Cars Blu-Ray Review

Rated G

Running Time: 1 Hour & 57 Minutes

Cast (voice):

Owen Wilson-Lightning McQueen

Daniel Lawrence Whitney aka Larry the Cable Guy-Mater

Bonnie Hunt-Sally Carrera

Paul Newman-Doc Hudson

John Ratzenberger-Mack

Richard Petty-Strip ‘The King’ Weathers

Michael Keaton-Chick Hicks

Cheech Marin-Ramone

Jenifer Lewis-Flo

Tony Shalhoub-Luigi

Guido Quaroni-Guido

Michael Wallis-Sheriff

Paul Dooley-Sarge

George Carlin-Fillmore

Katherine Helmond-Lizzie

Directed by John Lasseter and Joe Ranft

It doesn't quite meet the high expectations that Pixar set for themselves but "Cars" remains a fine, if overlong, animated film.

“Cars” has always been the black sheep on Pixar’s close-to impeccable résumé. When the animated film was released in 2006, overall reception was positive but critics agreed that it was Pixar’s worse effort at the time. Featuring a world full of anthropomorphized cars with no humans in sight, the concept of “Cars” was somewhat hard to swallow compared to talking toys or animals when real-world logic was applied. After all, how did these cars evolve? Were they born from a primordial iron-soup? What about reproduction? Ultimately, it’s not the concept that holds “Cars” back but its rather simplistic story as it lacks the thematic ambition audiences have come to expect from a Pixar film. The pacing is sluggish during the film’s midsection with too much filler material used for easy jokes and while the studio once again raises the bar for CG animation with some gorgeously lush visuals, the film cannot shake off its predictable, been-there, done-that feel. 

Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) is a hotshot rookie determined to take home the gold in the Piston Cup championship. However, the final race in the event results in a three-way tie between current champion Strip ‘The King’ Weathers (Richard Petty) and Chick Hicks (Michael Keaton), an ambitious race car who’s unafraid to resort to dirty tactics in order to gain an advantage such as ramming fellow racers off the track. With no clear winner, a tiebreaker race is held in one week’s time at the Los Angeles International Speedway. Lightning is desperate to win as it will allow him to leave his current, less glamorous sponsorship of Rust-Eze (a company specializing in rust treatment for old cars) for the more prestigious Dinaco. Eager to get to California for a head-start on training, Lightning pushes his big rig, Mack (John Ratzenberger), to travel all night without rest. Exhausted, Mack eventually drifts off but is startled awake when three reckless street racing cars force him onto the rumble strips of the road. The resulting vibration causes the trailer door to open and a sleeping McQueen to roll out onto incoming traffic. Lightning wakes up and tries to find Mack in a mad dash through the highway but ends up in a small town called Radiator Springs when he unknowingly takes a detour on Route 66. During a chase with the town’s sheriff (Michael Wallis), Lightning inadvertently tears up the pavement of the main road and is impounded. He is forced to show up in court the next day and the town’s judge and doctor, Doc Hudson (Paul Newman), orders him to leave immediately. However, local lawyer Sally Carrera (Bonnie Hunt) convinces Hudson to have Lightning repair the road as community service. Once it is done, he can leave Radiator Springs. Lightning is angry over this decision and rushes to repave the road in a day but when Hudson sees the shoddy repair work, he orders him to restart all over again. A Southern redneck named Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) takes an immediate liking to Lightning and the two eventually become fast friends. As he spends more time in Radiator Springs, Lightning’s worldviews begin to change and he comes to realize that life is more than just about winning a race. 

“Cars” explores the fleeting nature of celebrity and life but the story pales in comparison to previous Pixar films and is unable to sustain its lengthy one hour and fifty-seven minute running time. While these are worthwhile themes, the main issue is that they’ve already been explored to death already with the film bearing a striking similarity to Michael J. Fox’s 1991 romantic comedy, “Doc Hollywood.” Lightning McQueen is initially presented as hotheaded and rash with a big ego, refusing to listen to the advice of his pit crew and reveling in his celebrity status. He’s basically full of himself and keeps everyone at arm’s length. Behaving like a petulant brat, he reacts with anger when he is sentenced to community service, failing to grasp the consequences of his actions. Slowly but surely, he comes to realize that because of his intense focus on winning races, he has lost sight of the little moments in life. “Cars” is also overly nostalgic of small-town life, arguing that technological progress has caused people to become less tight-knit and blind to what life has to offer. This is true to a certain extent but the solution to go back to a ‘simpler time’ feels like a regression. Yes, it is important to appreciate and not to forget the past as it serves as a valuable lesson for the future but you cannot remain stuck and unable to move forward. 

The film tends to drag during the midsection, with a number of filler scenes that have no real impact on the story. Late one night, Mater invites Lightning to a nearby farm to spook the sleeping tractors and while it offers a chuckle or two, I didn’t find it particularly funny and the whole scene comes off as pointless. Many of the jokes are aimed more at children than adults but there are some small touches that I appreciated, such as giant anime eyes on a female Japanese car and welcome voice cameos from both Jay Leno and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The numerous travel montages, while visually impressive, are drawn out and feel like Pixar is showing off its animation prowess. In fact, a good fifteen to twenty minutes could’ve been excised to tighten up the pacing because the film soon begins to wear out its welcome as it meanders toward a predictable climax. What really saves “Cars” is the CG animation and while it’s not a significant leap in technology, the overall look is vibrant and stunning. Lightning and Sally’s Sunday drive through the town’s desert canyons and nearby mountains is breathtakingly gorgeous. The design of the cars themselves also deserves praise as any doubts to the concept are gone within a matter of minutes once you see how human-like their behavior is. Rather than putting the eyes on the headlights, having them on the windshield allows for more expressive emotion with the wheels used as hands and feet. 

As befitting for a Pixar release, the voice acting is top-notch. Owen Wilson easily captures Lightning’s brash recklessness and arrogance but also manages to imbue him with enough charm, allowing him to win over the audience once he redeems himself. Serving as the comic relief is Larry the Cable Guy as Mater and while he is funny with his loud, dim-witted hillbilly antics, he works best in small doses as too much ends up gratingly annoying. Bonnie Hunt is a Porsche named Sally and exhibits a sunny, girl-next-door personality. Paul Newman (in his final non-documentary role) is a gruff, no-nonsense judge with a hidden past while an unrecognizable Michael Keaton is Chick Hicks, who does such a good job in making him unlikable with his thinly veiled bitterness at coming in second. Also contributing is Pixar veteran John Ratzenberger, Tony Shalhoub, and Cheech Marin (of comedy duo Cheech & Chong) with cameos from a number of NASCAR veterans including Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mario Andretti, and Darrell Waltrip with renowned NBC sportscaster Bob Costas as an announcer. 

“Cars” was released on Blu-Ray in 2007 and re-released in April, 2011 as a Blu-Ray/DVD combo set. The picture and audio quality are beyond reference material. All the characters have a shiny, reflective sheen to them and the environments have such impeccable detail with the cars unleashing dust clouds and specks of dirt as they race along various roads. As this is a purely digital-to-digital transfer, there are absolutely no flaws with its video presentation. Audio is dynamic and aggressive with immersive sound effects such as the revving of an engine or the crunch of metal as a car crashes along the side of a race track. Dialogue is crisp as well. There are a number of special features on the disc including two interactive audio commentaries (one with director John Lasseter and the other from various members of the production team) which allows you to interrupt the film to view deleted scenes and short behind-the-scenes footage. Ported from the DVD are a number of deleted scenes and two shorts, “Mater and the Ghostlight” and “One Man Band.” For the kids, there’s also a game dubbed “Car Finder,” where you have to find a certain car in a particular scene in the least amount of time for points. The rest are trailers for various Disney and Pixar films. 

