I can easily see Davids version surpass .. they went to the same acting school and it’s gonna be less dated without the cheesy cringe factor so whole new generation will fall in love with Superman
@@chrisszostek67001978 cringe is much different then 2020 cringe. This will bomb and the cringe nowadays is CRINGE. 1978 cringe still gets a chuckle at the very least
@@johncap6495 the new generation is just not gonna watch the old superman movies and if they do they got Superman 3-4 to get through 🥴 Blud you haven’t even seen a trailer yet🤣🤦♂️ What happens in the first minute of Gunns Superman film ??
43:03 Yep. That pimp’s prominence was such that I thought, for the longest time, that there were no other Black characters in the movie. I was almost right. He’s just the only one who speaks.
My theory as to why Lex works with idiots is because he sees his intelligence as so above that of other humans that there’s no appreciable difference between Otis and Benjamin Franklin.
@@GrahamBandage Also, being surrounded by very smart criminals might be complicated. They might not always agree or want the same thing. Idiots will just do what you tell them. Easier to control.
@@miller-joel Let's face it - there is no good justification other than it makes the movie really fun to watch. On every level that materially counts Lex is as much an idiot as Otis, and is the architect of his own downfall. Luckily I don't watch Superman for plot-holes or lack of plot verisimilitude - I watch it because I love it and it entertains me. 🙂
I love the opening credits of Superman so much that as a kid I often watched them and then skipped the actual movie. In fact, I still have my 1981 VHS rental tape; it still plays fine, except the opening ten minutes is a bit worn. 🙂
It was so "extra" and I love every minute, also, it gives you something to watch during the overture. The Black Hole has an overture too but it's not nearly as good.
@@jdogburke That's right, overtures were big for a while there. West Side Story, Spartacus, 2001, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Sound of Music (hey, three of those have the same director - and wait a minute, the other two have the same director too! Coincidence? Yeah, probably). The last time I saw an overture was earlier this year in The Zone of Interest - which is a great film, by the way, although definitely NOT compatible with pizza and beer on a Friday night!
I agree. It’s fun to nitpick certain things like we do in this piece but it’s such a tremendous achievement that it’s really kind of impervious to criticism.
I love both Donner's Superman and Superman & Lois. Snyder seemed to focus on Superman being an alien when he is human. He just comes from another planet, but he grew up on earth. He gets his humanity from his parents, and it shows with Christopher Reeve's version. I felt Cavil looked the part but never got to really play the part.
Definitely didn't let Henry play the Clark part enough. The thing is that they put Superman 1 and 2 together and it was OK, but needed more fleshing out. I mean Clark didn't even work at the Daily Planet until the very end.
I ... loved ... this movie. I remember my father telling me back in the summer of 1978 about a "Superman movie" coming out soon. Even at 11 years old, I recall being cynical enough to say to him that I thought they would mess it all up. Still, in December of that year, Dad took us kids to see it in one of the last remaining single-theater cinemas in town. It had a huge lobby with an incredible and classy chandelier and everything. We snuck in coolers of iced tea and hoagies, and even a cassette recorder as well, to capture the audio from the movie... all my Dad's idea, by the way. We were all AWESTRUCK at the spectacle that was "Superman: The Movie", and it was made extra sweet by my father's childlike wonder and glee at seeing his favorite superhero come to life in such a literally perfect way. I played that tape until the player itself finally stopped working. It's funny to have such an emotional attachment to a film as I do to this one. While it is a fantastic work of art to be sure, in my heart I know that the real reason is the eternal connection to my Dad that it gives me whenever I see it. For this reason, above all, "Superman: The Movie", will always hold a special place in my heart that is more than just the love of a great film, far more indeed. It is the connection it gives me to the very first Superman I ever knew and loved, who I was so very blessed to call ... "Dad".
That’s wonderful, thanks so much for sharing that. I have preserved a lot of great moments with my dad back in those days thanks to a cassette recorder. Now we can record anything anywhere and people seem to take it for granted. Back then it was like a fragile kind of magic. Cheers. 👊
When I first saw this at the Benson Twin in Brooklyn in 1978 I was floored. I could not sleep after seeing this movie, I was so psyched. I love everything about this movie, even the long credit sequence. The love that went into this film everyone involved deserved to be mentioned. If they listed Richard Donner's chef I would have thought it would be appropriate.
It was 10 times the movie compared to anything that was available back then. It still is today. Us late 70s kids were spoiled …in the most magnificent way possible.
What I LOVE about Christopher Reeve's performance is that Superman/Kal-El is the person and Clark Kent is the alterego. He almost doesn't need the glasses, it's the charge of character. Kent is the nerd, the dork, the person no-one notices, he's quiet, shy and disappears. People ignore him. In the scene after the flying, when Kent appears at Lois's apartment, he almost reveals who he is. And in the one line of dialogue, "Lois, I have something to tell you, I'm really..." His posture and demenour is that of Superman. Big, tall, confident, deep voice. Then he changes. His posture, voice, demenour changes, he slightly stutters. He's Kent, again. Superb acting. The scene where Supes first appears in The Suit and rescues Lois is just wonderful. The practical effects work extremely well for the time and as much as it's a bit silly, "Easy Miss, I gotcha", it's also quite wonderful and makes me smile every time, and I've watched it dozens of times. It's just rather bad that the only non-white face in the entire film is just stereo-typed. It's one of my all-time favourite scenes of all-time. When you're a young girl and in love with Superman, it's just magical. It helps that Christopher Reeve has a wonderful, beautiful smile. The whole catching-the-bullet moment is fabulous!!
Well said! The other thing I love about when Superman catches Lois after she falls from the helicopter is how he initially continues downward with her before slowly reducing her velocity and then going back upward. It's a wonderful attention to detail that they don't bother with in superhero scenes anymore. They just zip in and save people at insane speeds that in reality would probably atomize the people they were trying to save.
I doubt very much that there will ever be another Superman film as good as the original. I don’t care how dated the effects are. Or how dated the film is. This movie never bores me and still has a magical epic feel to it. I will never forget sitting in a theater as a ten year old and being completely blown away just by the opening credits and the amazing music. I knew I was in for something special and I had no idea how right I was.
I’ve always loved the addition of the SuperTest Luthor puts Superman thru - bullets, cold, fire, etc….because in the first movie the audience, myself included, would want to see all the cool powers he has shown off, as much as I wanted to see him rescue Frisky and thwart the suction cup robber. Making it one sequence satisfies that, sort of like doing a concert montage in a musician’s biopic. Any leftover greatest hits can be crammed into that one sequence.
I love the opening titles because it forces the cinema goer to take in the people that worked on it, and it primes anyone who has never seen it with the Superman score before they have even seen superman on screen. Krypton is what I feel a dying planet in orbit of a Red Giant would look like. the sort of planet you'd need to be superhuman to be able to survive on.
This Movie was filmed the same year I was Born. Late 70's put out some great pictures. Superman, Star Wars, The Sorcerer, Taxi Driver, Close Encounters, Jaws, Rocky, Apocalypse Now! and so many more.
Always has been and always will be my favorite movie of all time. It's not just a movie, it's an EXPERIENCE. It's about hope and wonder, even as it's also about love and self-sacrifice. The music still gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. This film is epic in every way, beautifully shot, and gives us the Superman we'll always believe in. Thank you Donner, Reeve, and Williams for this incredible gift.
I unashamedly love the third movie in spite of (or perhaps because of) its silliness! The fourth one is hard to watch in places though due to its problems. Reeve is excellent in both though!
@@prodigioussapsSalkinds made a bundle and got out just in time. Just wish Donner and them got along because 3 could have been much better with Donner.
There's one other thing that always bothered me. If Lex Luther is so ruthless, why would he forgive Miss Tessmacher for betraying him and basically completely ruining his whole plot?
How good was the 1978 Superman movie? I went and saw it in the theater with my parents... I was just shy of my 3rd birthday... And to this day, I remember seeing Christopher Reeve flying on the movie screen. Yeah.
I think that Superman had enough time the second time around because (1) he did not take that moment of pride that Brando admonished him about. He was proud of his work at the dam, then remembered Lois. (2) As Captain Sully puts it, he knew what was coming, so he went from one project to the other to contain the damage. He could have redone the entire movie, but I think that he just went back far enough to give himself time to save Lois.
