doesn't bother to tell us! That's a pretty big and critical plot point, don't you think? Shouldn't that scene be in the movie, even if it's Lex pulling a Lois in Superman II and drawing glasses and a suit on a picture of Superman with a magic marker or Jimmy Kimmel showing up at the party and just telling him? Anyway, Superman flies off to go fight Batman and the two fight for a few minutes until Superman is able to get out the reason why he's fighting Batman. Batman realizes both their moms have the same name and somehow Batman is able to figure out Superman is not a threat as the two become instant best friends. Batman rescues Martha, reassuring her he's a friend of her son in a scene I saw coming but still kind of loved even if the movie didn't quite earn it, and Superman goes after Lex. Turns out Lex has a plan B, the mutated corpse of Zod into a monstrosity known as Doomsday (In all fairness, Batman's reaction to first seeing Doomsaday, "Oh shit," was pretty priceless and damn near made the movie for me). This is enough to coax Diana Prince out of hiding and suit up as Wonder Woman. It is in this admittingly kickass scene that the true point of this movie becomes crystal clear. It was never really about the fight of Batman and Superman. It was all just a cinematic ploy to set up the next movie, Justice League.
That right there is the biggest problem with this movie. It fails to function as a cohesive and satisfying whole. There are individual scenes that are clearly designed to be crowd pleasers but it lacks a throughline of compelling and well written characters with clearly defined plot lines that work from beginning to the end. Instead, they all spin their wheels for the first two thirds of the film before finally casting everything aside for the same destruction laden climax all these movies seem to have these days (although bonus points for continuously working into the dialogue that the destruction this time was limited to abandoned areas of the cities or that the office buildings were empty since it was late at night, showing the filmmakers at least listened to some of the criticism from Man of Steel). So maybe they will listen to this criticism for the next movie. Write a real movie, with a definitive beginning, middle and end. Have the character's decisions and motivations make sense to the audience and keep any temptations to tease future films to a bare minimum. The entire movie should have a reason for being beyond setting up the next movie. It should have a point all of it's own, with it's own cohesive and satisfying plot. Zack Snyder can create a visually stunning movie. In the case of Batman v Superman, it's like a beautiful car with no engine. I didn't hate it exactly, but it had no real meaning to me either. It was just there, despite the best efforts of their cast. I genuinely hope they do better with the next one, otherwise the DC superhero film series may be over before it started.
I'm not sure I can think of a more frustrating movie than Man of Steel. When it works, it really works and when it doesn't, it really doesn't. There's not a lot of middle ground where it's just okay. Only parts I really liked and parts I really hated.
This film opens on Krypton, much like the 1978 Richard Donner version, but portrays a very different Krypton than we saw before. This vision of the doomed planet shows one that was doomed by its very inhabitants exhausting the planet's natural resources. Jor-El (played by Russell Crowe), tries to warn his Government but is turned away. Seeing no other option, he prepares to send his only son, Kal-El, to Earth to survive. Kal was the first naturally born Kryptonian in a long time in a society where genetically engineered and bred children is the norm. Jor-El steals the codex device the genetically encodes all the new embryos and sends it with Kal-El in his rocket ship to Earth. Meanwhile, General Zod (played by Michael Shannon), begins trying to stage a coup to overtake the Kryptonian government and ensure the survival of their people, including seizing the codex. He is quickly taken down and sentenced to the Phantom Zone.
Kal's ship finds it's way to Earth and we then cut to Kal, now known as Clark Kent (played by Henry Cavill), a young man traveling the Earth trying to find his place in it. He overhears word of a discovery of an odd ship in the Arctic from two Military men and travels north. Covering the discovery for the Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane (played by Amy Adams). As Clark finds the ship and is able to enter it due to a special Kryptonian key sent in his ship with him, he is followed by an inquisitive Lois Lane, who is attacked by the ship's computer as an intruder. Clark saves her and gets her out of the ship before taking off in it. Once it lands in a remote place, Clark is able to access the computer and begins learning about himself and his home planet from his Father, Jor-El, who had downloaded his consciousness onto the Kryptonian key he carries with him (It's a sort of flash drive, I guess). Meanwhile, Lois begins retracing Clark's steps by all the reports of heroic acts he's done in secret, eventually landing on the doorstep of Martha Kent (played by Diane Lane). Soon after, Clark returns home and asks Lois to keep his identity secret, which she agrees. He then returns home to his mother and shortly after a strange ship is seen in the air. On it is General Zod, who has escaped from the Phantom Zone and come to Earth for two reasons, first to reclaim the codex to rebuild Krypton in his image and two terraform Earth to build a new Krypton on, destroying mankind in the process. The only one that can stand in the way of Zod and his Phantom Zone minions is Clark.
