← Back to Reviews
in
Superman: The Movie.
The premise of the first movie is around Kal-El being sent to earth by his father and mother, as the planet Krypton is due to be destroyed by a natural disaster.
Upon his arrival on earth, he is a small child and is discovered by a friendly, homely couple called Martha and Jonathan Kent. They raise him as their own on their farm and name him ‘Clark’.
Eventually the day comes for Clark has to leave home to discover his heritage after finding a green crystal in the barn amongst the wreckage of the comet/ship that he came to earth in.
After 12 years of study in the hidden Fortress Of Solitude, he returns to the world as an all-powerful "Super Man" and moves into the city of Metropolis and, as Clark, he gets a job as a reporter with The Daily Planet Newspaper.
After only a day or so, he shows himself to the world and is dubbed Superman by his Daily Planet Newspaper work colleague, Lois Lane.
What awaits him though is arch criminal Lex Luthor. A brilliant mind yet is, as always, slightly inept at taking on the Supe.
It’s a beautifully shot movie, the action scenes are extremely well choreographed and the writing of the characters is absolutely spot on.
The story contains many aspects of great cinema, tragedy, seriousness and tongue in cheek humour. Mix to that a great cast who can carry all of these aspects, you’ve got something very, very special.
The acting too is fantastic.
Hiring the unknown Christopher Reeve as Superman/Clark Kent was a mark of genius by the filmmakers. He doesn’t just change his acting style, his physical appearance changes too. As the Supe he’s tall, powerful, confident and very charming. You genuinely believe he is indestructible. As Clark, he slouches, becomes uncomfortable and bumbling, incompetent in most situations and he carries the role in a way that nobody else could have even imagined. Reeve has the perfect split personality for a super-hero.
Margot Kidder as Lois Lane too is a mark of genius. Ok Kidder’s other films are almost unheard of and her acting has never been great, but as Lois she really shines. She was born to play the role.
Gene Hackman is another great choice as Lex Luthor. Hackman is as always, fun to watch, engaging, theatrical and campy as the villain.
Ned Beattie as Luthor’s dummy sidekick Otis is an absolute marvel to watch. He’s incredibly funny and Valerie Perrine adds some sexy-class as the gangster’s Moll.
The movie’s effects are a little primitive by today’s standards, though at the time the effects were absolutely cutting edge. Though today, they do still work.
You genuinely believe a man can fly (ahem).
The only thing that lets the movie down, is that you can tell some of the scenes are experimental. A movie like this had never been made before and though the makers did a fantastic job, their naivety occasionally shows.
All in all, one the finest super-hero movies ever made. Often copied, never bettered. A definite must see.
My rating 97%
The premise of the first movie is around Kal-El being sent to earth by his father and mother, as the planet Krypton is due to be destroyed by a natural disaster.
Upon his arrival on earth, he is a small child and is discovered by a friendly, homely couple called Martha and Jonathan Kent. They raise him as their own on their farm and name him ‘Clark’.
Eventually the day comes for Clark has to leave home to discover his heritage after finding a green crystal in the barn amongst the wreckage of the comet/ship that he came to earth in.
After 12 years of study in the hidden Fortress Of Solitude, he returns to the world as an all-powerful "Super Man" and moves into the city of Metropolis and, as Clark, he gets a job as a reporter with The Daily Planet Newspaper.
After only a day or so, he shows himself to the world and is dubbed Superman by his Daily Planet Newspaper work colleague, Lois Lane.
What awaits him though is arch criminal Lex Luthor. A brilliant mind yet is, as always, slightly inept at taking on the Supe.
It’s a beautifully shot movie, the action scenes are extremely well choreographed and the writing of the characters is absolutely spot on.
The story contains many aspects of great cinema, tragedy, seriousness and tongue in cheek humour. Mix to that a great cast who can carry all of these aspects, you’ve got something very, very special.
The acting too is fantastic.
Hiring the unknown Christopher Reeve as Superman/Clark Kent was a mark of genius by the filmmakers. He doesn’t just change his acting style, his physical appearance changes too. As the Supe he’s tall, powerful, confident and very charming. You genuinely believe he is indestructible. As Clark, he slouches, becomes uncomfortable and bumbling, incompetent in most situations and he carries the role in a way that nobody else could have even imagined. Reeve has the perfect split personality for a super-hero.
Margot Kidder as Lois Lane too is a mark of genius. Ok Kidder’s other films are almost unheard of and her acting has never been great, but as Lois she really shines. She was born to play the role.
Gene Hackman is another great choice as Lex Luthor. Hackman is as always, fun to watch, engaging, theatrical and campy as the villain.
Ned Beattie as Luthor’s dummy sidekick Otis is an absolute marvel to watch. He’s incredibly funny and Valerie Perrine adds some sexy-class as the gangster’s Moll.
The movie’s effects are a little primitive by today’s standards, though at the time the effects were absolutely cutting edge. Though today, they do still work.
You genuinely believe a man can fly (ahem).
The only thing that lets the movie down, is that you can tell some of the scenes are experimental. A movie like this had never been made before and though the makers did a fantastic job, their naivety occasionally shows.
All in all, one the finest super-hero movies ever made. Often copied, never bettered. A definite must see.
My rating 97%