The composer was not aware that the director wanted Margot Kidder to speak the lyrics of "Can You Read My Mind?" - the composer had already hired an excellent singer and was NOT happy with the decision. And I have said for decades that the best special effect in the movie is Christopher Reeve himself!
The scream of a billion souls all dying at once is drowned out by the scream of someone You love, dying before your eyes. We human beings don't handle large nameless numbers of dead very well.
@@miller-joel Kid's entertainment can have some horrors in it that I don't particularly want to see as an old woman! Read real fairy tales and myths, if you don't understand. Look at Star Wars! (the original not this modern junk!) Or any of the Indiana Jones movies.
Love this conversation. In my book George Reeves set the standard that Reeve lived up to while he also set a new standard. George Reeves had a Super smile and a super wink and a great Super glare at the bad guys. Christopher Reeve is the only other actor to live up to that standard in my book.
Re Jor-El being dead for many thousands of years, but Krypton only appearing to have blown up three years earlier, surely it is just a question of Earth only sees Krypton blow up recently because the event's light has taken many thousands of years to travel here? For instance, when we at last see the relatively close star Betelgeuse go supernova in the next 50-100 years - the actual event will have happened over 400 years before hand. If anything it shows that Lex is not nearly as clever as he tells everyone he is. But on the other hand that is obvious because he employs Otis! ;-) I like the 'Can you read my mind' scene - I love any part of the film (including the opening credits) set to John Williams music. I guess I just love this movie 100%.
Superman was the first movie I ever saw at the cinema, I'd just turned 7 and I was up past my bedtime so my Dad could take me. I fell asleep during the shorts before the main feature and had to be woken up :D. I used to buy the collectable Superman cards from the Post Office, there was a little stick of chewing gum in the pack.
Me and my best friend went to the first day Superman opened, and we were 3rd and 4th in line, the line ended up going around the theater! We were so excited, we were 9 and 10 years old, and we loved it ! I liked Star Wars , but I loved Superman the Movie !!!!!
As an adult I’ve come to the conclusion that this version of Luthor (and to a certain degree, Byrne’s version of the character) doesn’t like to be challenged too much. He’s like a smart kid, who prefers to play with kids that are younger than he is. It’s less challenging for him and further underlines his brilliance and infinte power and wisdom. It’s pretty interesting then, when he’s faced with Superman, and later on Zod. Was he up to the challenge? Obviously not.
One thing about the art direction I don't think anyone ever points out is the use of colour. For example when ever there is danger the colour red is on the screen red sun, the planet krypton turns red, Jonathan dies Clark in a red shirt, harry dies by red train, Red poster and grafitti in the mugging scene behind lois and Clark, Lois in red helicopter, lois in a red car, missile programme red lighting, abort red button, red bridge, red Trans am, red fuel light, jimmy wearing red shirt. Green is used for Wicked or evil Tessmacher in green swim suit surrounded by green leaves, lex in green cap with green shorts in green tinted water, Kryptonite Green. lois thinking less than wholesome thoughts about Superman wearing a green dress. Also they do explain the missile thing in the film Superman had never known how fast he could fly "You know I never really bothered to time myself", and they do say about the missiles "Can't you knock them down?" the reply "negative, absolutely impossible, they have the new reaction avoidance system".
Great observations! Although I suspect that line about never bothering to time himself was mostly just an excuse to invite Lois to fly with him. It’s also probably true he never timed himself, but I have to think he knows exactly what his top speed is and it’s the one that breaks the time barrier. Jor-El must have gone over all that with him, or else how would he have known how to do it? Just another fun hole to poke in the script, really.
According to the editing i. This movie, the reason Lois died was because Superman spent too much time admiring his own work. She was still alive while he just stood there smiling at the town he just saved. If he had more of a sense of urgency he could have saved her
Okay I can see that. For me, I think Donner's intention was that in that moment, Superman thought that his work was done... saving that small town from the dam burst was essentially the last thing on his extensive post-earthquake to-do list, and so this was the first time he actually had a moment to pause and take a breath, and that quiet moment is what finally freed his senses enough to hear Lois for the first time. Suffice it to say, though, the whole point of that scene is that he felt he had failed her and blamed himself, so either way it works.
I so wish I was part of this conversation. I have had these thoughts many times and now I know others have thought way too much about this stuff too. Thanks for this.
I just re-watched the flying scene from the copy I purchased from iTunes, and they have removed the dialogue in the flying scene, but kept the scene intact. It’s a vast improvement!
Oh, phew! I honestly wasn’t surprised at the possibility because I’d heard WB had apparently taken some liberties with the Donner Cut as it was released on a couple of streaming services, but I can’t personally verify that.
1:42 hopefully, there will be acknowledgement of the fact that the “poem” or “song” charted WELL for quite a while back then. I skip it now but someone ate it up then.
@@miller-joel There are several symphony versions of the music on You tube ... my favorite has the movie playing on a screen in the background. The music is a favorite of mine too ... I love Holst's "The Planets" and the Superman march has the same almost emotional/psychological impact. The march of the army in Aida has that same impact. ((search parameters) Superman Theme John Williams Royal Philharmonic. Royal Albert Hall. ) I'm like a kid when I listen to certain pieces of music. Instant smile on my face, thumping fingers or a foot along with the music. Some people never grow up and I am one of them. 🤓
To be fair despite the mentioned quibbles of comedy aspects in metropolis , you have to remember the tone set by Donner was that he wanted the film to be "big and heroic that didn't take itself too seriously" unlike his omen film. As a 10 year old in 78 this suited me .
5:22 I love many of the effects due to the practicality of them. Neo and Smith fighting in the rain was awesome…and obviously, wholly cgi. I think Superman holds up better because of its practical elements. Similar comparison to Man of Steel. But they seemed to learn from it in BvS and Cavill clearly was in those spaces for real, much more often. The “uncanny valley” could reasonably apply to cgi effects that get high marks for flexibility but more easily cross over to suspension of my suspension of disbelief. Practical effects lack the flexibility of cgi scenes but hold up better over time, imo, and bring a verisimilitude that CAN make up for its limitations.
Okay so after thinking about it for awhile it occurs to me. Brendon, I feel like you're underestimating how important the humor/comedy was to the success of the movie, and perhaps Donner knew this. I say this because we saw what this type of superman movie sans humor would look like in Superman Returns. Superman returns really went for the same feel as the original Donner films, but without the humor. Lex Luther WAS a ruthless evil man with real thugs and villains helping him out, and the movie bombed hard. Maybe it would have done better to also match the humor of the Donner films if it was going to match the overall tone as well. just my thoughts.
Don't you DARE criticize the opening credits sequence. Don't even go there. Nope. You're just wrong. This isn't a matter of opinion. It's scientific fact. The opening is just magnificient. And without it, we would have never gotten the spectacular John Williams theme. I wouldn't change a second of it.
My understanding is that, for the time, the miniature city in the dam scene was not as good as they wanted, because their top guy had to leave for another project.
I might never watch another MCU Movie but I'd certainly give another Superman a shot. James Gunn has made awesome Guardians of the Galaxy movies but he was also responsible for Suicide Squad.
My take on teen Clark running at normal human speed when his father collapsed is because Clark was repressing or suppressing his super abilities. Clark sees that his father has fallen but doesn't know he's dying so normal human speed must have seemed sufficient.
Is it just me or with the Air Force one scene, it sounds like Reeve is the metropolis tower voice? Also the pilots voice reminded me of Rich Little, “fly, don’t look just fly”.
I always felt that the council ignoring Jor El's warnings work as a modern allegory for reactions to climate change. Also, the stark white-brightness of Krypton serves as contrast to earth. This gives 3 very distinct settings, sterile and alien, rural and Rockwellesque, and lastly a gritty and sleepless Metropolis.
“They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you, my only son. Mankeiwicz magic.
The woman in the opening scene is Maria Schell (Gary Cooper’s co-star in “The Hanging Tree”). Her brother was Oscar winner Maximilian Schell (“Judgment at Nuremberg”). He made a fascinating documentary about her, “My Sister Maria.”
Let's not forget Chief Tug Smith also had a line when he was being interviewed by Lois in the desert. He even got to include a dig at Custer's expense! As a Native, I always appreciate what little representation we get.
Did you guys miss that the little girl on the train in Smallville when Clark was running next to it was Lois Lane. Also, I loved the Gauntlet scene and wish they had left in the movie.
