Superman agrees to sacrifice his powers to start a relationship with Lois Lane, unaware that three Kryptonian criminals he inadvertently released are conquering Earth.
Directors:
Richard Lester,
Richard Donner
Stars:
Gene Hackman,
Christopher Reeve,
Margot Kidder
Superman returns to Earth after spending five years in space examining his homeworld Krypton. But he finds things have changed while he was gone, and he must once again prove himself important to the world.
Superman agrees to sacrifice his powers to start a relationship with Lois Lane, unaware that three Kryptonian criminals he inadvertently released are conquering Earth.
Directors:
Richard Donner,
Richard Lester
Stars:
Gene Hackman,
Christopher Reeve,
Marlon Brando
The Dark Knight of Gotham City begins his war on crime with his first major enemy being Jack Napier, a criminal who becomes the clownishly homicidal Joker.
Director:
Tim Burton
Stars:
Michael Keaton,
Jack Nicholson,
Kim Basinger
Batman must battle former district attorney Harvey Dent, who is now Two-Face and Edward Nygma, The Riddler with help from an amorous psychologist and a young circus acrobat who becomes his sidekick, Robin.
An alien child is evacuated from his dying world and sent to Earth to live among humans. His peace is threatened, when other survivors of his home planet invade Earth.
Just before the destruction of the planet Krypton, scientist Jor-El sends his infant son Kal-El on a spaceship to Earth. Raised by kindly farmers Jonathan and Martha Kent, young Clark discovers the source of his superhuman powers and moves to Metropolis to fight evil. As Superman, he battles the villainous Lex Luthor, while, as novice reporter Clark Kent, he attempts to woo co-worker Lois LaneWritten by
Jwelch5742
The Superman "S" logo that Marlon Brando wears on his white cloak looks the same as the one used for George Reeves' costume in the television show Adventures of Superman (1952); this was probably an homage. Since this film, the idea of the "S" symbol being a Kryptonian family crest of the House of El has been incorporated into Superman's comic books and subsequent adaptations. See more »
Goofs
During Lois and Superman's 8:00PM flight, it's the dead of night. Yet it appears to be early evening (with some sunlight still visible) in some scenes near the Statue of Liberty. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Boy:
In the decade of the 1930s, even the great city of Metropolis was not spared the ravages of the worldwide depression. In the times of fear and confusion, the job of informing the public was the responsibility of the Daily Planet, a great metropolitan newspaper whose reputation for clarity and truth had become a symbol of hope for the city of Metropolis...
See more »
In a 1980's ABC-TV version of the film, when Superman is trying to get to Lex's underground hideout, he is subjected to machine gun fire, a giant blow torch, and is frozen in ice. Much of this footage was used in Superman II, in the scene where Superman's powers are stripped away by the molecule chamber in the Fortress of Solitude. Lex Luthor plays the piano in several scenes. See more »
This is it ladies and gents...my 200th review. I thought long and hard about what I would dedicate my 200th review to...would it be something new and flashy, a movie that I knew was a knockout, something more personal to me?? One of my faves perhaps?? I finally decided on this film.
Since I was a little boy I have loved Superman. Even now many years later I am still fascinated by the character, I mean he has withstood 6 decades of changes and world upheaval and still one of the best selling heroes of our time. Without further ado let's talk about Richard Donner's big screen epic Superman: The Movie. Thanks for reading my reviews!! Superman: The Movie MUST be judged not by today's standards but by the standards set for films of the late seventies/early eighties. That's not to say that it doesn't stand up for itself even almost 3 decades later but it's true brilliance may be lost if you don't remember when and where it was made. Brilliant Director Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon series, The Goonies, and stocks of brilliant TV series) I think really knows what the audience wants out of characters. I'm sure he tread on thin ice when it came to bringing the infamous Man of Steel to the big screen having only comics and TV and radio before him to base it on. Donner took everything Superman stood for, truth, justice, American Way, fighting evil, his estrangement from his home planet, his love for Lois Lane and put it all into this film.
Nothing is left out of Superman, we have the origins including an in depth look into Krypton (which at the time would have been a first.) We see Kal-El's parents and their conflicts, we are given a small introduction to Clark Kent's youth and his coming of age and then everything else we know and love about the Superman legend. Everything from "The Phantom Zone" to Lois and Clark falling in love. I always thought the casting for Superman was it's one downfall but after watching the film again I really see that it wasn't such an error in judgment.
The late and incredible Christopher Reeve truly was built for Superman. He embodied the character and created two completely different people to the point where you believed a pair of glasses and a different part in the hair was the perfect alter ego. His Clark Kent was goofy but pure and honest but completely different from the strength and character of Superman. His Superman was tall, larger than life, strong, honest, too good to be true. He was perfect and he looked both parts perfectly too and he will forever be known....in my books...as The Superman of film. Margot Kidder pretty much had Lois Lane nailed. I always thought she was a little old for the role and wasn't sure she looked the part but the personality was perfect, strong, forceful, pig headed, leap before you look kinda gal. And the chemistry with Reeve's Superman was very good. They established a fast but very bonding romance between the two characters. The supporting cast was also well done...Jackie Cooper was great as Perry White, Marc McClure was perfectly cast as the young, naive Jimmy Olsen, and Marlon Brando was an awesome screen presence for Jor-El and considering the billing he got for his brief role it's good that he had that pull. Gene Hackman is a brilliant actor, I've loved him in many roles...he was not right for Lex Luthor or perhaps even his character wasn't written right. Although diabolical and evil it was done in a comedic way right down to the doofus sidekick which was more cartoonish than it was big budget film. You just didn't truly feel the tension and arch rivalry between Reeve and Hackman's characters. The only other beef I can find with Superman is the overlooking of some key elements of reality. Yes I know Superman must leave reality at the door and that's easy to do with such a brilliant beautifully done Epic but the whole concept of Superman reversing time by making the earth spin backwards, or turning into Superman and having his "human" clothes literally vanish into thin air...these are things that the writers should have looked more closely into. But I think they focused so much of their time on making sure other elements were in place that they let these things slide and that's okay but it's such a minor thing but still with such perfection in other areas they stand out.