There was a lot that I liked about Man of Steel. The reimagined Krypton was bold and different, but seemed a bit more realistic and realized than previous depictions. I really enjoyed the flashback scenes to Clark as a kid and his interactions with his adopted father, Jonathan (played by Kevin Costner), especially the scene when Jonathan tells Clark about who he really was and Clark responds that he just wants to be Jonathan's son and not the rest of it, prompting Jonathan to respond, "You are my son!" was deeply affecting and played beautifully by both Costner and Dylan Sprayberry, who plays young Clark. I also liked that they switched it up with Lois encountering Clark and discovering his secret pretty much from the outset and the way they set that up. It was an intriguing set up and change of pace from the previous incarnations. I really liked Henry Cavill as Clark/Superman. He adds a lot to the role and makes it his own, never trying to copy what came before. We primarily see him as Superman throughout the film, his traditional Clark Kent persona only showing at the end. I also really liked Amy Adams as Lois and I loved that she had so much involvement in the film rather than just being a damsel in distress. Michael Shannon was great as General Zod and brought some new layers to such a well known villain which was great. He portrayed a man whose only utility in life was that of a protector of Krypton and it's way of life and would be willing to do anything to carry out that duty. It was an intriguing take on the character and he captured it wonderfully.
But at the same time, there were things I really didn't like with the movie. First off, the second half of this movie is more or less an ongoing concussive blast of destruction starting in Smallville before ending up in Metropolis with very little to break it up. It's just scene after scene of Clark fighting Zod and the other Kryptonian criminals as building after building is smashed to smithereens. Once we hit Metropolis and skyscraper after skyscraper falls in ultra-realistic fashion with no doubt untold thousands of people dying as they disappear in large clouds of grey dust and smoke, provoking countless 9/11 flashbacks. I know it happened to me as I watched the film, sitting in the theatre, eating my popcorn, my 3-D glasses propped over my regular wire frames. Suddenly, as I sat there a Superman movie stopped being fun. I stopped eating my popcorn, forgot about my Coke and instead began having an anxiety attack. I went to Superman movies to have fun and leave the theatre with a silly grin on my face. But this film had turned into a grim outing indeed and I was no longer having fun. And I kind of hated the movie for that.
The other thing I hated and this I really hated was the scene that can best be described as the Tornado scene. Now, the previous complaint was more of a minor complaint at the sheer overkill of the climax compared to this. Unlike that, I have seething hatred towards this entire sequence. Let me set the scene for you. Jonathan, Martha and Clark are driving down a Kansas freeway one afternoon. Clark and Jonathan are having an argument and Clark says, "You're not my real father!" I immediately grimace and think to myself, Oh fuck you, movie. Not screw you or you suck, movie. I go right for the F-word, I hate it that much. Then, they happen across a group of stopped cars and notice a Tornado in the distance headed right for the highway. Martha, Jonathan and Clark get out of the car and start directing the others that have stopped as well to seek shelter under the nearby overpass. Ok, let's stop here again. Maybe it's because I actually am from the Midwest. Maybe it's because I have some relatives who know better. Maybe it's because I had a Meteorology teacher who beat this into my head. The worst possible place one can seek shelter when encountering a tornado on a highway IS UNDER AN OVERPASS! Now, I can imagine you're thinking, "But Nate, there was that one video done back in the 80's..." Yes, I know about that video. The thing is though is that tornado went behind them. If it went directly over them they would've all been sucked out or if they managed to hang on basically they would've been sandblasted to death. And here was a major motion picture perpetuating the same myth. To say it's a peeve is putting it mildly. What one should do in this situation, ideally is simply get out of the path of the tornado. If that's not an option, get away from the cars, get to the lowest point of ground possible, lie completely flat with your hands over the back of your head and pray for daylight.