Oh yeah she’s not identified as Lois in the theatrical cut, which is the version we reviewed for this video. Love the gauntlet scene, too - Donner did put that back in for his special edition director’s cut.
Yeah personally I don't mind the period-piece feel it has now (this is Chad speaking, the bald dude). Screw it, it's Superman in the 70s. '70s retro chic is so fashionable now, in a weird sense it was ahead of its time. Speaking of period pieces, I think would be amazing to see an Elseworlds Superman movie set in the 1940s with modern effects.
Argh, wish I could have been part of this discussion. I think the fact that it's so embedded in the late 1970s isn't much of a downside, although it changes the way the film is experienced by people from now on. It makes me think of the Sherlock Holmes stories; they were torn from the contemporary mean streets of London when Doyle wrote them, but they were so good that they lasted long enough to be enjoyed now as period pieces. This movie will end up being the same: still loved but experienced in a new way. For me, the daylight mugging made something clear to me as a middle-aged curmudgeon that I completely missed when I was 12 and saw this in theaters: that Clark and Superman are not as different as we always say they are. Clark may be squeaking like a milquetoast, but he pushes himself between Lois and the mugger from the second the gun comes out and stays there. Later on after one-handing the falling helicopter Superman tells Lois, "Statistically speaking, it's still the safest way to travel," and that line is so painfully nerdy that you can easily imagine Clark saying it while pushing up his glasses. In both cases, he's simultaneously nerd and a hero, but it's a matter of which is ascendant. Clark is a heroic nerd, and Superman is a nerdy hero. They are two sides of the same personality, not two different personalities. For me, that's the best thing about Reeve's portrayal. It's not hero OR nerd. It's an "and." I also didn't appreciate the rooftop flirting as much when I was a kid. The thing that hits me now as an adult is that, although they are both flirting, it's done in an extremely kind-hearted and sincere way. It's not cheap or crude at all, but it's also adult and honest. That's a hard balance to strike, and most movies nowdays don't even bother.
WONDERFUL observations. Totally agree. It's one of the reasons I'm a little befuddled by the way Superman describes Clark as a different person in next movie. Reeve's performance really does seem to show us that his Clark is not always just a goofy act, there's often sincerity and sometimes moments of self-doubt and vulnerability. But pointing out that his nerdiness is still there as Superman is freaking brilliant. Are you cool if we include your comment in a future episode? This is gold. Cheers 👊
Hi new suscriber here, I just found You and already love your videos but Guys!! You didn't break down the Best scene of the movie!! Helicopter rescue! The score is fantastic and the lines! I got You You got me ! Whos got You!?!? I'm 50 and obiously I saw it in theatre and I still cry every time...
Hi George, thanks so much! You’re right, we could have dug into that scene a bit more. It is such an impeccably directed scene from start to finish, still the best introduction to a superhero ever, I think.
Zod, Non, and Ursa mirror Luther, Otis and Ms Testmocher. Even Zod and Luther make annoyed faces at their idiocy. 😂(I just thought of it really) Luther/Zod think they are superior gods to everyone. Even Zod corrects the President. Non and Otis are constantly trying to please their superior. Now Ursa and Testmocher are a little different. Testmocher actually helps Superman. Ursa feels everyone except Zod is below her
The humour in this movie was spot on at the time. I remember the whole theatre exploding with laughter at each joke. Maybe it does not translate so well today, but it was made for 1970's audiences. Personally, I agree Christopher Reeve was the best superman...but wow Tom Welling really embodied the role of Clark and Henry Cavill was born to play Superman but needed a better story behind him.
The only thing that bothered me about the movie was Luthors Wig ! I didn't know it was a wig until the end of the movie, but it anoyed me thst he wasn't bald throughout the movie, because at 10 years old i had been a Superman fan since before i had conscious memory!!!!
“Even you, with your great speed, can’t be in two places at once.” Except, as you posited, for a period there were two Superman’s/(-men?). Superman figured out how to be in two places at once. Side note - in Arkham Knight there’s a section of Gotham called ‘Otisburg,’ i’m not sure if that’s a reference to this movie, or if it always existed and it’s a ‘chicken or the egg’-type of thing, etc. I just thought that was funny.
I think the inside jokes are smartly done. The look Lois gives him when he bumps into her on his way to his desk [the idea that he had a rock hard, ummm, member]. During the interview, just substitute the word "f**k" and there's a whole other level of fun going on there, and it works for kids _and_ adults. Kids of a certain age have no idea of the double entendre.
YES! love that moment, I was kicking myself during the edit when I realized we overlooked mentioning that. Also the way Clark shamefully shakes his head to himself right afterwards seemed totally genuine, like it wasn’t part of the act. I love how nuanced his Clark portrayal was. Nobody since has come close.
@prodigioussaps Reeve plays Superman straight as an arrow, but with just enough of a subtle edge. As Superman, he may not know that she's _actually_ directly asking him if he can f**k, but he _does_ pick up on the idea that she's really into him. I'm so happy your guys touched on the big smile he has on his face when he _turns away_ from Lois at the helicopter . . . I have always interpreted that as him not just having fun, but specifically having fun _with her_ . He plays at absolutely straight as for as _she_ can see, but he's actually having fun messing with her. Something else that Unsworth did was light then blue in the suit with a subtle, almost subconscious glow, which non-verbally gives us the idea that the suit itself is not of this earth. That's _extremely_ important because Donner and Mank knew that you can laugh _with_ Superman, but absolutely _never_ can we laugh _at_ him, because that'll take us out of the movie. If ever the audience looks at Reeve in that suit and consciously says "that's just a dude in a leotard" then it's all over. Another thing is that we never see any dirt get on that suit whatsoever, even when he pulls Lois from the car . . . the suit itself is made of stuff that we humans can't understand, and aren't supposed to. That's why your take on him turning back time is so important. The whole idea that makes Superman so hard to write is that he can do . . . anything. So it _really_ has to mean something for him to defy his father.
@prodigioussaps Reeve as Clark is just brilliant. Slouchy posture. Voice a whole octave higher. Hair parted exactly the opposite. Shifty feet. Pure Cary Grant.
@prodigioussaps This film is literally infused into my DNA. Have you guys noticed how terrible the 5.1 mix is compared to the original 2.0 sound? The original credit whooshes are the only ones that are acceptable. The redone sound is like nails on a chalkboard to me. It's crazy. That film is such a part of me that I can identify _any_ part of the movie if I _hear_ about a second of any part of it, starting with the sound of the curtains opening. I don't even have to see it.
lol! just close the trunk. bit of trivia, that same exact trunk contained an important item when it was in Obi Wan"s cave. I saw the documentary alone for the very same reason and glad I did, because I did just that.
You need to rewatch that scene again. Jor-El said “By now you should’ve reached your 18th birthday, as it is measured on Earth. By that reckoning, I would've be dead for many thousands of our years.” time difference between Krypton and Earth.
Nnnnope sorry he very distinctly says “your”, and that’s what it says in the shooting script as well. Anyway, if that were the case what difference would that make? How would that make any more sense?
@@prodigioussaps I read that draft as well, along with your years. A previous draft had “thousands of our years.” which could help explain the measurement of Krypton time and Earth time. Then again, Lara mentioned that “the Earth was primitives, thousands of years behind them,” but there were just a few discrepancies. Still, the best version of Superman will ever have. I was 8 when it came out, and I was in awe. To this day, I’m still amazed by what they attempted to do with the tech they had and the budget they were given.
I’m not sure how 18 earth years could translate to thousands of Kryptonian years unless we’re talking time dilation based on Kal-El’s ship traveling faster than light or whathaveyou. Either way, none of this explains away Luthor’s line about Krypton exploding in 1948. Anyway, it’s just fun nerdy crap. There really is no making sense of it. Luthor’s deduction of how Kryptonite works doesn’t really make sense, either.
@@prodigioussaps It looked too fake. Same thing with Superman Returns, when he catches the plane. It looks fake. Same thing with Man of Steel, where as impressive as the visuals were, they had the same CGI unreality look to them. When I saw the first trailer for Superman Returns, I thought it was an animated movie, because the first scene was him in space, and it looked like a well done cartoon. That was disappointing. The first real superfeat of this movie is Lois in one hand, and a helicopter in the other. And since they were both real things, it gives the scene a whole different look, despite the fact that the building was invariably fake. That doesn't matter a bit to me. And by getting it right, it allows you to accept so much at the end, like the miniature hamlet saved from the flood, the terrible crack in the ground swallowing up Lois car, etc.
