UHD Review Superman IV: The Quest for Peace UHD Review (1 Viewer)

[Todd Erwin]

I think what really got IV off on the wrong foot was that, of all the companies the Salkinds could have sold the franchise to, they picked Cannon. I'm not sure if there were other contenders or if they just wanted to unload it quick, but that was just a disaster waiting to happen right from the start.

Keep in mind that this was May of 1985 (at Cannes). Supergirl had just tanked six months earlier, the Superman franchise was considered dead, and they had Santa Claus: The Movie opening in another six months, so the Salkinds were probably looking for some quick cash.

 

[Malcolm R]

Also interesting that this and Masters of the Universe were released to theaters within two weeks of each other. Seems like they were probably chasing much of the same audience.

Surprised Cannon didn't spread them out a bit if they thought they had two masterpieces of the 80's on their hands.

 

[Todd Erwin]

The Cannon business model seemed to be quantity over quality, as well as a P.T. Barnum approach to film promotion

I was trying to get a movie off the ground during these years, so I had a subscription to Variety, and the number of huge one-page ads that Cannon would take out announcing their upcoming movies was ridiculous. I remember ads for Captain America, Spider-Man, Masters of the Universe, etc. I'm sure there were a ton of movies they took out ads for that never saw the light of day.

 

[Todd Erwin]

Also interesting that this and Masters of the Universe were released to theaters within two weeks of each other. Seems like they were probably chasing much of the same audience.

Surprised Cannon didn't spread them out a bit if they thought they had two masterpieces of the 80's on their hands.

Masters of the Universe, while still not a very good movie, had a bit more going for it. He-Man was still very popular, as was Dolph Lundgren (to a point). Like I was saying earlier, I suspect a portion of the $20 million cut from Superman IV's budget was diverted to this film, which ended up with an estimated $22 million, and had a more prestigious name attached to its visual effects team (Richard Edlund and his Boss Film Studios), which is why that film's effects may appear more polished.

A friend of mine from back east managed to get a (uncredited) job in the creature effects shop in Los Angeles on Masters of the Universe. He was renting a sofa from one of the more senior creature guys, and that combined with the low morale at both the shop and set, he called me up one day in a panic, desperate for a break, at least for a few days. I remember driving up to Reseda (suburb of LA) one Friday evening to pick him up, taking him to Disneyland the next day, and then driving him back on Sunday afternoon. He later managed to get credited jobs on the George Romero TV series Monsters (shot in New York) and applied prosthetics to Cheryl Ladd on Millennium (shot in Canada). He pretty much quit the business after that and took up sculpting models of collectible figurines, which has been very lucrative for him.

 

[Bryan Tuck]

Keep in mind that this was May of 1985 (at Cannes). Supergirl had just tanked six months earlier, the Superman franchise was considered dead, and they had Santa Claus: The Movie opening in another six months, so the Salkinds were probably looking for some quick cash.

True enough. It's amazing how fast things turn around because of a few poor decisions, which then lead to more poor decisions trying to compensate for the earlier ones.

 

[Todd Erwin]

Also interesting that this and Masters of the Universe were released to theaters within two weeks of each other

Simple reason - Cannon needed the cash desperately.

 

[MartinP.]

I still remember the headline of the review I read of this film in the Los Angeles Times when it first came out:
Superman IV: The Quest for More Money.

 

[ScottRE]

Weirdly enough, I saw this in the theater 3 times in the 3 weeks it was out. I was the only person who actually enjoyed it, even though I knew it wasn't good.

To this day, I'm kind towards it. It has Christopher Reeve in there pitching his heart out, Margot Kidder actually being sweetly endearing (even though life was clearly taking its toll), Gene Hackman having an amazing time and a wonderful score by Alexander Courage off the themes of John Williams. I will sit through this film a lot more quickly than Superman III (which I picked to see over Return of the Jedi when asked by my dad what movie we should go to).

 

[ScottRE]

I also feel that, somewhere buried in this mess, is the germ of a good (but not great) movie. Superman taking action beyond his "jurisdiction," Lex taking advantage of the situation and the creation of a being as powerful as Superman while a Morgan Edge type guy stirs up the city into a panic. With more time, money and better writers, this could have been a nice return to form for the Blue Boy. While I did have a bad feeling the moment I saw the cheep opening credits, the scene at the Kent Farm - surprisingly painstakingly recreated for a production of this type - made me feel a little more confident.

But then came the prison scene. The "Dukes of Hazzard" antics of the prison guards made this obvious this was gonna be a kid's movie. All of a sudden, it's obvious the creatives were all working at cross purposes. Reeve wanted to make a thoughtful piece reflecting on real world concerns, Sidney Furie was aiming at the 10 year olds and the GoGo Boys (who had ZERO filmmaking judgment) were saving money trying to keep the company afloat.

It was a "road to Hell" situation, whereas Superman III was ill-advised from the moment they said "hey Richard Pryor wants in!"

At 90 minutes, Superman IV isn't boring; it's a freaking train wreck that has a bunch of actors performing as if they're in a totally different film than the one we saw and even at its worst, it's entertaining in its ineptitude (kind of like the extended version of The Swarm). Superman III is generally a slog when Reeve and/or Anette O'Toole aren't on screen (although I will admit the drinking scene between Gus and Brad is pretty damned funny).

Having said that, I will watch all 4 of them over a number of other more popular franchises. Nostalgia glasses have sweet lenses.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

the scene at the Kent Farm

Betrayed! Betrayed! Betrayed!

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

It's really amazing what the average Joe can produce nowadays on their computer:

 

[stevenHa]

Some excellent matte work from Peter Ellenshaw makes it worthwhile for me...

 

[ScottRE]

Betrayed! Betrayed! Betrayed!

I really think they shoulda just sprung for an echo box and let the old boy say it just one time...

I must be the only person who's disappointed we don't get the extra scenes seen on TV and the Japanese laser disc, let alone the original disastrous 2 and a half hour preview version (which I imagine is long gone).

 

[Todd Erwin]

Some excellent matte work from Peter Ellenshaw makes it worthwhile for me...

I think you mean his son, Harrison.

 

[JoshZ]

It's really amazing what the average Joe can produce nowadays on their computer:

Of all the problems with this movie, the opening credits is not one I would prioritize for fixing first.

 

[Bryan Tuck]

Of all the problems with this movie, the opening credits is not one I would prioritize for fixing first.

True, but they were kind of indicative of all the corners that were cut.

 

[Rob W]

Masters of the Universe, while still not a very good movie, had a bit more going for it. He-Man was still very popular, as was Dolph Lundgren (to a point). Like I was saying earlier, I suspect a portion of the $20 million cut from Superman IV's budget was diverted to this film, which ended up with an estimated $22 million, and had a more prestigious name attached to its visual effects team (Richard Edlund and his Boss Film Studios), which is why that film's effects may appear more polished.

Dolph Lundren himself was the greatest special effect in the movie - has a lead in a comic book movie ever more perfectly resembled their character ?

 

[Sam Favate]

I only saw Masters once, in the theater, upon its release. My friend dragged me there, because he was a He-Man fan, but I remember that I liked it. Not enough to revisit it in the ensuing 38 years, but at the time I liked it!

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

Seeing John Cryer getting the best-looking acting credit in an opening title ever, kind of made me laugh. Such gravitas!

Movie trailer voice: “Starring… Charlton Heston. Lana Turner. And featuring… Pee-Wee Herman!”