But wait, that's not even the part that makes me seethe the most. Nope, it's what follows. So, they have everyone under the overpass when Jonathan realizes the beloved family dog is still in the car. Rather than let his indestructible, super strong son go get him, Jonathan elects to go himself. He is able to get the dog free, but is injured in the process. Clark is ready to run over and save him, most likely using his super speed, but Jonathan motions him to stop and lets the tornado take him instead. It was right there that my hatred for this one scene hit fever pitch as I could see what the filmmakers were trying to do. They were trying to create a reason for Clark to be all brooding like Batman and that is not who Superman is. Superman has always been about light and optimism and I hated Zach Snyder and screenwriter David S Goyer for trying to force it to go another way.
Overall, Man of Steel is very much a mixed bag of a movie for me. There are parts I really liked and parts I really hated, without much middle ground between the two. I've seen the movie a few times and my opinion really hasn't changed much, which makes me want to enter future installments in the burgeoning DC universe with some trepidation.
There was a long gap of nineteen years before Superman would grace the silver screen again. In that time, he died and was resurrected, was the star of a television series for four years (which I actually liked and own all of on DVD), and the subject of several increasingly odd attempts to get to the silver screen, with the likes of Tim Burton, Brett Ratner and McG as possible directors. None came to fruition until Bryan Singer picked up the project. Crafting a film that picked up where Superman II left off and ignored parts III and IV, comes Superman Returns.
Superman (played by Brandon Routh) has been missing for five years, having journeyed deep into outer space to see if there are any remains of Krypton (there weren't). He returns home to his mother, Martha Kent (played by Eva Marie Saint), feeling more alone than ever. It's not long before he returns to Metropolis, resuming his identity as Clark Kent and job at the Daily Planet, reconnecting with Jimmy Olson (played by Sam Huntington) and Perry White (played by Frank Langella). He discovers that Lois (played by Kate Bosworth) has moved on and is married to Richard White (played by James Marsden), Perry's son, and they have a young son, Jason. She also won a Pulitizer Prize for an article entitled, "Why the World Doesn't Need Superman Anymore," so clearly she's stinging from all the abrupt leaving stuff that Superman did. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (played by Kevin Spacey), is out of jail and newly funded after inheriting the estate of a rich widow (played by former Lois Lane Noel Neill, in a cameo) he conned and ready to launch his latest world dominating scheme. Along with his cronies and new girlfriend, Kitty (played by Parker Posey), he is plotting to use crystals he retrieved from Superman's Fortress of Solitude to create a new land mass all his own to rule himself. Once again, the only one who can stop him is the newly returned Superman.
Bryan Singer labored hard in creating a film that not only continued on from the Richard Donner films, but also honored them and what they meant. From the very opening credits, perfectly replicating and building on the opening credits of the first film throughout the entire film, tonally this movie captures what the previous sequels failed to, backed by fantastic score from John Ottman who mixes the familiar John Williams themes with his own compositions to great effect. I just wish the script had been a little stronger and not feeling it had to retread so much of what the previous films already did. Once again we have Lex Luthor as the bad guy with another land based scheme for domination. It just feels a little been there, done that. I wish they had come up with a more unique plot for him. There's also this third act plot twist that I won't spoil, but continues to bug me to this day and I really wish they hadn't done it, if for no other reason than it is now sort of this thing left hanging that will never be explored further or resolved completely since they decided to reboot rather than make a sequel to this film.
The cast for this film is actually for the most part quite good. I really enjoyed Brandon Routh as both Superman and Clark Kent. I know people like to make fun of him for the role, but I think he did a good job in both parts and wished he could have played the role at least a couple more times, but that's apparently just me. Kevin Spacey killed it as Lex Luthor and is clearly having a blast in the role much in the same way that Gene Hackman did. However, prison time was not good to Lex and he has re-emerged this time around as a bit darker and crueler. It adds a welcome sharper edge to this entry. Kate Bosworth was okay as Lois Lane. I wouldn't rank her with Noel Neill, Margot Kidder or Teri Hatcher, but she isn't terrible either. James Marsden plays Richard White and I like that they resisted any urge to make him unlikeable or "the other guy." He's a good, decent man and husband to Lois and figures into the climax well as a dependable ally to both Lois and Superman, and Marsden does a good job capturing that.
Overall, Superman Returns is a film I have generally speaking really loved. I do have some nitpicks, but overall it fits in nicely with the Richard Donner films quite nicely. I originally saw it opening night when it was released in the Summer of 2006. I actually won a full size theatrical movie poster from the film that night that is currently framed and hanging on my living room wall. At that point, it was also the first Superman movie I saw theatrically and I remember feeling a chill and getting goosebumps when that familiar John Williams theme came on and the credits started. (I have since rectified things and have seen the original Superman on the big screen at a revival screening). I know it's popular to hate on this one, but I just can't do it. I dug it then and I still dig it now, nitpicks and all.
