Hmmm...as I sit here having just chosen Richard Donner's Superman The Movie to be the first movie I review it has hit me how much this blog, that I have spent on and off today designing, looks very much a super hero movie blog! I can assure you all now that it wont be! Just so happens that it has been a good year for comic adaptations (and a decade, I guess) and I have spent the last few weeks being absolutely crazy over ol' Supes! Funny, a movie that was released 30 years ago and I grew up on as a kid has come back and made such an impact on me! I came over it again recently because I picked up both Superman The Movie and Superman 2: The Richard Donner cut on the dead format hd-dvd for £2.99 each. I watch loads of movies in the evenings with my wife Caroline, but I mainly get to watch family movies over and over again during the day with my children Matt, Rebecca, Alannah and Leonie, so thought I could stick these two old classics on, on a Saturday morning with them.
Just so happens, my youngest, Leonie, has also gone Superman mad! She loves him, always asks to watch a superman movie now, but, bless her ,she calls him "Soup man" heeheehee.
On first re watching Superman, I was blown away at how very well it holds itself 30 years down the line amongst recent big box office superhero movies such as the Spider-man trilogy, Hulk movies and the reworkings of Batman. Obviously, the special effects, that were its main selling point back in the late 70's now look very shoddy indeed, but that is the real only thing the recent Superman Returns has over this little gem. It remains arguably the greatest Super hero movie of them all. It is Epic, thrilling, funny, warm, romantic. nicely paced for a 2 and a half hour movie and features the superb, instantly recognizable and powerful theme music by Movie Composer Legend, John Williams!Everything about it works, the great story telling, how it has made such a far fetched idea seem plausible and endearing, a feat poor old Spider-man didn't quite achieve in 2002 with the uncomfortably dreadful and silly looking Green Goblin (although Willem Defoe did as best as he could with the character). The movie tag line was "You'll believe a man can fly", but it could quite convincingly have been "You'll believe a man would wear bright red pants on top of blue tights"! A superb cast with fantastic performances from Gene Hackman as the greatest criminal mind of our time, Lex Luthor, Ned Beatty as his hilariously dim sidekick Otis, as well as Legend Marlon Brando as Superman's father Jor-El, and the not very sexy but extremely spunky Margot Kidder as Lois Lane. But supporting cast, great composer, excellent script and directing aside, it is single handed virtual newcomer Christoper Reeve as Clark Kent/Superman that shoots this movie out of this world! What a performance, so strong and powerful as the man of steel and endearingly clumsy as Clark, I think a lot of what made such an impact on me watching this movie as an adult now, is thinking how perfect Reeves was as Superman and how heartbreaking tragic was this mans poor life to turn out to be. Watching him fly around the globe at the final shot of the movie as he smiles at the camera almost brought a tear to my eye. What a Super hero Reeves was indeed. Virtually unknown for any other of his roles but will be remembered world wide for his turn as son of Jor-El, Kal-El.
I wasn't too impressed on 2006's Superman Returns, thought it was a tad slow and the 3rd act was weak and had no real build up or satisfying climax. But not only did new Superman Brandon Routh have to be a convincing Clark Kent and Superman, he had to be a convincing Christopher Reeve, and there will never be another Christopher Reeve.
Superman The Movie: "Still, the best Superhero movie put to Celluloid" **** 1/2
Just so happens, my youngest, Leonie, has also gone Superman mad! She loves him, always asks to watch a superman movie now, but, bless her ,she calls him "Soup man" heeheehee.
On first re watching Superman, I was blown away at how very well it holds itself 30 years down the line amongst recent big box office superhero movies such as the Spider-man trilogy, Hulk movies and the reworkings of Batman. Obviously, the special effects, that were its main selling point back in the late 70's now look very shoddy indeed, but that is the real only thing the recent Superman Returns has over this little gem. It remains arguably the greatest Super hero movie of them all. It is Epic, thrilling, funny, warm, romantic. nicely paced for a 2 and a half hour movie and features the superb, instantly recognizable and powerful theme music by Movie Composer Legend, John Williams!Everything about it works, the great story telling, how it has made such a far fetched idea seem plausible and endearing, a feat poor old Spider-man didn't quite achieve in 2002 with the uncomfortably dreadful and silly looking Green Goblin (although Willem Defoe did as best as he could with the character). The movie tag line was "You'll believe a man can fly", but it could quite convincingly have been "You'll believe a man would wear bright red pants on top of blue tights"! A superb cast with fantastic performances from Gene Hackman as the greatest criminal mind of our time, Lex Luthor, Ned Beatty as his hilariously dim sidekick Otis, as well as Legend Marlon Brando as Superman's father Jor-El, and the not very sexy but extremely spunky Margot Kidder as Lois Lane. But supporting cast, great composer, excellent script and directing aside, it is single handed virtual newcomer Christoper Reeve as Clark Kent/Superman that shoots this movie out of this world! What a performance, so strong and powerful as the man of steel and endearingly clumsy as Clark, I think a lot of what made such an impact on me watching this movie as an adult now, is thinking how perfect Reeves was as Superman and how heartbreaking tragic was this mans poor life to turn out to be. Watching him fly around the globe at the final shot of the movie as he smiles at the camera almost brought a tear to my eye. What a Super hero Reeves was indeed. Virtually unknown for any other of his roles but will be remembered world wide for his turn as son of Jor-El, Kal-El.
I wasn't too impressed on 2006's Superman Returns, thought it was a tad slow and the 3rd act was weak and had no real build up or satisfying climax. But not only did new Superman Brandon Routh have to be a convincing Clark Kent and Superman, he had to be a convincing Christopher Reeve, and there will never be another Christopher Reeve.
Superman The Movie: "Still, the best Superhero movie put to Celluloid" **** 1/2
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4 comments:
It's looking good matey!
Hubby is a bit of a film buff, i'll ask him to leave a comment!
Seriously tho, you have it looking really good - i'm impressed :)
huggies
ps. hubs link: www.onemanan.blogspot.com
Loving your new blog gorgeous,loving my man too!LOL!!xx
He aint the son of Jor-El, he's 'The son of our jailer!!'
Ha ha.
Good comments man, and a very in-depth blog!
Goodstuff!
Superman, for me, is mostly bad news. I like General Zod, not so keen on his mates, but the rest of it has always struck me as slightly on the naff side. And Superman just reminds me of one of my least favourite movies of all-time, SuperGirl, which reminds me of Howard The Duck, which reminds me of Star Wars, which reminds me of The Phantom Menace, and, damn you Lucas, I don't want to remember The Phantom Menace!
For the record, the best Superman of all-time, given all the evidence, is officially....
Dean Cain. And in fact, Teri Hatcher is probably the best Lois too. Discuss?
Cw =)
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