Release Date:
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Bryan Singer has the golden comic-book-to-movie touch. He did it with X-Men and now managed to update, improve and make Superman more epic than ever thought possible. For those who didn't brave the two-hour-plus running time in the theater, you're not gonna be disappointed. Every shot is perfect, Brandon Routh makes an ideal and understated man of steel, Kate Bosworth is hot as Lois Lane (sorry Margot!) and the effects are worth the estimated $270 million. Even the weakest aspect, Kevin Spacey hamming it up as Lex Luthor, is much more forgivable the second time around. Singer doesn't skimp on the extras either with a three-hour documentary covering every iota of filming ("Requiem for Krypton").
Bonus Review:
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
(5 Stars!)
Internet nerds can rejoice because Superman II has been reborn. For those unfamiliar, Richard Donner shot Superman and Superman II at the same time. For some unexplained reason, the studio fired Donner, took his footage and handed it off to another director, who reshot it and took all the credit. Thru the power of the Intertubes, Warner agreed to comb the archives, find all the unused footage (include huge chunks with Marlon Brando) and remake the movie as Donner intended. Even though Superman II was great before (Zod rules), this one's much smarter and more interesting. We understand why they wanted to make a lighter movie when it was released in 1980, but times have changed, and dorks like us take our comic-to-movie adaptations much more seriously. For example, we were always annoyed at how Superman turned human, then miraculously, turned back without any consequences. This fixes that, along with a few other plot points that always sucked. Donner sits in for a commentary, and it's clear that he's still pissed about being yanked off the sequel after making the first Superman. George Lucas could learn something from this, because they even made the CGI effects look as if they were made back in '80, and while there are a few plot-holes and a very familiar ending, it's one of the only times in film history that a reconstructed sequel outshines almost all the other movies in the franchise. [Buy it!]
Bonus Review:
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
(5 Stars!)
Internet nerds can rejoice because Superman II has been reborn. For those unfamiliar, Richard Donner shot Superman and Superman II at the same time. For some unexplained reason, the studio fired Donner, took his footage and handed it off to another director, who reshot it and took all the credit. Thru the power of the Intertubes, Warner agreed to comb the archives, find all the unused footage (include huge chunks with Marlon Brando) and remake the movie as Donner intended. Even though Superman II was great before (Zod rules), this one's much smarter and more interesting. We understand why they wanted to make a lighter movie when it was released in 1980, but times have changed, and dorks like us take our comic-to-movie adaptations much more seriously. For example, we were always annoyed at how Superman turned human, then miraculously, turned back without any consequences. This fixes that, along with a few other plot points that always sucked. Donner sits in for a commentary, and it's clear that he's still pissed about being yanked off the sequel after making the first Superman. George Lucas could learn something from this, because they even made the CGI effects look as if they were made back in '80, and while there are a few plot-holes and a very familiar ending, it's one of the only times in film history that a reconstructed sequel outshines almost all the other movies in the franchise. [Buy it!]