After the disappointing Superman III, Christopher Reeve decided he was done with Superman and stated he had no interest in playing the role again. However, when Cannon-Globus bought the film rights to the Superman franchise from the Salkinds, they were able to tempt Reeve back with promise of more creative control. Reeve crafted a story of Superman getting involved in trying to end the Nuclear Arms race. It was an ambitious storyline but with a slashed budget, things began to fall apart with the film almost immediately.
Superman (played by Christopher Reeve) receives a letter from a young boy after nuclear disarmament talks break down asking Superman to get rid of all the nuclear weapons. Superman took a vow never to get involved or interfere in politics and initially turns the kid down. Meanwhile, trouble is brewing at the Daily Planet as the paper has a new publisher, David Warfield (played by Sam Wanamaker) and his daughter, Lacy (played by Mariel Hemingway). They intend to make the Daily Planet more like their other more tabloid-esque papers, which rubs many of the staff members the wrong way. Clark catches the eye of Lacy though, and a small romance begins to develop between the two. Lex Luthor (played by Gene Hackman) is broken out of prison by his nitwit nephew Lenny (played by Jon Cryer), who Lex amusingly refers to as the Dutch Elm's Disease of the Luthor family tree. The two set out to come up with a new way to destroy Superman. Stealing a strand of Superman's hair from a local museum, the two scheme to create a villain as powerful as Superman to destroy him. When Superman reconsiders and agrees to get rid of all the nukes, Lex sees his chance and sticks a device on one of the missiles, containing the genetic stew that when it's flung into the sun and detonated will create the new supervillain. This new creation, Nuclear Man (played by Mark Pillow and overdubbed by Gene Hackman) has only one goal: destroy Superman.
There are a lot of problems with Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Having it's budget slashed from $35 million dollars to $17 million just before filming began made a huge impact on the film, leaving the film with a decidedly smaller effects budget. It also left director Sidney J. Furie with fewer options in shooting scenes as they scrambled to get through a shorter shooting schedule, with scenes often being poorly lit with un-imaginative camera angles leaving the film looking rather bland. After the film had a poor test screening, Warner and Cannon editors chopped up the film from a movie slightly over two hours into one that is barely an hour and a half. This only adds to the incoherence of the overall film and it is pretty clear when you view the finished product (if you can call it that) that there are huge chunks missing. The time crunch also meant there were critical effects shots missing which led to Superman suddenly developing a new power, the super telekinetic glance where he can rebuild damaged property with just a glance. It was supposed to be of him rebuilding the damage done by Nuclear Man manually using his superspeed, but the shots were never done. Then there is the climactic scenes in space between Superman and Nuclear Man, as well as a captive Lacy, who is somehow able to survive on her own in the vacuum space, in one of the biggest and most laughable movie goofs of all time.
The cast tries their best to keep the ship afloat. Christopher Reeve anchors this sinking ship with another strong performance as Superman and really sells the conflict Superman feels over if he should take an active role in disarming the world of Nuclear weapons. Gene Hackman is a good sport for once again playing Lex Luthor (also they probably paid him well) and the movie certainly picks up any time he's around, slinging his little one liners, usually at Lenny's expense. Jon Cryer, who was clearly cast to help the movie appeal to a younger audience, is suitably amusing as the dimwitted Lenny, although I can see how he would be annoying to others. Mariel Hemingway was a good choice as well as the Daily Planet's new publisher, Lacy. Her budding potential romance with Clark was nice and I liked their scenes together. Her character is inconsistent though. In her first scene she is established as a bit of a spoiled brat, but then suddenly isn't, which is likely a cause of all the vicious editing the film went through.
Overall, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace was an ambitious attempt to bring the Superman series back to respectability after the disappointing third film only for it to be cut off at the knees and fall on it's face as it managed to create a film that was somehow even worse. It's an absolute trainwreck of a movie and you know you should look away but, you know, morbid curiosity...
With Superman II being another big hit, it was a given that there would be a third entry, once again produced by Alexander and Ilya Salkind, with Richard Lester returning to direct and a screenplay by David and Leslie Newman would result in a decidedly mixed third outing, with the tonal problems that plagued the previous film return for this one, Superman III.