Very good points, you're right... the Lois/helicopter scene is absolute perfection. And it still holds up, which is amazing especially considering when it was made. Thanks for that, cheers 👊
Man Brendan, You were the smartest 8yr old ever with the way u picked up all the differences from the comic to the movie! Haa! Just messing of course. I was also 8 when Supes 1st came out,and I do remember noticing some of the differences from the comic to movie..I think I just thought of it like the way the tv show Hullk differed from the comic book Hulk.Like how the Hulk never spoke on the show and he was Way underpowered compared to his comic counterpart
Hey your talking about when he was young so running with the train I looked at like I said and I liked at he's learning his power I grew up with the first Superman and that were I started liking him
Oh for god sake! he is a really good looking clean-cut guy at the time, in a great costume! that had all the super powers that one could imagine. Yeah, the clean cut look , combined with the costume in color, has no match, But, Bat-man is almost the opposite!🤔
23:29 Ooooh. You actually said it out loud. 100% correct. I prefer a version in which the Kent’s are the reason he has the moral compass we admire. MoS dropped that ball.
the main keys to success of this movie, that none of the subsequent movies had, were Richard Donner....John Williams' iconic SCORE...AND, of course, Christopher Reeve. BUT....if Reeve didn't have that natural chemistry with Margot Kidder...even the best flying scenes, soaring theme music and Donner's whole verisimilitude can't save this movie. this is still yet to be topped....none of the other Superman movies could even come close. i really hope James Gunn would use the same theme by John Williams.
I always wondered why they got the baby that looked close to Brando as possible as opposed to Reeve. I get it Brando is the big start but i didnt know that or care about that as a kid.
The Krypton sequence bothered me originally because I had remembered it being more like earth but scientifically advanced.. I watched the animated series, recently, and it returns to more like i remembered. After I thought about it, in later years, I realized it was logical. Their sun was red and collapsing, it made sense that it would be a colder ice planet. They implied that Krypton was in a great deal of trouble, already. It was barely supporting life. (and how did they grow food? Why hadn't they hadn't colonized other planets if their world was going through a snowball phase?) I like the idea that the sun went supernova... shrinking and blowing up, taking Krypton with it. It kept it in the realm of Science Fiction. Death at the cosmic level. I thought they were trying to do a "2001" trip through space when I saw it originally, it reminded me of the long wormhole journey at the end of that movie. I wish they could have written more serious version of Clark Kent. He shouldn't be awkward comic relief. He doesn't have to awkward and laughable. He needs to be normal. Very normal. His true disguise---the glasses, his suits, his polite demeanor are just part of his normalcy. He's an alien who has mastered the art of being human. I do like Hackman's Luthor but you are right he needed more henchmen - and better.. A bit too much comedy. He's evil, fine, but the humor blunts that perception? Maybe they didn't want to show a real crime lord Luthor in the movie? Both the radio and 1950s TV show were both for kids. Superman and all comic books - in fact, all science fiction, was going through a period of transformation. From being a genre for kids and poorly educated adults (the popular mainstream view), it was becoming far more serious and mature. - and popular. Yes, Asimov, Arthur C Clarke, Robert Heinlein had been writing for decades, Star Trek had been on TV in the 1960s, Star Wars would appear the next year.. but it was not the popular genre that it would become. Lex Luthor in this movie is funny because they don't want to scare the children? Just a thought. My advice was close the trunk and then seal it with your heat vision but that would have messed up the plot, right? Time Travel never makes sense to me. The more I think about it the more my brain feels like a badly twisted pretzel. It's a great premise, I love the idea... but I never can visualize how it would function in reality. Sometimes I just put down the nitpicking and enjoy a movie? Hard to do.
Just hear me out guys... For Man of Steel I would have had Kevin Costner die of cancer rather than by means of a tornado accident. A long term illness could demonstrate the futility of his superpowers in lieu of the inevitability of human mortality. And this is the difference between Clark being a God vs a man with super abilities. So he still has to cherish the people in his life because their existence is so fragile and temporary. Ultimately, Superman cannot save humanity from death because they are mortal and die of natural causes he can't prevent by physical force. He can only prevent accidents and crimes. In this way Superman becomes the opposite of Jesus and does not cross that messianic line of becoming humanity's "savior" like the Christ narrative --which is an uncomfortable line to cross in my opinion.
The best Superman with the best suit in the best Superman movie
Superword.
There will never be a better Superman then Christopher Reeve never
He did set a very, VERY high bar.
I can easily see Davids version surpass .. they went to the same acting school and it’s gonna be less dated without the cheesy cringe factor so whole new generation will fall in love with Superman
@@chrisszostek67001978 cringe is much different then 2020 cringe. This will bomb and the cringe nowadays is CRINGE. 1978 cringe still gets a chuckle at the very least
@@johncap6495 the new generation is just not gonna watch the old superman movies and if they do they got Superman 3-4 to get through 🥴
Blud you haven’t even seen a trailer yet🤣🤦♂️ What happens in the first minute of Gunns Superman film ??
Truth
43:03 Yep.
That pimp’s prominence was such that I thought, for the longest time, that there were no other Black characters in the movie.
I was almost right. He’s just the only one who speaks.
My theory as to why Lex works with idiots is because he sees his intelligence as so above that of other humans that there’s no appreciable difference between Otis and Benjamin Franklin.
@@GrahamBandage Also, being surrounded by very smart criminals might be complicated. They might not always agree or want the same thing. Idiots will just do what you tell them. Easier to control.
@@miller-joel Let's face it - there is no good justification other than it makes the movie really fun to watch. On every level that materially counts Lex is as much an idiot as Otis, and is the architect of his own downfall. Luckily I don't watch Superman for plot-holes or lack of plot verisimilitude - I watch it because I love it and it entertains me. 🙂
I love the opening credits of Superman so much that as a kid I often watched them and then skipped the actual movie. In fact, I still have my 1981 VHS rental tape; it still plays fine, except the opening ten minutes is a bit worn. 🙂
It was so "extra" and I love every minute, also, it gives you something to watch during the overture. The Black Hole has an overture too but it's not nearly as good.
@@jdogburke That's right, overtures were big for a while there. West Side Story, Spartacus, 2001, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Sound of Music (hey, three of those have the same director - and wait a minute, the other two have the same director too! Coincidence? Yeah, probably). The last time I saw an overture was earlier this year in The Zone of Interest - which is a great film, by the way, although definitely NOT compatible with pizza and beer on a Friday night!
Superman the movie holds up on every level
I agree. It’s fun to nitpick certain things like we do in this piece but it’s such a tremendous achievement that it’s really kind of impervious to criticism.
@@prodigioussaps And pain. Well, so far.
I love both Donner's Superman and Superman & Lois. Snyder seemed to focus on Superman being an alien when he is human. He just comes from another planet, but he grew up on earth. He gets his humanity from his parents, and it shows with Christopher Reeve's version. I felt Cavil looked the part but never got to really play the part.
Agreed! Cheers 👊
Definitely didn't let Henry play the Clark part enough. The thing is that they put Superman 1 and 2 together and it was OK, but needed more fleshing out. I mean Clark didn't even work at the Daily Planet until the very end.
I ... loved ... this movie. I remember my father telling me back in the summer of 1978 about a "Superman movie" coming out soon. Even at 11 years old, I recall being cynical enough to say to him that I thought they would mess it all up. Still, in December of that year, Dad took us kids to see it in one of the last remaining single-theater cinemas in town. It had a huge lobby with an incredible and classy chandelier and everything. We snuck in coolers of iced tea and hoagies, and even a cassette recorder as well, to capture the audio from the movie... all my Dad's idea, by the way. We were all AWESTRUCK at the spectacle that was "Superman: The Movie", and it was made extra sweet by my father's childlike wonder and glee at seeing his favorite superhero come to life in such a literally perfect way. I played that tape until the player itself finally stopped working. It's funny to have such an emotional attachment to a film as I do to this one. While it is a fantastic work of art to be sure, in my heart I know that the real reason is the eternal connection to my Dad that it gives me whenever I see it. For this reason, above all, "Superman: The Movie", will always hold a special place in my heart that is more than just the love of a great film, far more indeed. It is the connection it gives me to the very first Superman I ever knew and loved, who I was so very blessed to call ... "Dad".