Released on June 9, 2006, “Cars” received positive reviews with 74% on Rotten Tomatoes but critics noted that ‘while the story may not reach the high standards of [Pixar’s previous work], viewers of all ages will marvel at the technical brilliance of the animation and come away satisfied.’ Until the release of its sequel in 2011, “Cars” was the lowest-rated Pixar film. At the box office, the film earned a respectable $462 million worldwide against an estimated $120 million production budget but it was the massive merchandising potential that made it such a resounding success for Disney. Countless products bearing the “Cars” license have earned a gargantuan $10 billion in worldwide retail sales and were the primary driving (no pun intended) force for green-lighting the sequel. The CG animation is a visual tour de force but “Cars” is definitely one of Pixar’s lesser efforts due to an overlong, meandering plot that never quite inspires or pulls at the heartstrings when compared to the studio’s previous offerings but even so, the film is still a cut above competing animated films.

Final Rating: 3.5 out of 5

“Well, the road didn't cut through land like that Interstate. It moved with the land, you know? It rose, it fell, it curved. Cars didn't drive on it to make a great time. They drove on it to have a great time.”

Note: Make sure to watch the hilarious clips during the end credits!

Read More

Bad Teacher Review

Rated R (Sexual Content, Nudity, Language and Some Drug Use)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 32 Minutes

Cast:

Cameron Diaz-Elizabeth Halsey

Lucy Punch-Amy Squirrel

Justin Timberlake-Scott Delacorte

Jason Segel-Russell Gettis

Phyllis Smith-Lynn Davies

John Michael Higgins-Principal Wally Snur

Eric Stonestreet-Kirk

Thomas Lennon-Carl Halabi

Matthew J. Evans-Garrett Tiara

Kaitlyn Dever-Sasha Abernathy

Kathryn Newton-Chase Rubin-Rossi

Directed by Jake Kasdan

I wouldn't mind if Cameron Diaz was my middle school teacher!

Despite all the ongoing issues plaguing our country’s education system, “Bad Teacher” could’ve ended up being offensive but it turned out to be a lot funnier than I initially expected, reveling in its lack of morals and potentially sexist, misogynistic overtones without any apology or shame. The film’s outrageous, high-concept premise is certainly novel but it’s also its weakness as the plot is rather predictable, moving and ending the way you’d expect. However, it makes up for it with a strong cast, whose interactions as obvious caricatures provides quite a few laughs, especially the adorable Lucy Punch. 

Elizabeth Halsey (Cameron Diaz) is a teacher at John Adams Middle School who’s leaving after only one year as she is about to be married to a very wealthy man, allowing her have a work-free future. We learn though a flashback that she did the bare minimum as a teacher and coasted through the school year, avoiding the rest of the faculty and students. Unfortunately, her fiancé’s mother sees through her and realizes she is nothing but a gold-digger, discovering that she burned through $16,000 of the family’s money in one month and convinces her son to call off the wedding. Fast forward three months later and Halsey has returned to teaching at John Adams Middle School. Her only ‘friend’ in the faculty is an awkward teacher named Lynn Davies (Phyllis Smith) but Halsey often takes advantage of her niceness, such as when Lynn treats her to lunch and she blatantly snatches food off her plate. A gym teacher named Russell Gettis (Jason Segal) is attracted to Halsey and tries again and again to land a date but is rejected every time. Looking for a way out of her miserable job as a teacher, Halsey decides to get plastic surgery and have her breasts enlarged to compete with all the ‘fresh talent.’ However, she is unable to afford it with her measly salary as the operation costs $100,000. A new substitute teacher, Scott Delacorte (Justin Timberlake), arrives at school and Halsey immediately sinks her claws into him, learning that he comes from a wealthy, watch-making family. Amy Squirrel (Lucy Punch), a peppy, eternally cheerful teacher, also takes a liking to Delacorte and her rivalry with Halsey soon escalates into one outrageous situation after another. 

“Bad Teacher” has a predictable plot and it ends the way you’d expect it to be. Cameron Diaz’s Elizabeth Halsey is a bitchy, shallow, sex-crazed, drug-using gold-digger who hates teaching (although how she managed to earn her license is a big mystery) but comes to realize her penchant for helping students who are social outcasts. This isn’t a spoiler as it’s made quite clear in the initial trailers that this was the direction the story was taking, although Halsey realizing the error of her ways comes off as a little too sudden and is not sufficiently well-developed. Even the requisite romance that develops between Halsey and another character that I won’t spoil is by-the-numbers, so despite the fresh premise, director Jake Kasdan’s familiar approach to the story is what keeps the film from truly shining. 

However, the cast provides a lot of laughs and manages to overcome the deficiencies of the script. All the characters are really just obvious, big cartoon caricatures that it almost becomes satirical. Diaz is a perfect fit for Halsey, reveling in her shallow ways and making no qualms about hiding it. During a school car wash fundraiser, she comes in dressed in nothing but Daisy Dukes with a red-colored plaid top and proceeds to do a sexually suggestive burlesque routine on all the cars as she soaks herself with a sponge. All the men (and even the clearly lesbian girls’ volleyball coach) are entranced by this. One male student is shown to have a massive erection! I must admit, Diaz has perfectly toned legs. As she grades her class’ test papers, her ‘corrections’ become more profanity-laced and even utilizes an unusual punishment/reward system involving a dodge-ball with her students. Her character strikes a fine balance between totally unlikable and somewhat redeemable, which is actually a good thing because an unsympathetic one would risk alienating the audience. Still, it is Lucy Punch who steals all the scenes with her perky, over-enthusiastic behavior when it comes to school. Punch is actually British and some might recognize her as Holly Ellenbogen on the short-lived television sitcom “The Class.” She’s rather cute and adorable in the role and there’s this hilarious scene where she unsuccessfully tries to convince the school’s principal, Wally Snur (John Michael Higgins), that Halsey is doing drugs and befitting her namesake makes this squirrel-like face with her teeth when she doesn’t get her way, prompting Snur to yell, ‘Do not do that with your mouth!’ Her character even goes so far as to barge into the men’s room and sit on a urinal while Snur is inside a stall as she accuses Halsey of embezzling money from the car wash. Of course, Amy Squirrel is actually just as conniving and manipulative as Halsey, except she hides it behind the phony veneer of a sunny personality. Holden Caulfield would hate her very much. 

Although Justin Timberlake as a nerdy substitute teacher isn’t believable, his boring political correctness where he just simply agrees with everyone is fun to watch and it’s almost like his character is a winking nod to the film’s crass nature. Apparently, his idea of a good time is dry humping and we even get a shot of his stained jeans afterwards! Phyllis Smith is playing a variation of her character on the television series “The Office” as an awkward, second-guessing teacher while Jason Segal is the ‘normal’ straight guy, reacting with deadpan humor and sarcasm at everything going on around him. You might also recognize Eric Stonestreet from “Modern Family,” who plays Halsey’s eccentric roommate and has a hilarious scene involving blackmailing an official from a test-making company. 

