Superman survey/census - 2010 (09 results soon)

[The Phantom Menace]

First of 2010:

Watched Superman (Expanded Edition) and Superman II on HDNet Movies.

[Deleted]

My first viewing of STM in 2010 will be this Saturday with Valentine Smith. It will be the first time we've watched it together and the first time he's watched a BluRay.

We should, in all honesty, videotape the entire viewing.

[The Phantom Menace]

Jan 4, 2010 2:00:10 GMT -5 @ucfkevin said:

My first viewing of STM in 2010 will be this Saturday with Valentine Smith. It will be the first time we've watched it together and the first time he's watched a BluRay.

We should, in all honesty, videotape the entire viewing.

Will there be drunken commentary?

[Jor-L5150]

Jan 4, 2010 2:00:10 GMT -5 @ucfkevin said:

My first viewing of STM in 2010 will be this Saturday with Valentine Smith. It will be the first time we've watched it together and the first time he's watched a BluRay.

We should, in all honesty, videotape the entire viewing.

^^^
;D

THAT would be fun-

[theoj]

It was nostalgic to see the original Superman: The Movie shown on ITV on New Year's Eve.

It looked pretty grainy and had the original sound effects and no added scenes etc. This actually improved the pacing of the film and highlights the astounding work of editor Stuart Baird.

There was a noticeable difference in the main title theme (as has been commented on before) where in this original version, the tone did not jump up a key, like it seems to in the 2001 version (just after the S symbol appears).

Though playing to a broad audience of Brits on New Year's Eve (at a perfect time of 3.55pm, when everyone's relaxing before the big night), I suspect this may still have played better to older fans than a new, young audience as Superman's big entrance doesn't happen for over an hour, by which time most kids (disappointingly) would have switched over.

Superman Returns was then shown on BBC1 the next day, but I wonder if anyone here caught it and could comment on any cuts that were made since it was broadcast at around 3pm. One additional remark about SR is that it seems to hold up pretty well on repeat viewings and should remain a popular Xmas tv choice for several years... so when's the next one starting !!!!!

[Deleted]

It holds up quite well, I actually think it gets better with time. I haven't watched it in a year but every year I watch it and it gets better and better. I worried about that when it came out, if I was only loving it then because it was a new Superman movie with the theme and stuff, but nah, I still really dig it!

[Legsy]

The Blu-ray is quite nice. I love it. You can see the black curtain during Krypton's explosion and the wires in a few scenes, but it's still a damn near perfect transfer.

[The Phantom Menace]

I watched Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut tonight.

It's actually kind of amusing how quickly we go through the mid-section of the film (all Lester scenes).

[crazy_asian_man]

Late last night, viewed "The Richard Donner Cut", in hopes that time would be more forgiving and that I'd be able to see the RDC in a fair light and try to give it more of a chance as an experience on its own terms as a movie.

Didn't work. At all.
Same old same old story: Thau's choices (and perhaps some by Donner? We don't know) combined with Lester's taking a whole other tack with his own footage combined with too little money (and possibly footage) to fix things.

As a 'rough intention cut'- would have much preferred storyboards for the scenes that were intended (i.e. Villains in East Houston via the original Mankiewicz script, Washington scene) - but, as far as actually getting INTO the film itself- even if I had no awareness of the multiple versions..... editing choices and timing and choices of music blunt any clarity of what tone this movie was supposed to have in the end. Also, I found myself not really caring about the characters- with Lester's bitter Lois, you get to a point where you feel sorry for her.

With Thau's version, the footage Donner should have been able to shoot but didn't just changes up the tone (particularly in the Niagara falls scenes) to where the screen test scene just doesn't match in what the actors are doing--- in spite of best intents.

And on and on and on, with many great scenes butchered by Thau's editing.... sometimes it might be lack of footage, but..... with so many better fan cut choices, (and fan cutters have LESS available footage than Thau had) that's hard to defend.

Maybe a modified ABC cut is the way to go, reintegrating newer Donner footage.
If nothing else, it made me feel better about ANY fan cut over this version, truth to tell. *sigh*

[EnriqueH]

I watched Superman III a couple of nights ago.

I enjoy this movie.

[Legsy]

It's really not that bad. It's a fun Richard Pryor flick.

[Jimbo]

Yup. After all, the trailer says "Richard Pryor has come to Metropolis". Not Gus Gorman, but Richard Pryor. View it as a movie about him, and it comes off as way more enjoyable.

heck, the pre-credits sequence is all about him. ;D For years, I grew up on the ABC cut and had no idea that the unemployment office scene came before the credits.

[Legsy]

It should have been called Richard Pryor's Superman III. I'm pretty sure someone will come up with a creative title.

[The Phantom Menace]

Jun 10, 2010 12:24:22 GMT -5 Legsy said:

It should have been called Richard Pryor's Superman III. I'm pretty sure someone will come up with a creative title.

Superman III: Mr. Gorman Goes to Smallville

[Legsy]

AH!

See, I knew someone would come up with something creative. I can write MUSIC, but I'm not too good with writing lyrics.

Keep 'em coming!

[Paul (ral)]

Watched Superman 2 (Donner Cut) with ral jr today.

He was only interested in Zod and explosions ;D

[crazy_asian_man]

Donner Cut on Blu-ray.

Knowing what disappointments were to come, it's always an interesting exercise to try to see this with 'fresh' eyes, so to speak.

The first half moves fast enough and content-wise I get why trims were made to try to make it more serious, but the pacing is as if one is trying to force the viewer through the whole thing so fast that they don't have a chance to look back or notice the oddball unmatching score throughout.

The second half- particularly the Metro battle, with its constantly inconsistent New York backdrops (is it a dark blue or pitch black night? Who knows) makes it leap out as a disjointed frankenstein mess..... and it's almost as if Thau gave up on trimming the idiot comic moments that Lester put in by that point....

Not getting into the bajillion skewed acting moments that are badly edited-- still, if one just wanted something to watch as a tossaway event, it works- and seems slightly more serious, but the whole final event feels like.... a straight to video effort. If tons of money was spent, I can only see that in regards to picture that looks decent enough for an old film and possibly some cleanup was done to it- but nowhere else, really.

Thanks goodness there are alternate cuts to view..... but an official one would probably be even better. Until then, IRC is (arguably) the best Donner cut so far....