Gus Gorman (played by Richard Pryor) is a down on his luck man trying to find a job worthy of his time. After deciding to take a class in computer programming and discovering he has a talent for it, he is able to quickly land a job with Metropolis based corporation, Webscoe. Unsatisfied with his current pay, he reprograms the company computer to redeposit the fractions of cents normally rounded off into another account he set up (a plot point memorably referenced in Mike Judge's Office Space). This catches the attention of CEO Ross Webster (played by Robert Vaughn), who decides rather than fire Gus, he will use his computer talents to his advantage in a bid to rule the world financially. Meanwhile, Clark (played by Christopher Reeve) returns home to Smallville and reunites with fellow classmate Lana Lang (played by Annette O'Toole). Sparks begin to fly between the two as a small romance begins to kindle. When Superman interferes with Webster's attempts to corner the coffee market by manufacturing a huge storm in Colombia, he sets Gus on having the Webscoe labs synthesize some Kryptonite (since they can't find any of the real thing), but the synthetic stuff doesn't have the same impact and instead turns the Big Blue Boy Scout bad. With Superman out of the way, Webster, along with his sister Vera (played by Annie Ross) and girlfriend Lorelai Ambrosia (played by Patricia Stephenson), sets out to create a monster supercomputer that will allow him to gain the global control he desires as Gus finds his loyalties tested. Superman will have to battle his inner dark side to get back to the side of good to be able to stop Webster once and for all.
This third film in the Superman series is perhaps even more dyslexic tonally than the previous film as it veers from slapstick routines to dark moments, such as an evil Superman trying to make the moves on a confused Lana even though both know he is desperately needed elsewhere. In fact, it is all the gags that work against the more serious and action based aspects of the film, especially the very long and drawn out opening comedy routine that opens the film as we move from one pratfall to the next (although the bit with Superman changing in the photo booth was cute, stopping to take the strip of photos and taking all but the last one, giving the last one to a nearby kid. Fun fact: that kid played the young Clark that emerged from the rocket at the beginning of Superman.). Likewise, the script is fairly thinly written, with only the character of Clark Kent/Superman getting any real attention. Richard Pryor is left adrift in the movie, doing the best he can with a thinly written character (I'd love to be fly on wall of the production meetings just to see who it was that first said, "You know what this movie really needs? Richard Pryor!"). Now don't get me wrong, the guy does the best he can with what he's given, but Pryor was always at his best when he was the guy stirring the pot. Gus is an innocent, naive guy who gets in over his head. There's not much there that plays to Pryor's strengths.
The movie isn't all bad though. Christopher Reeve and Annette O'Toole have some genuine chemistry with one another and their scenes are great. It was a refreshing change of pace from the other Superman films and also to have Lana falling for Clark, rather than Superman. Christopher Reeve also does well as the Evil Superman and the climactic showdown in the junkyard, where Evil Superman and good Clark Kent split entirely into two different people and have a throw down right there until finally Evil Superman is destroyed and Clark emerges as good Superman is a highlight of the film. The climactic showdown between Superman, the supercomputer and Ross and Vera Webster is a plenty of fun, even if it is all a bit over the top. Also, I thought it was a nice touch that Lorelai only played being an airhead blonde while secretly being an intellectual.
Overall, Superman III isn't a terrible movie, but it's not a particularly great one either. I'm still able to get some enjoyment out of it, but the sharp tonal shifts are still jarring to me and the film doesn't begin to compare to the high adventure stylings of the first two films, nor is it as satisfying overall. But it could be worse...as we found out that one time when Superman went questing for peace...
There is a long history to Superman II that dates back to the inception of the original film. Producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind decided not to make just one Superman movie, but two simultaneously. Since both films shared many of the same sets, the bulk of Superman II was shot at the same time as the first film by that film's director, Richard Donner. It was an ambitious, but also kinda brilliant gamble that nearly paid off. Except that shooting on the sequel was put off as the release date for the first film got closer and the focus shifted to completing that film with the plan that Donner would return and finish the second film as well. Except tensions between the Salkinds and Donner reached a boiling point and he was fired off the film and replaced with Richard Lester.