That’s wonderful, thanks so much for sharing that. I have preserved a lot of great moments with my dad back in those days thanks to a cassette recorder. Now we can record anything anywhere and people seem to take it for granted. Back then it was like a fragile kind of magic. Cheers. 👊
@@prodigioussaps So true! Stay strong!! 💪
Superman the movie has the most iconic and GOAT superhero reveal to date. His helicopter save is legend!
Totally agree
"You got me, but who's got you?"😂
I hope Superman winks on screen, in the new movie. Like the classic comics and Cartoons
I saw Superman when I was ten and I loved the opening credits and I do until today.
When I first saw this at the Benson Twin in Brooklyn in 1978 I was floored. I could not sleep after seeing this movie, I was so psyched. I love everything about this movie, even the long credit sequence. The love that went into this film everyone involved deserved to be mentioned. If they listed Richard Donner's chef I would have thought it would be appropriate.
It was 10 times the movie compared to anything that was available back then. It still is today. Us late 70s kids were spoiled …in the most magnificent way possible.
No other actor since Christopher Reeve version of Superman will never beat him . To many of us he was the real Superman. RIP.
What I LOVE about Christopher Reeve's performance is that Superman/Kal-El is the person and Clark Kent is the alterego. He almost doesn't need the glasses, it's the charge of character. Kent is the nerd, the dork, the person no-one notices, he's quiet, shy and disappears. People ignore him.
In the scene after the flying, when Kent appears at Lois's apartment, he almost reveals who he is. And in the one line of dialogue, "Lois, I have something to tell you, I'm really..." His posture and demenour is that of Superman. Big, tall, confident, deep voice. Then he changes. His posture, voice, demenour changes, he slightly stutters. He's Kent, again.
Superb acting.
The scene where Supes first appears in The Suit and rescues Lois is just wonderful. The practical effects work extremely well for the time and as much as it's a bit silly, "Easy Miss, I gotcha", it's also quite wonderful and makes me smile every time, and I've watched it dozens of times. It's just rather bad that the only non-white face in the entire film is just stereo-typed.
It's one of my all-time favourite scenes of all-time. When you're a young girl and in love with Superman, it's just magical. It helps that Christopher Reeve has a wonderful, beautiful smile.
The whole catching-the-bullet moment is fabulous!!
Well said! The other thing I love about when Superman catches Lois after she falls from the helicopter is how he initially continues downward with her before slowly reducing her velocity and then going back upward. It's a wonderful attention to detail that they don't bother with in superhero scenes anymore. They just zip in and save people at insane speeds that in reality would probably atomize the people they were trying to save.
@@prodigioussaps Yes, it's a small, but great touch.
It's the speech at the end of Kill Bill 2. David Carridine says the exact same thing.
@@henrywallacesghost5883 Oh right. I've seen the first Kill Bill film, but not the second. 😃
I doubt very much that there will ever be another Superman film as good as the original. I don’t care how dated the effects are. Or how dated the film is. This movie never bores me and still has a magical epic feel to it. I will never forget sitting in a theater as a ten year old and being completely blown away just by the opening credits and the amazing music. I knew I was in for something special and I had no idea how right I was.
I’ve always loved the addition of the SuperTest Luthor puts Superman thru - bullets, cold, fire, etc….because in the first movie the audience, myself included, would want to see all the cool powers he has shown off, as much as I wanted to see him rescue Frisky and thwart the suction cup robber. Making it one sequence satisfies that, sort of like doing a concert montage in a musician’s biopic. Any leftover greatest hits can be crammed into that one sequence.
I love the opening titles because it forces the cinema goer to take in the people that worked on it, and it primes anyone who has never seen it with the Superman score before they have even seen superman on screen.
Krypton is what I feel a dying planet in orbit of a Red Giant would look like. the sort of planet you'd need to be superhuman to be able to survive on.
👍
When you watch 4 you can tell by the opening credits they went cheap
This Movie was filmed the same year I was Born. Late 70's put out some great pictures. Superman, Star Wars, The Sorcerer, Taxi Driver, Close Encounters, Jaws, Rocky, Apocalypse Now! and so many more.
Always has been and always will be my favorite movie of all time. It's not just a movie, it's an EXPERIENCE. It's about hope and wonder, even as it's also about love and self-sacrifice. The music still gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. This film is epic in every way, beautifully shot, and gives us the Superman we'll always believe in. Thank you Donner, Reeve, and Williams for this incredible gift.
Beautiful summation. Cheers. 👊
Have you both done a breakdown of Superman III & Superman IV the Quest for Peace ?
Coming up! We're just now getting to III, IV will be next.
I unashamedly love the third movie in spite of (or perhaps because of) its silliness! The fourth one is hard to watch in places though due to its problems. Reeve is excellent in both though!
$109 million budget for a single production in '77-'78.
-- Superman 1&2
Yep, and then $39 million for Superman III and something $17 million for IV... movie budgets were not Superman's friend after these first two, sadly.
@@prodigioussapsSalkinds made a bundle and got out just in time. Just wish Donner and them got along because 3 could have been much better with Donner.
There's one other thing that always bothered me. If Lex Luther is so ruthless, why would he forgive Miss Tessmacher for betraying him and basically completely ruining his whole plot?
Have you not seen her attributes 😂
So comic book reaction to the kryptonite, eyes wide open and in shock I love it
Yeah it’s perfect.
You can’t really complain the movie is dated because it was set in the then present time of 1978. That is unavoidable in all movies.
How good was the 1978 Superman movie?
I went and saw it in the theater with my parents... I was just shy of my 3rd birthday...
And to this day, I remember seeing Christopher Reeve flying on the movie screen.
Yeah.
* mic drop * 🎤
Yeah that says it all! Cheers.
I’m totally with you. I turn the volume all the way down for the flying scene, but I love the imagery.
They didn't need the poem, it was romantic already.
I love the subtle dum de dum ,dum de dum dum de dum , more exciting than jaws ,it's so so great to listen to you and read your chatters
I subbed after 3 seconds ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ lotta love for anyone who recognises the masterpiece of superman the movie
And thank god you two are funny aswell ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Aw thanks so much! That means the world, so glad you found us. Lots more Superman stuff coming. 👊
Thanks for a warm welcome .
I'm in👍
The Daily Planet building is actually the New York Daily News office tower.
Yep, been there myself! It’s awesome.
I think that Superman had enough time the second time around because (1) he did not take that moment of pride that Brando admonished him about. He was proud of his work at the dam, then remembered Lois. (2) As Captain Sully puts it, he knew what was coming, so he went from one project to the other to contain the damage. He could have redone the entire movie, but I think that he just went back far enough to give himself time to save Lois.
The composer was not aware that the director wanted Margot Kidder to speak the lyrics of "Can You Read My Mind?" - the composer had already hired an excellent singer and was NOT happy with the decision. And I have said for decades that the best special effect in the movie is Christopher Reeve himself!
You’re so right about Reeve, and I love how Donner never stopped praising him for that.
The male of the species as a work of art.
@@prodigioussapsthe arch in his flight as he flies in the fortress of solitude is remarkable,awesome show
1:13:00 Lois' death was f'ing traumatic. Much more than Krypton exploding.
Yes, absolutely... I can't think of another movie with a gut-punch more powerful than Superman's scream of grief & anger in that scene.
The scream of a billion souls all dying at once is drowned out by the scream of someone You love, dying before your eyes.
We human beings don't handle large nameless numbers of dead very well.
@@prodigioussaps She was buried alive! In a kids' movie!
@@miller-joel Kid's entertainment can have some horrors in it that I don't particularly want to see as an old woman! Read real fairy tales and myths, if you don't understand.
Look at Star Wars! (the original not this modern junk!)
Or any of the Indiana Jones movies.
Love this conversation. In my book George Reeves set the standard that Reeve lived up to while he also set a new standard. George Reeves had a Super smile and a super wink and a great Super glare at the bad guys.
Christopher Reeve is the only other actor to live up to that standard in my book.
I agree! Thanks Steve 👊
Re Jor-El being dead for many thousands of years, but Krypton only appearing to have blown up three years earlier, surely it is just a question of Earth only sees Krypton blow up recently because the event's light has taken many thousands of years to travel here? For instance, when we at last see the relatively close star Betelgeuse go supernova in the next 50-100 years - the actual event will have happened over 400 years before hand. If anything it shows that Lex is not nearly as clever as he tells everyone he is. But on the other hand that is obvious because he employs Otis! ;-)
I like the 'Can you read my mind' scene - I love any part of the film (including the opening credits) set to John Williams music. I guess I just love this movie 100%.