Special effects like this had never been seen before and they are still stunning. Watching Superman fly and the explosions and earthquake and his miracle powers are just wonderful and will forever be in the mind of movie goers. This is such a brilliant film and put a stamp on the genre of superheroes that every other film will try to live up to. For the record I am thrilled and excited about the upcoming Bryan Singer Superman film, I think he will take everything that was great about this original and utilize it to continue on the epic. Bravo to him!! Superman: The Movie also had and still has one of the most haunting, beautiful and stunning scores ever created. The music became his anthem no matter where Superman is. This is one of the best films ever, and will always be a classic especially to me!! 9/10
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This is it ladies and gents...my 200th review. I thought long and hard about what I would dedicate my 200th review to...would it be something new and flashy, a movie that I knew was a knockout, something more personal to me?? One of my faves perhaps?? I finally decided on this film.
Since I was a little boy I have loved Superman. Even now many years later I am still fascinated by the character, I mean he has withstood 6 decades of changes and world upheaval and still one of the best selling heroes of our time. Without further ado let's talk about Richard Donner's big screen epic Superman: The Movie. Thanks for reading my reviews!! Superman: The Movie MUST be judged not by today's standards but by the standards set for films of the late seventies/early eighties. That's not to say that it doesn't stand up for itself even almost 3 decades later but it's true brilliance may be lost if you don't remember when and where it was made. Brilliant Director Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon series, The Goonies, and stocks of brilliant TV series) I think really knows what the audience wants out of characters. I'm sure he tread on thin ice when it came to bringing the infamous Man of Steel to the big screen having only comics and TV and radio before him to base it on. Donner took everything Superman stood for, truth, justice, American Way, fighting evil, his estrangement from his home planet, his love for Lois Lane and put it all into this film.
Nothing is left out of Superman, we have the origins including an in depth look into Krypton (which at the time would have been a first.) We see Kal-El's parents and their conflicts, we are given a small introduction to Clark Kent's youth and his coming of age and then everything else we know and love about the Superman legend. Everything from "The Phantom Zone" to Lois and Clark falling in love. I always thought the casting for Superman was it's one downfall but after watching the film again I really see that it wasn't such an error in judgment.
The late and incredible Christopher Reeve truly was built for Superman. He embodied the character and created two completely different people to the point where you believed a pair of glasses and a different part in the hair was the perfect alter ego. His Clark Kent was goofy but pure and honest but completely different from the strength and character of Superman. His Superman was tall, larger than life, strong, honest, too good to be true. He was perfect and he looked both parts perfectly too and he will forever be known....in my books...as The Superman of film. Margot Kidder pretty much had Lois Lane nailed. I always thought she was a little old for the role and wasn't sure she looked the part but the personality was perfect, strong, forceful, pig headed, leap before you look kinda gal. And the chemistry with Reeve's Superman was very good. They established a fast but very bonding romance between the two characters. The supporting cast was also well done...Jackie Cooper was great as Perry White, Marc McClure was perfectly cast as the young, naive Jimmy Olsen, and Marlon Brando was an awesome screen presence for Jor-El and considering the billing he got for his brief role it's good that he had that pull. Gene Hackman is a brilliant actor, I've loved him in many roles...he was not right for Lex Luthor or perhaps even his character wasn't written right. Although diabolical and evil it was done in a comedic way right down to the doofus sidekick which was more cartoonish than it was big budget film. You just didn't truly feel the tension and arch rivalry between Reeve and Hackman's characters. The only other beef I can find with Superman is the overlooking of some key elements of reality. Yes I know Superman must leave reality at the door and that's easy to do with such a brilliant beautifully done Epic but the whole concept of Superman reversing time by making the earth spin backwards, or turning into Superman and having his "human" clothes literally vanish into thin air...these are things that the writers should have looked more closely into. But I think they focused so much of their time on making sure other elements were in place that they let these things slide and that's okay but it's such a minor thing but still with such perfection in other areas they stand out.
Special effects like this had never been seen before and they are still stunning. Watching Superman fly and the explosions and earthquake and his miracle powers are just wonderful and will forever be in the mind of movie goers. This is such a brilliant film and put a stamp on the genre of superheroes that every other film will try to live up to. For the record I am thrilled and excited about the upcoming Bryan Singer Superman film, I think he will take everything that was great about this original and utilize it to continue on the epic. Bravo to him!! Superman: The Movie also had and still has one of the most haunting, beautiful and stunning scores ever created. The music became his anthem no matter where Superman is. This is one of the best films ever, and will always be a classic especially to me!! 9/10