“Bad Teacher” was released on June 24, 2011 and has received mixed reviews with 46% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics felt that ‘in spite of a promising concept and a charmingly brazen performance from Cameron Diaz, [the film] is never as funny as it should be.’ It is competing with Pixar’s latest sequel “Cars 2,” whose animated films has always expected to be both critical and commercial successes but in a strange turn of events, has received worse reviews compared to “Bad Teacher.” Granted, “Cars” was less about telling a worthwhile story and more about its massive merchandising potential. “Bad Teacher” will be settling for a second place but with a better-than-predicted $30 million for opening weekend. While it provides ninety minutes of hilarity, “Bad Teacher” never strives for anything more and settles for a tried-and-true but predictable story. It may not earn a passing grade at originality but when it comes to laughs, it passes with flying colors.

Final Rating: 3.5 out of 5

“When I first started teaching, I thought that I was doing it for all the right reasons: shorter hours, summers off, no accountability...”

Read More

Green Lantern Review

Rated PG-13 (Intense Sequences of Sci-Fi Violence and Action)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 54 Minutes

Cast:

Ryan Reynolds-Hal Jordan/Green Lantern

Blake Lively-Carol Ferris

Peter Sarsgaard-Dr. Hector Hammond

Mark Strong-Thaal Sinestro

Temuera Morrison-Abin Sur

Geoffrey Rush (voice)-Tomar Re

Michael Clarke Duncan (voice)-Kilowog

Taika Waititi-Thomas Kalmaku

Tim Robbins-Senator Robert Hammond

Angela Bassett-Dr. Amanda Waller

Clancy Brown (voice)-Parallax

Directed Martin Campbell

All those special effects, and the film still sucked.

When it comes to comic book films, Marvel is currently dominant, even if some of their adaptations do end up falling flat. Their production company, Marvel Studios, has been really pushing at making all their films take place in a shared universe, all leading up to “The Avengers” in summer 2012. As for DC, they’ve been slow to respond and with the exception of Superman and Batman, all of their other characters have not made the leap to the big screen. “Green Lantern” seeks to change all that. The original incarnation of Green Lantern, Alan Scott, made his first appearance in All-American Comics #16 in 1940 and was created by Bill Finger and Martin Nodell. The film is based on the current incarnation, Hal Jordon. I started reading Green Lantern during the lead-up to the Blackest Night limited series so I’m not as well-versed in its lore compared to Spider-Man but I am familiar with the fundamental aspects of the character. Unfortunately, if this film is to jump-start a string of new DC Comics film adaptations, than “Green Lantern” is a massive disappointment as it ends up being dull and lifeless, its drama buried under a deluge of iffy visual effects and hindered by too much expository dialogue and poor editing that leaves large chunks of the story missing. 

“Green Lantern” begins with a narration by Tomar-Re (voice of Geoffrey Rush), who reveals that eons before the formation of the Earth, a group of immortal beings known as the Guardians of the Universe discovered and harnessed the green power of will. They forged emerald rings to utilize this power and sent one to each of the 3600 sectors of the universe to select a person who is worthy to join the intergalactic peace-keeping force known as the Green Lantern Corps. The most formidable Green Lantern was Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison) of Sector 2184, who managed to defeat the living embodiment of fear known as Parallax (voice of Clancy Brown) and imprisoned him on the planet Ryut in the Lost Sector (Sector 666). In the present day, three aliens become stranded on Ryut and come upon Parallax, who awakens and consumes their essence. He breaks free from his prison and escapes into space. Six months later, Parallax finds Abin Sur and mortally wounds him but he manages to escape to the nearest inhabited planet, which happens to be Earth. Knowing he will die soon, Abin tasks his ring to find one worthy to replace him. Hal Jordon (Ryan Reynolds) is a cocky test pilot working for Ferris Aerospace in Coast City, California. His fellow test pilot is former girlfriend and vice president to the company, Carol Ferris (Blake Lively). The two participate in a simulation to test a pair of prototype UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) to secure a government contract but Jordon manages to outsmart both of the machines. Unfortunately, due to his risk-taking, Ferris Aerospace loses the contract and is forced to lay off most of its employees. After leaving his nephew’s birthday party, Hal is enveloped by an emerald energy orb and is whisked away to Abin Sur’s crashed ship. Abin gives his ring and lantern-shaped battery to Hal before he succumbs to his wounds. When Hal unlocks the ring’s power, it takes him to space and he arrives at the Corps’ homeworld, Oa. There he meets his two mentors, Tomar-Re and Kilowog (voice of Michael Clarke Duncan). Abin’s best friend, Thaal Sinestro (Mark Strong), takes an immediate disliking to Hal, believing that humans are too primitive to wield such power. However, to succeed as a Green Lantern, Hal must learn to overcome his fear and finally take responsibility as Parallax descends upon Earth and Oa. He must also contend with Dr. Hector Hammond (Peter Sarsgaard), who becomes infected by Parallax. 

“Green Lantern” the film is largely based upon writer Geoff Johns and illustrator Ivan Reis’ story-arc Secret Origin, which ran from Green Lantern Vol. 4 #29 to #35 in 2008. It is one of many preludes to the limited series Blackest Night. Unfortunately, the film struggles to explain the background of the Green Lantern Corps and its exposition eats into the running time and main story. This is something that could’ve used some stream-lining as a comic book can utilize multiple issues to tell one story, while a film has only two hours, give or take. The screenplay was written by four people: Greg Berlanti, Michael Green, Marc Guggenheim, and Michael Goldenberg, making the film a patchwork of half-baked subplots and ideas. Events either are too brisk or just happen without any logical rhyme or reasoning. One of the best scenes in the film is when Hal is whisked away to the planet Oa to begin his training as a Green Lantern. It’s a visually stunning sequence and offers brief glimpses of several well-known members of the Corps but it lasts no more than fifteen minutes. The training scene is to emphasize that Hal is not fully ready to accept his newfound responsibilities but in a matter of minutes, he calls it quits after being thrashed by Sinestro. He returns to Earth and the film ends up being dull and tedious as it meanders towards its climax. For a character we’re supposed to sympathize with, Hal comes off as a coward. Yes, we know he is afraid that he will fail and is haunted by his father’s death but his growth is poorly handled. He spends most of the film unsure of himself but after a little pep talk from Carol, all of a sudden he’s ready to take on Parallax just like that! Such abruptness rears its head again when Sinestro tells the Guardians that the only way to fight fear is with fear and insists that a yellow ring be forged. From what we’re told, the green ring seems to have served the Corps just fine since its inception but they’re willing to abandon what they stand for at a drop of a hat. 

Large chunks of the story appear to be left on the cutting room floor. Apparently, Hal, Carol, and Hector used to be childhood acquaintances but it fails to make sense in the context of the story. When Hector becomes infected by Parallax, his brain enlarges and he gains telepathic and telekinetic powers. He attempts to kill his father, Senator Robert Hammond (Tim Robbins) but Hal arrives just in time to save the day. How did Hal know where to find Hector? It’s as if director Martin Campbell realized the film was almost over and just decided they should fight. Also, Parallax ends up changing course from Oa and heads towards Earth to get revenge on the successor of Abin Sur. He could end the Corps in one swift victory stroke but instead wastes time by worrying about Hal. The Corps are under-utilized as well and despite having 3600 members, Hal is forced to go it alone to battle Parallax. What kind of peace-keeping force is this if it abandons its own members to their deaths?! “Green Lantern” is a series of illogical scenes and missed opportunities, wrapped up in a dull, derivative tale, which is shame given the comic book’s rich mythology. 