Superman was the first movie I ever saw at the cinema, I'd just turned 7 and I was up past my bedtime so my Dad could take me. I fell asleep during the shorts before the main feature and had to be woken up :D. I used to buy the collectable Superman cards from the Post Office, there was a little stick of chewing gum in the pack.
I remember those. The cards tasted better than the gum.
Me and my best friend went to the first day Superman opened, and we were 3rd and 4th in line, the line ended up going around the theater! We were so excited, we were 9 and 10 years old, and we loved it ! I liked Star Wars , but I loved Superman the Movie !!!!!
As an adult I’ve come to the conclusion that this version of Luthor (and to a certain degree, Byrne’s version of the character) doesn’t like to be challenged too much.
He’s like a smart kid, who prefers to play with kids that are younger than he is. It’s less challenging for him and further underlines his brilliance and infinte power and wisdom.
It’s pretty interesting then, when he’s faced with Superman, and later on Zod. Was he up to the challenge? Obviously not.
One thing about the art direction I don't think anyone ever points out is the use of colour.
For example when ever there is danger the colour red is on the screen red sun, the planet krypton turns red, Jonathan dies Clark in a red shirt, harry dies by red train, Red poster and grafitti in the mugging scene behind lois and Clark, Lois in red helicopter, lois in a red car, missile programme red lighting, abort red button, red bridge, red Trans am, red fuel light, jimmy wearing red shirt.
Green is used for Wicked or evil
Tessmacher in green swim suit surrounded by green leaves, lex in green cap with green shorts in green tinted water, Kryptonite Green. lois thinking less than wholesome thoughts about Superman wearing a green dress.
Also they do explain the missile thing in the film Superman had never known how fast he could fly "You know I never really bothered to time myself", and they do say about the missiles "Can't you knock them down?" the reply "negative, absolutely impossible, they have the new reaction avoidance system".
Great observations! Although I suspect that line about never bothering to time himself was mostly just an excuse to invite Lois to fly with him. It’s also probably true he never timed himself, but I have to think he knows exactly what his top speed is and it’s the one that breaks the time barrier. Jor-El must have gone over all that with him, or else how would he have known how to do it? Just another fun hole to poke in the script, really.
I’m ok with the long intro. It builds anticipation with that score.
According to the editing i. This movie, the reason Lois died was because Superman spent too much time admiring his own work. She was still alive while he just stood there smiling at the town he just saved. If he had more of a sense of urgency he could have saved her
Okay I can see that. For me, I think Donner's intention was that in that moment, Superman thought that his work was done... saving that small town from the dam burst was essentially the last thing on his extensive post-earthquake to-do list, and so this was the first time he actually had a moment to pause and take a breath, and that quiet moment is what finally freed his senses enough to hear Lois for the first time. Suffice it to say, though, the whole point of that scene is that he felt he had failed her and blamed himself, so either way it works.
This is excellent listening to two very knowledgeable superman fans break down these movies terrific show guys
Hey thanks Danny!! Really appreciate that. Cheers. 👊
In this next year, we shall examine the human heart. It is more fragile than your own.
One year on the human heart .
I so wish I was part of this conversation. I have had these thoughts many times and now I know others have thought way too much about this stuff too. Thanks for this.
Cool - you’re part of the conversation now! Speak freely 🎤 And thanks so much for chiming in. Cheers 👊
I just re-watched the flying scene from the copy I purchased from iTunes, and they have removed the dialogue in the flying scene, but kept the scene intact. It’s a vast improvement!
Wow that’s wild! I know editor Michael Thau wanted to do that but Donner didn’t approve. I wonder when that change was made.
@@prodigioussaps Oh dear... I have to take it back... I hadn't gone far enough into the scene. It's there...
Oh, phew! I honestly wasn’t surprised at the possibility because I’d heard WB had apparently taken some liberties with the Donner Cut as it was released on a couple of streaming services, but I can’t personally verify that.
1:42 hopefully, there will be acknowledgement of the fact that the “poem” or “song” charted WELL for quite a while back then.
I skip it now but someone ate it up then.
Brendan talking about the super long credits: "Oh good, there's catering..." 🤣
Ha, yeah I laughed every time I re-heard that bit while I was editing.
I could watch those credits forever. As long as they have the music.
I agree, the music makes it work for me, along with the concept that we’re traveling from Earth to Krypton in the process.
@@miller-joel There are several symphony versions of the music on You tube ... my favorite has the movie playing on a screen in the background. The music is a favorite of mine too ... I love Holst's "The Planets" and the Superman march has the same almost emotional/psychological impact. The march of the army in Aida has that same impact. ((search parameters) Superman Theme John Williams Royal Philharmonic. Royal Albert Hall. ) I'm like a kid when I listen to certain pieces of music. Instant smile on my face, thumping fingers or a foot along with the music. Some people never grow up and I am one of them. 🤓
@@kathleenhensley5951❤❤❤
Still the best superhero movie, flaws and all. No other movie has what this movie has.
Agreed
To be fair despite the mentioned quibbles of comedy aspects in metropolis , you have to remember the tone set by Donner was that he wanted the film to be "big and heroic that didn't take itself too seriously" unlike his omen film. As a 10 year old in 78 this suited me .
5:22 I love many of the effects due to the practicality of them.
Neo and Smith fighting in the rain was awesome…and obviously, wholly cgi.
I think Superman holds up better because of its practical elements.
Similar comparison to Man of Steel. But they seemed to learn from it in BvS and Cavill clearly was in those spaces for real, much more often.
The “uncanny valley” could reasonably apply to cgi effects that get high marks for flexibility but more easily cross over to suspension of my suspension of disbelief.
Practical effects lack the flexibility of cgi scenes but hold up better over time, imo, and bring a verisimilitude that CAN make up for its limitations.
Okay so after thinking about it for awhile it occurs to me. Brendon, I feel like you're underestimating how important the humor/comedy was to the success of the movie, and perhaps Donner knew this. I say this because we saw what this type of superman movie sans humor would look like in Superman Returns. Superman returns really went for the same feel as the original Donner films, but without the humor. Lex Luther WAS a ruthless evil man with real thugs and villains helping him out, and the movie bombed hard. Maybe it would have done better to also match the humor of the Donner films if it was going to match the overall tone as well. just my thoughts.
Don't you DARE criticize the opening credits sequence. Don't even go there. Nope. You're just wrong. This isn't a matter of opinion. It's scientific fact. The opening is just magnificient. And without it, we would have never gotten the spectacular John Williams theme. I wouldn't change a second of it.
It's arguably one of the greatest opening sequences of all time. It looks like credits from the early to mid 2000s. The film came out in 1978.
18:40 It’s wild that he’s taught about Earth and time and space…and then doesn’t know his origin.
Interesting point. Maybe a lot of it came back to him when he started training at the Fortress? We don’t know.
My understanding is that, for the time, the miniature city in the dam scene was not as good as they wanted, because their top guy had to leave for another project.
Ah, thanks for that! I really need to find a good book about this production.
I might never watch another MCU Movie but I'd certainly give another Superman a shot. James Gunn has made awesome Guardians of the Galaxy movies but he was also responsible for Suicide Squad.
It wasn’t just an action adventure movie. It was art… from the Krypton scenes to Smallville and Metropolis. 😊
Yes indeed! Cheers 👊
My take on teen Clark running at normal human speed when his father collapsed is because Clark was repressing or suppressing his super abilities. Clark sees that his father has fallen but doesn't know he's dying so normal human speed must have seemed sufficient.
Is it just me or with the Air Force one scene, it sounds like Reeve is the metropolis tower voice? Also the pilots voice reminded me of Rich Little, “fly, don’t look just fly”.
@@KC-fi6rk …it is Reeve doing the tower voice. And the Air Force One pilots’ voices were dubbed because of their British accents.
I always felt that the council ignoring Jor El's warnings work as a modern allegory for reactions to climate change. Also, the stark white-brightness of Krypton serves as contrast to earth. This gives 3 very distinct settings, sterile and alien, rural and Rockwellesque, and lastly a gritty and sleepless Metropolis.
“They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you, my only son.
