Imagine with me… just for a brief, shining moment… you’re not sure what movie to relax to for the evening. So, you decide to watch a classic film. It’s a film you’ve seen many dozens of times. But wait. You will not watch the whole thing. You just want to experience its opening credit sequence. Sound wacky? Well, honestly, I’ve done it more than once. I will watch only the opener of Superman: The Movie.
Don’t merely dream it. Be it.
This is what I do with one of the most rousing and inspiring Hollywood blockbusters of all time. Call me a krazy Kryptonian, but doing just that often gives me more sci-fi fascination and kryptonite radiation than viewing many full blown flicks. If by some odd occurrence you haven’t watched it yet - what the hell are you waiting for?
Yes, my true blue boy believer, you will believe a man can fly. You will also believe a man can turn back time. In this case, you will believe a movie can completely thrill and uplift you by simply watching its opener. Yup. Just ride along with that beyond thrilling opening sequence…
For most, Christopher Reeve is still the one and only Kal-El from Krypton. Brandon Routh recaptured his spark, while Henry Cavill brought a new, seductive energy to the comic book legend. However, Christopher Reeve’s iconic introduction to the cinematic world, released in 1978, directed by Richard Donner, co-starring Margot Kidder and Gene Hackman, remains the one movie which captures the fabled Superman mythos most lovingly. And its opener is peerless.
This is the only movie I'm aware of where the audience is shown Superman's penis(!), albeit as a very small child. I suspect this has something to do with the fact it is never shown on TV any more...
LOL that's right - and there IS a TV movie extended version you can buy, theatrical, special edition and TV movie version - they keep dipping into the Kryptonian piggy bank!
From Wiki: What is the difference between the Superman TV version?
Extended versions contain footage and also music not used in the theatrical version, but the television edits have more material than the 2000 restoration, including significant extensions of the destruction of Krypton, Smallville scenes, Fortress of Solitude, Daily Planet and the finale earthquake scenes.
Cool! I have a fondness for this movie that is partly the age I was when I watched it (i.e. young!) and partly because it is a cut above most origin stories. I also think this the best depiction of Krypton in any medium - but again, when I saw this may have a role in that judgement! 😁
Great observations, same here. I saw this in theater back in the day. I was barely more than a toddler, and I was blown away!
But yes, with these more than mature adult eyes, when I watch, I'm still swept away. I know nostalgia plays a role, there's an element of that imprinted memory when I was a child, but still, this remains a true landmark. The casting, the sets, the script, just so elegant and powerful - nearly mystical.
Still, I want to see Superman go beyond this - fly and zoom to new fascinating heights and new vistas, but this is such a special production. Throw in Superman II and you have a real epic 2 parter! Terrence Stamp as Zod alone is a darned revelation!
Couldn't agree more on all points: I personally don't need any more Superman than these two movies. I feel certain part of the reason these films succeed is that for the first time the idea of a superhero movie is seen as something more than merchandising/licensing. It is surely not a coincidence that Mario Puzo (of Godfather fame) wrote the screenplay that was split out to make these two films...
Yes, and we need to see new epics, new tales which are not similar - not retreads or rehashes of what Richard Donner and Mario Puzo and Tom Mankewicz did. Tom was kind of the unsung hero of Superman: The Movie, and only retains a consultant credit on the film, but was a huge influence on the screenplay ultimately.
The greatest main title sequence ever put on film! It deserves the extra love you give it......
This is the only movie I'm aware of where the audience is shown Superman's penis(!), albeit as a very small child. I suspect this has something to do with the fact it is never shown on TV any more...
LOL that's right - and there IS a TV movie extended version you can buy, theatrical, special edition and TV movie version - they keep dipping into the Kryptonian piggy bank!
From Wiki: What is the difference between the Superman TV version?
Extended versions contain footage and also music not used in the theatrical version, but the television edits have more material than the 2000 restoration, including significant extensions of the destruction of Krypton, Smallville scenes, Fortress of Solitude, Daily Planet and the finale earthquake scenes.
Cool! I have a fondness for this movie that is partly the age I was when I watched it (i.e. young!) and partly because it is a cut above most origin stories. I also think this the best depiction of Krypton in any medium - but again, when I saw this may have a role in that judgement! 😁
Great observations, same here. I saw this in theater back in the day. I was barely more than a toddler, and I was blown away!
But yes, with these more than mature adult eyes, when I watch, I'm still swept away. I know nostalgia plays a role, there's an element of that imprinted memory when I was a child, but still, this remains a true landmark. The casting, the sets, the script, just so elegant and powerful - nearly mystical.
Still, I want to see Superman go beyond this - fly and zoom to new fascinating heights and new vistas, but this is such a special production. Throw in Superman II and you have a real epic 2 parter! Terrence Stamp as Zod alone is a darned revelation!
Couldn't agree more on all points: I personally don't need any more Superman than these two movies. I feel certain part of the reason these films succeed is that for the first time the idea of a superhero movie is seen as something more than merchandising/licensing. It is surely not a coincidence that Mario Puzo (of Godfather fame) wrote the screenplay that was split out to make these two films...
Yes, and we need to see new epics, new tales which are not similar - not retreads or rehashes of what Richard Donner and Mario Puzo and Tom Mankewicz did. Tom was kind of the unsung hero of Superman: The Movie, and only retains a consultant credit on the film, but was a huge influence on the screenplay ultimately.