The film features an overabundance of special effects and as expected, they’re nicely done but it ends up overwhelming the story. My skepticism of rendering the Corps’ uniform in CGI proved true; while it looks fine in medium and wide shots, the illusion fails in close-ups and looks like someone just took a giant green paint-brush on Reynolds. Parallax is just an amorphous yellow cloud and recalls Galactus from 2007’s sequel, “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” but his climatic battle with Hal does end up being exciting to watch. The constructs that Hal makes also lack imagination. He saves a crashing helicopter by making a race car track and ramp that resembles something out of Hot Wheels. “Green Lantern” is also being shown in 3D but it’s another one of those post-conversions. While not last-minute and planned from the beginning, I decided to stick with the 2D version, although reviews seem to indicate that while it does not serve as a hindrance like other lazy conversions, it also adds little to the film. 

The cast give their best but the script fails them. Ryan Reynolds manages the comedic bits just fine and has great timing but flounders when showing us his inner struggle with his fear of failure. We are told he is afraid (over and over again!) but we never actually feel he’s afraid. Blake Lively (who is currently on the television show “Gossip Girl”) is gorgeous eye-candy and while she’s fine in her role as the obligatory love interest, it’s hard to buy her as a skilled test pilot when looking like a supermodel. Peter Sarsgaard fares the worse, his sniveling portrayal of Hector Hammond is cheesy and borderline laughable and once his brain grows, he looks even more ridiculous! Mark Strong makes for a fine Sinestro and his make-up work is impressive but the film gives him very little to do except stand around giving speeches. The script fails to get across his beliefs of the ends justify the means, which leads him down a dark path. Characters such as Tomar-Re and Kilowog end up being wasted and under-utilized. 

“Green Lantern” was released in 2D and 3D on June 17, 2011 and has received largely negative reviews with a paltry 23% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics called it ‘noisy, overproduced, and thinly written, [the film] squanders an impressive budget and decades of comic’s mythology.’ The film seems to be on track for a $60 million debut which isn’t bad for a comic book character unknown to the mainstream audience. Word-of-mouth will decide if it’s profitable given its massive $200 million production budget, and that’s not even counting the marketing costs! There’s a good film buried in “Green Lantern” somewhere and it shows glimmers of it but too often the poor script and editing undermine everything, leaving us with a dull adaptation and a ton of wasted potential. Who will enjoy it? Easily thrilled children and teenagers, and adults who have no standards. Everyone else will be disappointed by all of its lost opportunities.

Final Rating: 2 out of 5

“In brightest day, in blackest night, No evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil’s might, Beware my power…Green Lantern’s light!”

Note: Make sure to stay during the end credits for a special scene that sets up a potential sequel.

Read More

Superman IV: The Quest for Peace Blu-Ray Review

Rated PG

Running Time: 1 Hour & 30 Minutes

Cast:

Christopher Reeve-Clark Kent/Superman

Margot Kidder-Lois Lane

Gene Hackman-Lex Luthor

Marc McClure-Jimmy Olsen

Jackie Cooper-Perry White

Mark Pillow-Nuclear Man

Sam Wanamaker-David Warfield

Mariel Hemingway-Lacy Warfield

Jon Cryer-Lenny Luthor

Damian McLawhorn-Jeremy

Directed by Sidney J. Furie

Let's get ready to rumble!

Note: Part of the "Superman Motion Picture Anthology" Blu-Ray set.

Watching “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” for the umpteenth time, I have to wonder just what the heck happened to the “Superman” film franchise. 1978’s “Superman” is nothing short of a masterpiece thanks to the reverence director Richard Donner had for the source material. Absolutely no expense was spared as the film utilized the latest special effects at the time in order to make the audience believe that a man can fly. Despite Donner being unceremoniously fired and plagued by a myriad of behind-the-scenes production troubles, 1981’s “Superman II” managed to maintain the high quality standard set by its predecessor but everything unraveled when “Superman III” arrived in 1983. With Donner and ‘creative consultant’ Tom Mankiewicz finally out of the picture, producers Alexander and his son, Ilya Salkind set out to make their vision of a “Superman” film, and the result was a dull, campy affair that squanders all the potential and goodwill set-up by the first two films. Although “Superman III” was a moderate box office success, it received negative reviews from both critics and fans due to the drastic change in tone and its overreliance on slapstick comedy. Reeve and the producers believed that the “Superman” film franchise had run its course but that didn’t stop the Salkinds from making a spin-off film with 1984’s “Supergirl,” a critically-reviled, box office bomb. Four years later, having sucked dry whatever money was left to be made with the “Superman” film franchise, the Salkinds sold all the rights to Golan & Globus of Cannon Films. Co-founded by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, Cannon Films specialized in low-to-medium budget fare and financed any film if they believed it would make a quick buck. Eager to make a fourth “Superman” film, Golan & Globus approached Christopher Reeve to reprise his famous role but he was hesitant and feared it would be treated as a farce like the third film, which he felt was disrespectful to both the fans and the source material. To sweeten the deal, Reeve was at first offered a paycheck comparable to what he received in the previous films. Second, Cannon Films would produce and release any pet project of his choosing (the result was the crime drama “Street Smart,” released the same year as “Superman IV”) and finally, Reeve would have the opportunity to develop the story for the fourth film and receive credit. He accepted and the result is one of the worst comic book films ever made. “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” has its heart in the right place but the poorly edited story, combined with its laughable special effects done on the cheap proved to be the death knell of the franchise. Reeve escapes unscathed but ultimately not even Superman can save a film that was doomed to disaster from the start.

After saving a group of cosmonauts whose ship is thrown off course by a rogue satellite, Superman/Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve) returns to Smallville to check on the now uninhabited farm he grew up in. He finds the empty space capsule his father, Jor-El, built to send him to Earth and discovers a green-glowing, Kryptonian energy crystal. Clark hears his mother, Lara (voice of Susannah York), who informs her son that the energy contained within the crystal can only be used once. Returning to The Daily Planet in Metropolis, Clark learns from Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) that the newspaper has been taken over by a tabloid tycoon named David Warfield (Sam Wanamaker), who fires Editor-in-chief Perry White (Jackie Cooper) and replaces him with his daughter, Lacy (Mariel Hemingway). Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) manages to escape from prison with the help of his bumbling nephew, Lenny (Jon Cryer), still determined to destroy Superman. Back at The Daily Planet, everyone is watching the President’s speech, who informs the public that due to a failure to compromise at the disarmament talks with the Soviet Union, the U.S. is forced to step up its nuclear arms race. The broadcast is watched by schools all over the country, with a concerned schoolboy writing to Superman to do something to bring about peace. Clark is conflicted about whether he should interfere and consults with the spirits of Krypton’s Elder Council at the Fortress of Solitude for advice. Their responses fail to get him any closer to a decision but after spending some time with Lois, he makes his way to the United Nations as Superman to plead his case. Fearing the catastrophic destruction of a full-out nuclear war, he announces that effective immediately, he will be ridding the entire world of nuclear weapons. This decision is met with thunderous applause. Elsewhere, Lex and Lenny break into a museum (in broad daylight) and steal a strand of Superman’s hair. He plans to put the genetic material in a device attached to a nuclear warhead in order to clone Superman. The missile is launched and as expected, Superman catches it and throws it into the Sun. A super-powered being is born and this ‘Nuclear Man’ (Mark Pillow) immediately begins a wave of destruction around the world to destroy Superman.