Mankeiwicz magic.
Indeed! He doesn’t get enough credit, IMO. Cheers 👊
20:20 Nice catch re: thousands of years vs 3 years of space travel.
Otis would have worked if he were Luthor’s idiot brother who he swore to care for.
Love your passion guys!
Thanks Annette!!
The woman in the opening scene is Maria Schell (Gary Cooper’s co-star in “The Hanging Tree”). Her brother was Oscar winner Maximilian Schell (“Judgment at Nuremberg”). He made a fascinating documentary about her, “My Sister Maria.”
@@TheTerryGene he was Tea Leoni’s dad in deep impact as well
@@BeyondNarratives And she played Jon Voight’s mother in The Odessa File, while Maximilian played the villain!
The first movie I saw Max in was the Young Lions with Brando, Clift and Dean Martin.
Let's not forget Chief Tug Smith also had a line when he was being interviewed by Lois in the desert. He even got to include a dig at Custer's expense! As a Native, I always appreciate what little representation we get.
Yes, you’re right - I should have mentioned that! Thank you.
You guys should do a breakdown of the extra scenes in the 3 hour TV cut and the version as a whole.
That’s a great idea! Thanks 👊
Did you guys miss that the little girl on the train in Smallville when Clark was running next to it was Lois Lane.
Also, I loved the Gauntlet scene and wish they had left in the movie.
Oh yeah she’s not identified as Lois in the theatrical cut, which is the version we reviewed for this video. Love the gauntlet scene, too - Donner did put that back in for his special edition director’s cut.
Dated schmated. The '70s were cool. And I loved, loved, loved the unabashed romanticism of that flying sequence.
Yeah personally I don't mind the period-piece feel it has now (this is Chad speaking, the bald dude). Screw it, it's Superman in the 70s. '70s retro chic is so fashionable now, in a weird sense it was ahead of its time.
Speaking of period pieces, I think would be amazing to see an Elseworlds Superman movie set in the 1940s with modern effects.
7:33 Blasphemy.
The opening is long but so awesome and classic.
I loved that 💩 so much back then that it still endures now.
Argh, wish I could have been part of this discussion. I think the fact that it's so embedded in the late 1970s isn't much of a downside, although it changes the way the film is experienced by people from now on. It makes me think of the Sherlock Holmes stories; they were torn from the contemporary mean streets of London when Doyle wrote them, but they were so good that they lasted long enough to be enjoyed now as period pieces. This movie will end up being the same: still loved but experienced in a new way.
For me, the daylight mugging made something clear to me as a middle-aged curmudgeon that I completely missed when I was 12 and saw this in theaters: that Clark and Superman are not as different as we always say they are. Clark may be squeaking like a milquetoast, but he pushes himself between Lois and the mugger from the second the gun comes out and stays there. Later on after one-handing the falling helicopter Superman tells Lois, "Statistically speaking, it's still the safest way to travel," and that line is so painfully nerdy that you can easily imagine Clark saying it while pushing up his glasses.
In both cases, he's simultaneously nerd and a hero, but it's a matter of which is ascendant. Clark is a heroic nerd, and Superman is a nerdy hero. They are two sides of the same personality, not two different personalities. For me, that's the best thing about Reeve's portrayal. It's not hero OR nerd. It's an "and."
I also didn't appreciate the rooftop flirting as much when I was a kid. The thing that hits me now as an adult is that, although they are both flirting, it's done in an extremely kind-hearted and sincere way. It's not cheap or crude at all, but it's also adult and honest. That's a hard balance to strike, and most movies nowdays don't even bother.
WONDERFUL observations. Totally agree. It's one of the reasons I'm a little befuddled by the way Superman describes Clark as a different person in next movie. Reeve's performance really does seem to show us that his Clark is not always just a goofy act, there's often sincerity and sometimes moments of self-doubt and vulnerability. But pointing out that his nerdiness is still there as Superman is freaking brilliant. Are you cool if we include your comment in a future episode? This is gold. Cheers 👊
@@prodigioussaps Not sure why my reply isn't showing up, but please feel free to reference my previous comment. 🙂 Subbed!
Hi new suscriber here, I just found You and already love your videos but Guys!! You didn't break down the Best scene of the movie!! Helicopter rescue! The score is fantastic and the lines!
I got You
You got me ! Whos got You!?!?
I'm 50 and obiously I saw it in theatre and I still cry every time...
Hi George, thanks so much! You’re right, we could have dug into that scene a bit more. It is such an impeccably directed scene from start to finish, still the best introduction to a superhero ever, I think.
Not only the best superman film but the best superhero movie
Agreed. Still stands head and shoulders above everything that’s followed.
Zod, Non, and Ursa mirror Luther, Otis and Ms Testmocher. Even Zod and Luther make annoyed faces at their idiocy. 😂(I just thought of it really) Luther/Zod think they are superior gods to everyone. Even Zod corrects the President. Non and Otis are constantly trying to please their superior. Now Ursa and Testmocher are a little different. Testmocher actually helps Superman. Ursa feels everyone except Zod is below her
The humour in this movie was spot on at the time. I remember the whole theatre exploding with laughter at each joke. Maybe it does not translate so well today, but it was made for 1970's audiences. Personally, I agree Christopher Reeve was the best superman...but wow Tom Welling really embodied the role of Clark and Henry Cavill was born to play Superman but needed a better story behind him.
There has never been a better Superman or Lois Lane. Born to play the roles.👍🏿👏🏿
Agreed
The only thing that bothered me about the movie was Luthors Wig ! I didn't know it was a wig until the end of the movie, but it anoyed me thst he wasn't bald throughout the movie, because at 10 years old i had been a Superman fan since before i had conscious memory!!!!
“Even you, with your great speed, can’t be in two places at once.” Except, as you posited, for a period there were two Superman’s/(-men?). Superman figured out how to be in two places at once.
Side note - in Arkham Knight there’s a section of Gotham called ‘Otisburg,’ i’m not sure if that’s a reference to this movie, or if it always existed and it’s a ‘chicken or the egg’-type of thing, etc. I just thought that was funny.
Ha! I didn’t know that, but it’s gotta be a reference to the movie. That’s great.
Good stuff. Entertaining 👍
Thanks Mike!
Luther still started with hair, aw I can bye it lol
I think the inside jokes are smartly done. The look Lois gives him when he bumps into her on his way to his desk [the idea that he had a rock hard, ummm, member]. During the interview, just substitute the word "f**k" and there's a whole other level of fun going on there, and it works for kids _and_ adults. Kids of a certain age have no idea of the double entendre.
YES! love that moment, I was kicking myself during the edit when I realized we overlooked mentioning that. Also the way Clark shamefully shakes his head to himself right afterwards seemed totally genuine, like it wasn’t part of the act. I love how nuanced his Clark portrayal was. Nobody since has come close.
@prodigioussaps Reeve plays Superman straight as an arrow, but with just enough of a subtle edge. As Superman, he may not know that she's _actually_ directly asking him if he can f**k, but he _does_ pick up on the idea that she's really into him. I'm so happy your guys touched on the big smile he has on his face when he _turns away_ from Lois at the helicopter . . . I have always interpreted that as him not just having fun, but specifically having fun _with her_ . He plays at absolutely straight as for as _she_ can see, but he's actually having fun messing with her. Something else that Unsworth did was light then blue in the suit with a subtle, almost subconscious glow, which non-verbally gives us the idea that the suit itself is not of this earth. That's _extremely_ important because Donner and Mank knew that you can laugh _with_ Superman, but absolutely _never_ can we laugh _at_ him, because that'll take us out of the movie. If ever the audience looks at Reeve in that suit and consciously says "that's just a dude in a leotard" then it's all over. Another thing is that we never see any dirt get on that suit whatsoever, even when he pulls Lois from the car . . . the suit itself is made of stuff that we humans can't understand, and aren't supposed to. That's why your take on him turning back time is so important. The whole idea that makes Superman so hard to write is that he can do . . . anything. So it _really_ has to mean something for him to defy his father.
@prodigioussaps Reeve as Clark is just brilliant. Slouchy posture. Voice a whole octave higher. Hair parted exactly the opposite. Shifty feet. Pure Cary Grant.