The film begins with Lois (played by Margot Kidder) covering a terrorist attack on the Eiffel Tower in Paris. When Clark (played by Christopher Reeve) discovers this, he quickly switches to Superman and flies straight for Paris. Turns out the terrorists are planning to detonate a hydrogen bomb. Superman is able to rescue Lois, who in typical fashion managed to find her way right into the middle of the crisis, and get rid of the bomb, jettisoning it into space. However, the detonation of the bomb manages to break free three Kryptonian criminals, Zod (played by Terence Stamp), Ursula (played by Sarah Douglas) and Non (played by Jack O'Halloran) from their floating jail known as the Phantom Zone. They head straight for Earth with only one goal in mind: Conquer it and rule it themselves. The only man that can stand in their way is Superman.
In order for Richard Lester to get credit as director for Superman II, he had to shoot at least 51% of the film. His contributions to the film included the Paris opening scene, as well as shooting segments of the segment of the film where Lois and Clark are off in Niagra Falls covering a possible honeymoon racket. It's there that Lois finally starts to suspect Clark is Superman, a fact confirmed when he trips in their ridiculous honeymoon suite and his hand goes into the fire, but is not burned when Lois inspects it. He also reshot segments of the climactic showdowns between Superman and the Kryptonian trio both in Metropolis and later at the Fortress of Solitude. Of course, if you watch the film with this knowledge in mind, you can tell what Donner shot and what Lester shot because with the exception of the first scene, everything else was pretty much all gag based, very silly and slapsticky, which is disappointing and leaves the film disjointed. Also anything with Gene Hackman in it, who returns as Lex Luthor, was shot with Donner. It's not that the Richard Lester version is terrible, he even made some good additions to the film with the Paris opening and Superman's appearance in Metropolis to face Zod and his cronies, with his epic line, "General would you care to step outside" kicking off a genuinely thrilling climax. It's just that the film has a very uneven tone that hurts it a little. It also stings a little that Donner, who had created a genuinely magical first film, wasn't allowed to continue that vision and complete the second film. Well, at least not right away.
In 2001, as the original Christopher Reeve films were being restored to be released on DVD, Warner Bros. managed to unearth the Superman II footage. All the Superman II footage. As news of this discovery became public, petitions quickly began to circulate asking for a Richard Donner cut of Superman II be assembled and released. It wasn't until late 2005 and all legal rights about ownership of the footage was cleaned up that work began in earnest by editor Michael Thau. Slowly, but surely he was able to tempt Donner into helping with the cut with the director initially very hesitant to be involved, but by the summer of 2006 was completely involved. The film was completely restored and released on DVD in the winter of 2006, just in time for Christmas.
The result was night and day. The Richard Donner version was almost a completely different film. Tighter, faster paced and more consistent with the first film. It also had a completely new opening that ties directly in with the first film. Rather than a hydrogen bomb, it was the Hackensack, NJ bound nuke that Superman deflected into space that freed the Kryptonian trio. Following that is one of my favorite scenes in the Superman films as Lois, looking over her latest story and the pictures of Superman and then to Clark Kent starts to figure out who Clark really is. She then proceeds to draw a fedora and coat and tie over a picture of Superman to confirm it. There is just something about how Margot Kidder plays this moment that I absolutely love. Among the other alterations include all the Marlon Brando footage shot for Superman II had been restored, replacing the scenes in the Richard Lester version that had replaced Brando with Susanna York as Superman's mom to save having to pay Brando a second time. It's the smaller changes and the deletions of the more slapstick humor that makes the Donner cut the stronger film. The one downside is that the film repeats the ending of the first film with Superman turning back time. Now, the turning back time bit was always originally meant for Superman II, but when Donner and Mankiewicz realized they needed a stronger ending for the first film cannibalized their plans for the ending of the sequel intending to come up with a new ending when they resumed work on the sequel. Since that never happened and since Donner hated the Lester ending, we have a time turning reprise. I actually don't mind it personally and every time I watch it, I usually quip something along the lines of, "You gotta stop doing that Clark, you're gonna break something."
So, yeah, that became less a review of Superman II and more a look at the history of the film and the two very different versions. Of the two, I prefer the Richard Donner cut. I remember getting the DVD set for Christmas in 2006 from my mom and the first thing I did was watch the new cut of Superman II, feeling a chill as tears welled up in my eyes as the opening credits of the film ended with the words "Directed by Richard Donner" slamming into place as the theme music reached it's crescendo. It was an awesome moment. After it was finished and still now, I feel it's the better of the two films. I haven't even watched the Richard Lester film in several years. I may just have to check it out again, even if I'll wind up sitting there, wishing I was watching the Donner cut.