I don’t even know where to begin with “Superman IV.” Originally set with a $40 million production budget, Cannon Films slashed it to a paltry $17 million just days before shooting began as the company had completely overextended itself due to years of mismanagement. In fact, Cannon Films would declare bankruptcy in two years! The original cut of the film ran 2 hours and 15 minutes but the test screening in Los Angeles, California was a total disaster as people felt that it dragged on too long. As a result, the filmmakers made drastic cuts and deleted approximately 45 minutes of footage, leaving a total running of 1 hour & 30 minutes, hardly a proper length to a tell an epic Superman tale. I doubt the original cut had been any better but it would’ve fleshed out character motivations, explained much of the action, and resolved all the loose plot threads in a way that made sense. Here, nothing makes sense at all! Numerous subplots are introduced but either are immediately dropped or hastily resolved with its weak ending. As his political leanings were liberal, the idea of nuclear disarmament was Reeve’s idea and it had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, it’s only a means to move the action along and the way the film deals with it is laughably bad. Would all the world’s countries really react with thunderous applause if they learned that a super-powered being would rid their world of nuclear weapons in the name of so-called ‘peace’? While the concept is admirable and had its heart in the right place, Reeve and the writers failed to grasp the serious consequences of what would’ve happened if Superman destroyed the world’s nuclear stockpile.

The rest of “Superman IV” is a tired retread of the previous films from Luthor using nuclear weapons to Superman and Lois’ on-again, off-again relationship. Its tone is certainly more serious compared to “Superman III” but the gutted running time and choppy editing left it in an unsalvageable, illogical mess. Adding insult to injury is the absolute misrepresentation of Superman’s powers and the horrid special effects. This film was made nine years after the original so the visuals should get better, not regress! The first scene where Superman flies toward the camera has a green tint and is reused over and over again throughout the film. Whenever there’s a wide shot of him or Nuclear Man flying, it looks like some sort of action figure was used. Either that or they used a cardboard cutout and pasted it on a random stock photo of Earth with Elmer’s Glue. Superman also seemed to have acquired strange new powers. In the beginning when Clark explores the space capsule he came to Earth in, he makes it disappear just by staring at it. In fact, he does a lot of things by staring! During Nuclear Man’s reign of destruction, he destroys part of the Great Wall of China and Superman fixes it by staring at it and all the bricks just magically pop into existence with ‘blip-blip-blip’ sound effects. Later, during the climax, Nuclear Man unleashes some sort of beam (he seems to have a beam for everything!) and lifts a group of innocent bystanders. Once again, Superman brings them down…by staring at them! I wonder if any of the filmmakers actually picked up a Superman comic before! I also expect to suspend disbelief for a “Superman” film but when Nuclear Man flies Lacy Warfield to space, shouldn’t she start gasping for breath due to space being a vacuum?! Apparently, knowledge of basic science escaped the writers as well. At least, Alexander Courage’s score turned out to be quite good.

The acting is a mixed bag. Christopher Reeve once again delivers a genuinely sincere performance and makes all the lame dialogue sound better than it actually is, especially the speeches he gives. Everyone else had very little to work with given the poor script. Gene Hackman is fun to watch but by this point, his portrayal of Lex Luthor was beginning to feel overly cartoonish. Margot Kidder is reduced to staring wide-eyed at Superman and the intervening years since the original film hasn’t been kind to her looks. Mariel Hemingway’s (granddaughter to famous writer Ernest Hemingway) Lacy Warfield is introduced as a love interest to Clark but its half-baked and after Superman saves her, she inexplicably disappears. Jon Cryer was incredibly annoying and Mark Pillow, well he grunts and grunts…and grunts some more. Pillow’s entire career after this film was starring in one episode of “Wiseguy” and a role on a short-lived Russian television series, “Alaska Kid.” He currently works as fine wine sales representative and retired from acting.

“Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” arrives on Blu-Ray as part of the “Superman Motion Picture Anthology” box set. For a film so terrible, the picture quality is impressive but all it does is magnify how shoddy the special effects looked. Still, textures are detailed, colors are bold and on the whole, it looks like it was filmed yesterday. The audio is also loud and dynamic, especially during the action scenes. Dialogue is very sharp compared to the previous films, though does not approach modern levels. Special features are a little bare for this installment but the audio commentary from writer Mark Rosenthal is worth a listen. He defends the story but also touches upon all the problems of the film. There’s a television special that debuted during the 50th anniversary of Superman hosted by Dana Carvey, of all people. Also included are 30 minutes of deleted scenes but they all look rough with unfinished visual effects, although I find it hard to believe it can look worse than the final product. There’s also a theatrical trailer as well.

Released on July 24, 1987, “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” received overwhelmingly negative reviews with a paltry 10% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics wrote that ‘the action is boring, the special effects look cheaper, and none of the actors appear interested in where the plot's going.’ Its total domestic box office gross $16 million barely covered the production budget. In his autobiography Still Me, Reeve wrote that the film was ‘hampered by budget constraints and cutbacks in all departments.’ He used the United Nations scene as an example, noting that if it was Richard Donner, it would’ve been shot on-location in New York City. Rosenthal recalls that Reeve and director Sidney J. Furie begged Cannon Films to film in front of the actual UN and that the Milton Keynes setting looked nothing like it. In fact, due to the company’s extreme penny pinching, the UN depicted in the film was just some municipal auditorium. It’s really sad that the “Superman” film franchise went out with such a terrible film and I don’t enjoy ripping it apart as I love Christopher Reeve and consider him to a real-life Superman. “Superman IV” ended with Reeve saying, ‘See you in twenty!’ to Luthor but the line proved prophetic because it would be nineteen years before Bryan Singer’s “Superman Returns” was released. I think Reeve speaks for all of us when he wrote, ‘The less said about Superman IV, the better.’

Final Rating: 1.5 out of 5

“Well, once more, we survived the threat of war and found a fragile peace. I thought I could give you all the gifts of the freedom from war, but…I was wrong. It's not mine to give. We're still a young planet. There are galaxies...out there…other civilizations for us to meet, to learn from. What a brilliant future we could have. And there will be peace. There will be peace when the people of the world want it so badly, that their governments will have no choice but to give it to them. I just wish you could all see the Earth the way that I see it. Because when you really look at it, it's just one world.”

Read More

Superman III Blu-Ray Review

Rated PG

Running Time: 2 Hours & 5 Minutes

Cast:

Christopher Reeve-Clark Kent/Superman

Margot Kidder-Lois Lane

Annette O'Toole-Lana Lang

Richard Pryor-August ‘Gus’ Gorman

Marc McClure-Jimmy Olsen

Jackie Cooper-Perry White

Robert Vaughn-Ross Webster

Annie Ross-Vera Webster

Pamela Stephenson-Lorelei Ambrosia

Gavan O'Herlihy-Brad Wilson

Paul Kaethler-Ricky Lang

Directed by Richard Lester

This guy tried to kill you and you're letting him go?!

Note: Part of the "Superman Motion Picture Anthology" Blu-Ray set.