VERY very well put. Thanks for all that. You my friend are tapped into the veins of this movie! Cheers 👊
@prodigioussaps This film is literally infused into my DNA. Have you guys noticed how terrible the 5.1 mix is compared to the original 2.0 sound? The original credit whooshes are the only ones that are acceptable. The redone sound is like nails on a chalkboard to me. It's crazy. That film is such a part of me that I can identify _any_ part of the movie if I _hear_ about a second of any part of it, starting with the sound of the curtains opening. I don't even have to see it.
1978's Superman is still the greatest superhero movie of all time.
This movie paved the way for all of the rest
Yes indeed
"There's no Z in brassiere!"
28:47 he could just not have that fine control you’re and we are used to.
Maybe he had to rev up…and it would be a challenge to stop.
Yeah that’s a fine way to look at it.
lol! just close the trunk. bit of trivia, that same exact trunk contained an important item when it was in Obi Wan"s cave. I saw the documentary alone for the very same reason and glad I did, because I did just that.
Yeah, that's fascinating. I see that chest sold at auction awhile back for $110,000. Holy crap.
Reporter, well cause he know where the crimes is of course lol yet super hearing lol
That flying scene from the fortress was awesome
You need to rewatch that scene again. Jor-El said “By now you should’ve reached your 18th birthday, as it is measured on Earth. By that reckoning, I would've be dead for many thousands of our years.” time difference between Krypton and Earth.
Nnnnope sorry he very distinctly says “your”, and that’s what it says in the shooting script as well. Anyway, if that were the case what difference would that make? How would that make any more sense?
@@BrianStevens1 Still doesn't make sense.
@@prodigioussaps I read that draft as well, along with your years. A previous draft had “thousands of our years.” which could help explain the measurement of Krypton time and Earth time. Then again, Lara mentioned that “the Earth was primitives, thousands of years behind them,” but there were just a few discrepancies. Still, the best version of Superman will ever have. I was 8 when it came out, and I was in awe. To this day, I’m still amazed by what they attempted to do with the tech they had and the budget they were given.
I’m not sure how 18 earth years could translate to thousands of Kryptonian years unless we’re talking time dilation based on Kal-El’s ship traveling faster than light or whathaveyou. Either way, none of this explains away Luthor’s line about Krypton exploding in 1948.
Anyway, it’s just fun nerdy crap. There really is no making sense of it. Luthor’s deduction of how Kryptonite works doesn’t really make sense, either.
I love Superman the Movie too much to ever nitpick it.
If superman went speed of light during missile chase he would cause catastrophic explosions due to friction
I never knew that Superman was supposed to fly that fast... (or would it be just under the speed-of-light?)
Thats why he goes up to space to fly faster, and acording to comic books depending of the version of superman he can go 10x speed of light.
The issue with nearly all Superman movies is that they ruin the first super feat. Donner got it exactly right in this one.
Indeed he did. What do you think Lester got wrong with the Eiffel Tower bit?
@@prodigioussaps It looked too fake. Same thing with Superman Returns, when he catches the plane. It looks fake. Same thing with Man of Steel, where as impressive as the visuals were, they had the same CGI unreality look to them. When I saw the first trailer for Superman Returns, I thought it was an animated movie, because the first scene was him in space, and it looked like a well done cartoon. That was disappointing.
The first real superfeat of this movie is Lois in one hand, and a helicopter in the other. And since they were both real things, it gives the scene a whole different look, despite the fact that the building was invariably fake. That doesn't matter a bit to me. And by getting it right, it allows you to accept so much at the end, like the miniature hamlet saved from the flood, the terrible crack in the ground swallowing up Lois car, etc.
Very good points, you're right... the Lois/helicopter scene is absolute perfection. And it still holds up, which is amazing especially considering when it was made. Thanks for that, cheers 👊
Man Brendan, You were the smartest 8yr old ever with the way u picked up all the differences from the comic to the movie! Haa! Just messing of course. I was also 8 when Supes 1st came out,and I do remember noticing some of the differences from the comic to movie..I think I just thought of it like the way the tv show Hullk differed from the comic book Hulk.Like how the Hulk never spoke on the show and he was Way underpowered compared to his comic counterpart
Hey your talking about when he was young so running with the train I looked at like I said and I liked at he's learning his power I grew up with the first Superman and that were I started liking him
Cool, yeah it’s a wonderful scene
Oh for god sake! he is a really good looking clean-cut guy at the time, in a great costume! that had all the super powers that one
could imagine. Yeah, the clean cut look , combined with the costume in color, has no match, But, Bat-man is almost the opposite!🤔
In 8track stereo surround sound Quad movie 1978 ....no download fees to pay then.
Ah yes them were the days
23:29 Ooooh. You actually said it out loud.
100% correct.
I prefer a version in which the Kent’s are the reason he has the moral compass we admire. MoS dropped that ball.
26:41 you’re right the smack was not funny.
You’re also wrong that the smack was not funny.
Ha, fair enough!
the main keys to success of this movie, that none of the subsequent movies had, were Richard Donner....John Williams' iconic SCORE...AND, of course, Christopher Reeve.
BUT....if Reeve didn't have that natural chemistry with Margot Kidder...even the best flying scenes, soaring theme music and Donner's whole verisimilitude can't save this movie.
this is still yet to be topped....none of the other Superman movies could even come close.
i really hope James Gunn would use the same theme by John Williams.
I always wondered why they got the baby that looked close to Brando as possible as opposed to Reeve. I get it Brando is the big start but i didnt know that or care about that as a kid.
Huh, I never even thought about that. Is that just your observation or did they say that's what they were going for?
U guys are being so nice about tessmacher. She was sooo hot. Eye candy. Classic comic book hotness
Well yes, there is that. 👊
His senses I guess are still affected by his environment or what’s he’s concentrating on,,, lol perhaps,
The Krypton sequence bothered me originally because I had remembered it being more like earth but scientifically advanced.. I watched the animated series, recently, and it returns to more like i remembered. After I thought about it, in later years, I realized it was logical. Their sun was red and collapsing, it made sense that it would be a colder ice planet. They implied that Krypton was in a great deal of trouble, already. It was barely supporting life. (and how did they grow food? Why hadn't they hadn't colonized other planets if their world was going through a snowball phase?) I like the idea that the sun went supernova... shrinking and blowing up, taking Krypton with it. It kept it in the realm of Science Fiction. Death at the cosmic level.
I thought they were trying to do a "2001" trip through space when I saw it originally, it reminded me of the long wormhole journey at the end of that movie.
I wish they could have written more serious version of Clark Kent. He shouldn't be awkward comic relief. He doesn't have to awkward and laughable. He needs to be normal. Very normal. His true disguise---the glasses, his suits, his polite demeanor are just part of his normalcy. He's an alien who has mastered the art of being human.
I do like Hackman's Luthor but you are right he needed more henchmen - and better.. A bit too much comedy. He's evil, fine, but the humor blunts that perception?
Maybe they didn't want to show a real crime lord Luthor in the movie? Both the radio and 1950s TV show were both for kids. Superman and all comic books - in fact, all science fiction, was going through a period of transformation. From being a genre for kids and poorly educated adults (the popular mainstream view), it was becoming far more serious and mature. - and popular. Yes, Asimov, Arthur C Clarke, Robert Heinlein had been writing for decades, Star Trek had been on TV in the 1960s, Star Wars would appear the next year.. but it was not the popular genre that it would become. Lex Luthor in this movie is funny because they don't want to scare the children? Just a thought.
My advice was close the trunk and then seal it with your heat vision but that would have messed up the plot, right?
Time Travel never makes sense to me. The more I think about it the more my brain feels like a badly twisted pretzel. It's a great premise, I love the idea... but I never can visualize how it would function in reality. Sometimes I just put down the nitpicking and enjoy a movie? Hard to do.
Just hear me out guys...
For Man of Steel I would have had Kevin Costner die of cancer rather than by means of a tornado accident.
A long term illness could demonstrate the futility of his superpowers in lieu of the inevitability of human mortality.
And this is the difference between Clark being a God vs a man with super abilities.
So he still has to cherish the people in his life because their existence is so fragile and temporary.
Ultimately, Superman cannot save humanity from death because they are mortal and die of natural causes he can't prevent by physical force. He can only prevent accidents and crimes.
In this way Superman becomes the opposite of Jesus and does not cross that messianic line of becoming humanity's "savior" like the Christ narrative --which is an uncomfortable line to cross in my opinion.
Miniatures were done by derek meddings. His Miniatures were never really great. If greg jein did it may have looked better.