Superman: The Movie 25th Anniversary Dec. 15, 2003!! (1 Viewer)

[Dan Rudolph]

It seems I'm in the minority as I always hated Superman 2. It seems like it's being made up as they go along, and repeatedly leaves huge plot holes.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

Let me chime in and say I liked the first three. I don't like the fourth one though.

And it won't be long before somebody comes in to say they like all four.

But Richard Donner's version will stand as one of the best, if not the best, comic adaptations of all time.

 

[TheBat]

Dan, the tv version of Superman 2 includes a bunch of donner's footage that does fix some plot holes for the movie.. I have the international cut of the movie. Its a much better version.

I am kind biased on the superman films, since I have contact with two of the actors from the superman films, Jack O'Halloran and Sarah Douglas (Non and Ursa) the phantom zone villains.

www.angelfire.com/ca4/sarahdouglas
Link Removed

JACOB

 

[Paul_Scott]

It seems I'm in the minority as I always hated Superman 2. It seems liek it's being made up as they go along, and repeatedly leaves huge plot holes.

i'm a member of that minority too.
in '81 i was anticipating that movie the way people this yr were anticipating the Matrix, and it took me a couple years before i could admit to myself how the movie really made me feel.
everything that was regal about the first film i felt was tarnished with a cheap, crass sensibility.
contrast the way that bystanders witness the helicopter rescue, and the sight of supes searching for Luthors lair throughout the city in the first film, with the way the crowd reacts to the 'super-battle' in the second.
the awe and majesty of living in the presence of a 'marvel' like this is replaced with bland amusement and most of the reactions are played for laughs.
and for yrs i was laying most of the blame at Lesters feet, but was surprised to find out just how much of the 'cheap' material i hated was actually filmed by Donner (luthor in prison, the escape of a major terrorist by slow moving hot air ballon, the sequence in the diner).

i do own it, but more for the trailer, which does a great job of building the movie up ("...The world...is on the brink of destruction! And Metropolis...is in RUINS!- If you've only seen the first part, you haven't seen the best part!"

and yeah, i do remember the corn flake box really drawing attention to itself (even as a kid), and the placement in 2 is even more pernicious (Cutty Sark, Marlboro), but it didn't seem that the films were concieved primarily to be a vehicle for this the way much of todays fair is.

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

i do remember the corn flake box really drawing attention to itself

It's Cherrios, and somehow it magically is able to move itself so you can still read the name in a reverse shot looking at Ma Kent.

I can't watch the sequels anymore. Just the original.

Neil

 

[Paul_Scott]

yeah your right Neil, it was Cheerios.
the reason i remember it catching my attention immediately, was becasue it was anachronistic.
they used a contemporary (late 70's) cereal box, in what otherwised seemed to be the late 50's/early 60's.
leading into one of the most heartfelt and emotional scenes in the film, thats kind of a tacky place to put the product placement.

 

[Chris Atkins]

Still my favorite comic book movie to this day!

 

[Gruson]

Oh,

I forgot to add that I have an official prop from Superman II in my theater room. I just had it matted about 6 months ago:



The scene where this paper is used is one of my favorites because it is the scene when the music comes in and Superman is back, just before the big battle.

 

[Gruson]

Anyone else have any props?

 

[Larry Sutliff]

That's very cool, Gruson. I'll never forget the moment where Superman shows up at the Daily Planet to confront Zod and the other villians. I saw the movie opening night, and the crowd's reaction was electrifying. I've never seen an audience respond more favorably to a movie than I did when I saw SUPERMAN II for the first time.

"General, would you care to step outside?"

 

[Gruson]

Yes Larry, I get chills just thinking about that scene!!!

I think the other big scene for me in Superman II is at the end when Superman takes Zod's hand, the music comes in, and then he crushes it and takes them out. Classic.

Even if they make another Superman movie, it will in no way have the magic Superman I and II have.

 

[Tony Whalen]

Gruson, what an awesome prop to own! So what does the body-text say? Anything? Or is it just filler?

 

[Gruson]

The text is from a real British newspaper and talks about stocks, etc. from the late 70s.

 

[Ruslan]

Hey Gruson, very cool!
I almost bought a similar prop from a reputable auction company (I forget which) - the Daily Planet 'Caped Wonder Stuns City' prop from the first film. Only when I freeze-framed the DVD did I notice a very slight difference between the one onscreen and the one I was going to buy...

I adore the first Superman film - it is on a par with Star Wars and Raiders in my mind. It's just a huge shame the re-release didn't go well as it deserves to be discovered by a new generation on the big screen.

 

[Moe Maishlish]

Corn Flakes, anyone?

Actually it was Cheerios...

I never had a chance to view the movie as a kid, considering I was only 3 years old when the Superman came out, and my parents were very "anti-comic-book" when I was a kid. So I was about 8 or 9 years old when I remember catching bits & pieces of the movie on network television (I never saw the whole movie as an entirety until I was well into my teen-years!).

I remember sitting with my then 3 year old sister in front of the TV, and this early scene comes on where Ma Kent places the Cheerios box quite squarely & planly in the middle of the frame. My sister & I were very well aware of it, and the fact that it was product placement. I still remember looking at her and laughing about it - and she was laughing to!

Of course, after the movie we had Cheerios (the one cereal my mother would buy us at the time... it had no sugar).

Moe.