It seems the third time’s not the charm for Superman as Christopher Reeve reprises his famous role in 1983’s “Superman III.” Although director Richard Lester received official credit for the production-troubled “Superman II,” the sequel only managed to live up to the heights of the original thanks to the efforts of ‘creative consultant’ Tom Mankiewicz and previous director Richard Donner, who had shot roughly three-quarters of the film before being unceremoniously fired by the producers, Alexander and his son, Ilya Salkind. With Donner and Mankiewicz out of the picture, the Salkinds finally had free rein to adapt their vision of a “Superman” film, which is a campy comedy that disrespects the source material. Apparently, Lester had not even heard of Superman when he replaced Donner because comic books were not allowed in his house when he was a child. Hiring someone who had no experience with the source material just really boggles the mind. The Salkinds were eager to cast comedian Richard Pryor (who passed away in 2005 at the age of 65) in the third film after he commented on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson about how much he enjoyed “Superman II.” As Lester had directed a number of popular comedies, including the highly successful “The Three Musketeers” series for the Salkinds, it was believed that “Superman III” would be a sure-fire hit with its new tone. While it was a moderate box office success and had a few interesting ideas at work, “Superman III” is a dull entry in the series, so desperate in its attempts at comedy that it loses the grandiose quality that made the previous films so good to begin with. It also does not help that all the characters are depicted as total morons but despite all these problems, “Superman III” remains surprisingly watchable thanks to the presence of Christopher Reeve. 

August ‘Gus’ Gorman (Richard Pryor) has his unemployment benefits terminated but discovers his skill for computer programming after seeing an advertisement on the back of a matchbox (Call 123-456-789?). Gorman manages to land a job at Webscoe Industries, owned by wealthy industrialist Ross Webster (Robert Vaughn). Meanwhile, mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve) arrives at The Daily Planet and informs editor-in-chief Perry White (Jackie Cooper) of his plans of visiting his hometown, Smallville, for a high-school reunion and writing an article about how ‘the typical small town has changed in the last fifteen years!’ White gives him the okay while Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) is going on vacation in Bermuda. On route to Smallville with Jimmy Olsen (Marc McClure) tagging on, Clark is forced to change into Superman when a nearby chemical plant catches on fire. Back at Webscoe, Gorman puts his hacking skills to the test by embezzling money from the company, bringing him to the attention of Webster, who realizes Gorman’s potential and decides to use him in his shady schemes to rule the financial world. At Smallville, Clark is reunited with his childhood friend, Lana Lang (Annette O'Toole), a recently divorced mother with a son named Ricky (Paul Kaethler). Webster tasks Gorman with hacking into the weather satellite ‘Vulcan’ to destroy Columbia’s coffee crop as punishment for refusing to do business with him but Superman arrives to save the day. Determined to get rid of the Man of Steel, Webster has Gorman discover the chemical composition of kryptonite in order to synthesize it. Gorman, disguised as an army officer, presents the kryptonite to Superman as a gift at Ricky’s birthday party but to his dismay, it has no ill effect on him. However, it does have an effect as the synthetic kryptonite causes a personality change in Superman, who begins to shirk his responsibilities and commits petty acts of vandalism around the world. With Superman out of the way, Webster puts the next phase of his plan in motion by monopolizing the world’s oil supply, with a reluctant Gorman in tow. 

It’s a bad sign when the film opens to an unfunny slapstick sequence during the hard-to-read opening credits. The original script by Ilya Salkind included Mr. Mxyzptlk, a father-daughter relationship between Brainiac and Supergirl, and a romance between her and Superman, which is kind-of creepy considering the two were cousins in the comics. It just goes to show you how much respect the Salknds had for the source material. At least Warner Brothers wisely rejected it but it’s not like what we got was any better. While comedy played a part in the previous films, it was restrained and most importantly, funny. “Superman III” comes across as desperate in its attempts that most of the jokes either fall flat or end up annoying. One bit had Gorman causing all sorts of mayhem when he hacks into the Vulcan weather satellite in a drunken stupor, which starts off somewhat funny when ATM’s start spitting out money or traffic signs going haywire but when the figures on the walk, don’t-walk sign begin to animate and fight each other, you just know the filmmakers were on some sort of drugs! Maybe they were drunk like Gorman. The film also has a dated tone with its ‘gee-whiz’ attitude with computers as characters repeatedly speak of their amazement with this new technology and its potential to do everything. An interesting piece of trivia: when Gorman inputs two bilateral coordinates in a program, the display is just a series of empty print statements so in reality, the program does absolutely nothing. Characters often behave like total morons. I find it hard to believe that a bumbling dolt like Gorman can program and hack with such skill, and he’s unable to even explain how he manages to do it. Even Superman is not immune as he displays no suspicion at all when he is handed a chunk of rock that resembles kryptonite. 

“Superman III” is not a total loss as the romance between Clark and Lana does end up being sweet and adorable, although it’s promptly dropped in the second hour. Perhaps the film’s most memorable moment is the junkyard battle between Evil Superman and Clark Kent. I’ll admit Lester did do a good job with Evil Superman, with his unkempt appearance and costume’s darker color scheme. This battle brings up a number of questions. Are the two really fighting or is it all in Superman’s mind? Unfortunately, Evil Superman’s ‘destructive’ acts end up being a lost opportunity. Apparently, bad involves blowing out the Olympic torch, straightening the Leaning Tower of Pisa, causing an oil spill in the middle of the Atlantic (okay, that is bad), and getting drunk while flicking peanuts at the windows. He also has a one-night stand with Webster’s blond bimbo girlfriend, Lorelei Ambrosia (Pamela Stephenson). The film ends with Superman facing a sentient computer (Skynet?) of all things. Hell, Webster even battles Superman through an Atari video game and his sister Vera (Annie Ross) is transformed into a Borg knock-off. Plenty of loud explosions ensue and we are left scratching our heads, wondering just what the heck we watched. Adding to the film’s forgettable nature is Ken Thorne’s score, which lacks the epic power and volume of the previous films with John Williams iconic theme rarely used. 

Despite its age, the special effects hold up rather well, although the Salkinds concern with keeping it within budget is apparent in how little screen-time Superman receives when compared to the boorish antics of Gorman. Christopher Reeve remains as one of the few shining bright spots in this film and one of the best scenes is when he saves an unconscious Ricky before he meets a gory end at the hands of a threshing machine. Ricky wakes up and asks, ‘Superman?’ and Reeve then gives his winning smile and replies, ‘That’s me!’ He also does an excellent job portraying his evil self. Annette O'Toole is another bright spot, capturing the small-town sweetness and charm of Lana Lang and has some good chemistry with Reeve, although nothing on the level between him and Kidder. Ironically, O’Toole would go on to play Superman’s adopted mother, Martha Kent, on the television series “Smallville.” Margot Kidder only appears in what amounts to a glorified cameo as punishment for publicly criticizing the Salkinds for their treatment of Donner, although the producers deny this on the Blu-Ray’s audio commentary. The less said about Richard Pryor, the better. While he’s a highly regarded comedian, here he’s just annoying to the point where I wish Superman would just crush his skull and be done with it. I’ll admit that some of the comedy produced a chuckle but that’s about it. Robert Vaughn makes for a poor substitute for Gene Hackman with his uninspired Ross Webster. He comes off as an overly cartoonish James Bond villain, complete with his own secret lair! 

“Superman III” arrives for the first time on Blu-Ray as part of the “Superman Motion Picture Anthology” box set. I didn’t expect the film to look amazing given its less-than favorable reaction but the picture quality makes it look like it was shot yesterday! Blacks are deep and inky, and textures are highly defined from Evil Superman’s five-o-clock shadow to the circuit boards on Gorman’s ridiculous super-computer. Audio is excellent as well and is at its most dynamic during the climax as all manner of explosions go off. Dialogue and sound effects has a bit of a dated feel like the previous films in the set but other than that, there are no complaints. Special features are a bit light compared to “Superman” and “Superman II” and included is an audio commentary with producers Ilya Salkind and Pierre Spengler, a 50-minute making-of featurette, eleven deleted scenes and a theatrical trailer, all presented in standard definition. 

Released on June 17, 1983, “Superman III” received largely negative reviews and currently has a 24% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics noted that ‘when not overusing sight gags, slapstick, and Richard Pryor, [the film] resorts to plot points rehashed from the previous Superman flicks.’ With an estimated production budget of $39 million, the film was a moderate box office success with a domestic total of $60 million, though it was a far cry from the $100 million grosses of the previous films. Reeve wasn’t particularly fond of Lester’s penchant for comedy and remarked that ‘[He] was always looking for a gag—sometimes to the point where the gags involving Richard Pryor went over the top. I mean, I didn't think that his going off the top of a building, on skis with a pink tablecloth around his shoulders, was particularly funny.’ Due to the negative reaction to the film, Reeve and the producers felt that the “Superman” films had run their course and after the release of “Supergirl” in 1984 (which also received negative reviews and was a box office bomb), the Salkinds sold the rights to the franchise to Golan & Globus of Cannon Films four years later. While “Superman III” remains watchable, the film’s overreliance on gags and slapstick ends up grating and is a slap in the face to both the fans and the source material. Of course, it’s infinitely better to what came after…but that is a story best left for another day.

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 5

“You're a genius. You've invented a machine that can find anybody's weak spot. Congratulations, old buddy. You'll go down in history as the man who killed Superman!”

Read More

Superman II (includes The Richard Donner Cut) Blu-Ray Review

Rated PG (Sequences of Action Violence, Some Language and Brief Mild Sensuality)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 7 Minutes (original), 1 Hour & 56 Minutes (Richard Donner Cut)

Cast:

Christopher Reeve-Clark Kent/Superman

Margot Kidder-Lois Lane

Gene Hackman-Lex Luthor

Terence Stamp-General Zod

Sarah Douglas-Ursa

Jack O'Halloran-Non

Marc McClure-Jimmy Olsen

Jackie Cooper-Perry White

Valerie Perrine-Eve Teschmacher

Ned Beatty-Otis

Marlon Brando-Jor-El (Richard Donner Cut only)

Susannah York-Lara Lor-Van (original only)

E.G. Marshall-President of the United States

Directed by Richard Lester (original), Richard Donner (Richard Donner Cut)

Kneel before Zod!

Note: Part of the "Superman Motion Picture Anthology" Blu-Ray set.

As John Williams’ iconic score played in the background, the end credits of “Superman” promised that its sequel would arrive in theaters a mere six months later in summer 1979. Unfortunately, trouble behind-the-scenes plagued the production of “Superman II,” delaying the release of the film until 1981. From the beginning, both films were always envisioned to tell one cohesive story and were shot back-to-back by director Richard Donner. Roughly three-quarters of “Superman II” was completed before it was postponed so that Donner could wrap up the original “Superman” as it missed its original 1978 summer release. To meet its December, 1978 release, the climax for the sequel, which had Superman turning back time by flying around the Earth in a reverse orbit, was instead used for the first film. In fact, post-production was so rushed that it had no official premiere. However, tensions arose between Donner and the producers, Alexander and his son, Ilya Salkind, and Pierre Spengler as filming for the original “Superman” progressed. The Salkinds became increasingly concerned with the escalating budget and the protracted shooting schedule, although Donner remarks that he was never actually given either one. In the race to finish the original film, Warner Brothers ended up getting more involved in the production, forcing the Salkinds to concede more and more of the box office profits to the studio than originally agreed. Creative differences also arose as the producers wanted the films to be campier in tone. It got to the point that Richard Lester was brought onboard as a temporary associate producer to sooth tensions between Donner and the Salkinds. However, when the producers announced that Marlon Brando’s completed scenes for the sequel would be excised to avoid paying the actor the 11.75% fee from the total box office earnings, Donner was furious and reiterated that if they wanted him to return, he had to have total control. The situation came to a head on March 15, 1979 when Donner received a telegram, ‘Your services are no longer needed.’ Richard Lester replaced Donner and in order to receive credit, 51% of the footage of “Superman II” had to be shot by him. Complicating the situation was the deaths of cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth and production designer John Barry. Creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz and editor Stuart Baird refused to return without Donner and composer John Williams moved on to other projects. Release of the sequel was further delayed to replace the vacated roles. Despite all these issues, the end result of “Superman II” remained relatively unscathed. This is a darker, more mature, action-packed film and while it does not exceed the original, it is one of those rare sequels to match it in quality. 

“Superman II” opens with a brief recap of the events from the previous film. Prior to the destruction of the planet Krypton due to their red sun going supernova, the traitorous criminals General Zod (Terence Stamp), Ursa (Sarah Douglas), and Non (Jack O'Halloran) are sentenced to a lifetime of imprisonment in the Phantom Zone. After stopping Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) from destroying California with a nuclear warhead, mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve) arrives one morning to The Daily Planet and learns from editor-in-chief Perry White (Jackie Cooper) that terrorists have taken over the Eiffel Tower and are threatening to detonate a hydrogen bomb, with Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) already on the scene. Clark rushes to change into Superman and flies to Paris. He manages to toss the hydrogen bomb to space where it detonates harmlessly but the resulting shockwave frees the three criminals trapped in the Phantom Zone. Discovering that they now have powers, General Zod and his accomplices make their way toward Earth, intent on conquering it. Meanwhile, Clark and Lois are sent to Niagara Falls for a piece of investigative journalism. When Lois realizes that Clark is never around when Superman appears, she correctly deduces that they are both one and the same. With his secret out in the open, the two profess their love for each other. Flying to the Fortress of Solitude, Superman decides to strip himself of his powers through a supposedly irreversible process to spend his life with Lois. Elsewhere, General Zod, Ursa, and Non easily defeat the full might of the United States military and battle their way to the White House. To save the lives of his countrymen and the world, the President (E. G. Marshall) reluctantly submits before Zod. When Lois and Clark return to civilization, they discover what has happened and Clark realizes too late that he made a mistake. He returns to the Fortress of Solitude to try to find some way to regain his powers and liberate the world from the iron grip of General Zod. 

Even with Richard Lester at the helm, “Superman II” maintains the tone established in the previous film and is a worthy follow-up that easily matches the quality of the original, even if it does not exceed it, which is something that cannot be said for the numerous sequels populating movie theaters today. All the film’s action takes place in the final half-hour as it spends much of its running time building upon the relationship between Lois and Clark. Their playful banter emphasizes the perfect chemistry the two leads have as Lois humorously tries to get Clark to change into Superman by putting her own life at risk. When he finally reveals who he really is, Lois gives Clark this look of awe that always makes me smile because it’s very obvious that she wants to sleep with him...badly. Of course, Clark wants to as well and when Lois whispers to him after dinner, ‘Let me change into something a little more comfortable,’ he gives a warm smile that will melt any woman and gets this twinkle in his eye. In fact, its quiet moments like these that make “Superman II” so good because there’s a maturity to how it depicts the relationship between Lois and Clark. Superman is also at his most vulnerable in the sequel as he decides to give up his powers for Lois but learns the hard truth that he wasn’t meant to settle down. He will always be Superman and that means putting his wants and needs aside for the greater good. It’s one of the classic internal struggles that superheroes face as they grapple with and try to balance their responsibilities with what they want. “Spider-Man 2” dealt with similar issues. 

While Donner’s “Superman” contained humor, it never ventured into slapstick territory and this is one of the reasons that keep the sequel from exceeding the original. During the scene where General Zod uses his super-breath to blow away the mob attempting to attack him, we are shown a series of comedic gags, such as ice cream being blown off a cone and hitting someone’s face or a man blown over in a telephone booth and talking the whole time but it comes off as out of place given what’s happening. Another is the disturbing trend of giving new powers to Superman and General Zod. One scene had Zod lifting a man by firing a telekinetic beam from his finger. Later, he and Superman seemingly possess the power to teleport or make duplicates of themselves as decoys.  Finally, there’s the ‘super-kiss’ that Clark uses to cause Lois to forget his identity. While this was a real power in the comics, it was rarely used and eventually removed. Of course, it pales in comparison to the blatant violations that occur in the fourth installment, 1987’s “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace,” which proved to be the death knell for the franchise. Despite its primitive special effects, the final battle between Superman and General Zod remains exciting to watch. Sure, the wire-work is obvious as they awkwardly fly around but its slower pace allows us to appreciate the action as a whole. Nowadays, action scenes are often overly-edited or feature an overabundance of glossy visual effects. Just because we can use CG does not mean we should go overboard with it. 

One particular plot point that frustrated fans was how Superman regained his powers. In Lester’s version, Clark finds the green crystal that Lois absent-mindedly placed aside but with the console at the Fortress of Solitude destroyed, it’s never made quite clear the exact process in which he regained his powers. This is a rare issue caused by the behind-the-scenes trouble of excising Marlon Brando’s completed scenes. It wasn’t until November, 2006 that we finally saw a close approximation of Richard Donner’s vision for the sequel had he not been unceremoniously fired by the Salkinds. Dubbed “Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut,” this re-edit follows the general plot line of Lester’s version but contains all the footage he shot, plus an approximate 20% by Lester to maintain story cohesion. Again, it opens with a brief recap but this time the three criminals are freed from the Phantom Zone due to the resulting explosion from Lex Luthor’s nuclear missile from the first film. From then on, the film proceeds much the same way but with an added emphasis on drama as all of Marlon Brando’s scenes have been restored. As a result, the scene where Clark converses with the hologram of Jor-El is much stronger when compared to Lester’s version, which replaced Jor-El with his mother, Lara Lor-Van. Upon learning that Clark wishes to give up his powers, Jor-El asks that this is ‘how you repay their gratitude? By abandoning the weak, the defenseless, the needy...for the sake of your selfish pursuits?’ He continues by saying that Clark’s happiness comes through ‘the fulfillment of your mission, an inspiration you must have felt.’ Later, when Clark tries to find some way to regain his powers, we finally learn how he does it. He does use the green crystal like in Lester’s version, as he activates the hologram of Jor-El for one final time, exhausting the last of his energy to restore his son’s powers. While these scenes are definitely superior to the ones replaced by Lester, overall “The Richard Donner Cut” suffers from its patchwork quality. Donner was never given the proper time and opportunity to polish the film and shoot a proper ending. As a result, this re-edit feels rough as it utilizes a number of screen-tests, with Reeve drastically slimmed down. The climax is a repeat of the original as Superman once again turns back time by flying around the Earth in a reverse orbit. It’s clear that Donner has more reverence and respect for Superman compared to Lester but this new version just isn’t the masterpiece that I (and fans) have hoped for. For what it’s worth, “The Richard Donner Cut” is still very good and is definitely worth a look for all Superman completists out there. 

The acting (in both cuts) is uniformly strong as Christopher Reeve continues to portray Superman with a genuine warmth and sincerity. His bumbling, clumsy interpretation of Clark Kent provides quite a few chuckles as he tries to deflect Lois’ suspicions about his alter-ego. Reeve and Margot Kidder share such natural chemistry in the way they interact, something that won’t be replicated until the television series “Smallville” with Tom Welling and Erica Durance. Most of the Donner footage in Lester’s version is of Lex Luthor as Gene Hackman refused to come back for reshoots. A body double and sound-alike was used for certain scenes. Hackman has quite a few hilarious moments. When he’s at the White House with General Zod bragging about his brilliant criminal mind, he nonchalantly places his hand on Ursa’s, who promptly begins crushing it. During Zod’s attack on The Daily Planet, he orders Non to kill Lex, having served his purpose but Superman arrives in the nick of time to save the day. Sighing with relief, he says, ‘Oh Superman! Thank God!’ but when Zod glares at him, Lex quickly yells, ‘I mean, GET HIM!’ This scene always made me laugh due to the way Hackman delivers his lines. Finally, there’s Terence Stamp in his most memorable role as General Zod. Ironically, he would eventually voice Jor-El on “Smallville.” Stamp is over-the-top but he’s such a joy to watch as he screams, ‘Come to me, son of Jor-El! Kneel before Zod!’ Like Reeve, Stamp is so closely associated with General Zod that the mere mention of him prompts memories of his famous ‘Kneel before Zod!’ line. 

Both “Superman II” and “The Richard Donner Cut” arrives as part of the “Superman Motion Picture Anthology” box set. The picture quality for Lester’s version is quite good with its bold, colorful palette, invoking a comic book-feel, and strong detail, although it still suffers from a soft haziness and uneven film grain. “The Richard Donner Cut” was previously released as a stand-alone Blu-Ray in 2006 but the picture quality is inconsistent due to many scenes being culled from different sources. While some scenes look great or even better than the theatrical version, others are often too soft and lack detail. An example is when Lois shoots Clark using blanks, which is actually a screen-test. Thankfully, the audio quality for both versions is excellent. While dialogue may occasionally sound hollow, such occurrences are minor and it remains sharp throughout. Ken Thorne’s score is suitably epic and the final battle between Superman and Zod is a dynamic treat as they trade blows with each other. Of course, due to the age of these films, sound effects are dated and ambiance is limited. There’s the usual assortment of audio commentaries, making-of featurettes, and deleted scenes which are too many to list but as with the original “Superman,” there’s a nice extra where fifteen of Fleischer Studios/Famous Studios’ Superman cartoons from the early 1940’s are included, in glorious Technicolor! I actually remember watching these on VHS as a child. 

“Superman II” was released three years after the original on June 19, 1981 to largely positive reviews as it currently has an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. While critics complained that ‘the humor occasionally stumbles into slapstick territory, and the special effects are dated,…[the film] meets, if not exceeds, the standard set by its predecessor.’ Worldwide box office totals seem to be unavailable but the sequel earned an impressive (at the time) $108 million domestic and as the end credits revealed, “Superman III” wasn’t far behind. Both “Superman” and “Superman II” tell one cohesive story and even after some thirty years after its release, Warner Brothers has failed to match the grandiose quality of these two films. 2006’s “Superman Returns” came close but unfortunately audience reaction was lukewarm thanks to the current generation being weaned on glossy action scenes. “Superman II” is everything a sequel should be; it’s bigger and bolder but retains the heart of the original and reaffirms why Superman has remained a permanent fixture as not just an American, but a worldwide, pop culture icon.

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (original), 4 out of 5 (Richard Donner Cut)

“For the first time in my life, everything's clear.”

Read More