Superman: The Movie: He’s still the man.

Starring Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman
Directed by Richard Donner

= 5 stars

Amazon Link

Superman from the seventies is a classic blockbuster film which I probably watched a hundred times as a child. Everyone’s favorite illegal alien is a superhero with awesome powers, that he must learn to use responsibly while discovering their limitations.

The movie is broken into three parts. The first takes place on the planet Krypton with Jor-El (Marlon Brando), Superman’s father, doling out punishment to General Zod, establishing a theme of justice. Foreseeing the impending destruction of the planet, Jor-El sends his only son to Earth, both to continue his name and help human civilization. The Biblical allusion is acknowledged, complete with bodies falling into a red, hellish abyss. Perhaps the doomed Kryptonians receive punishment for ignoring Jor-El’s wisdom. Alas, Superman’s parents perish along with them.

The film’s second part documents Superman’s rural childhood, adopted by the Kents after a neat car-lifting stunt. We witness Clark Kent running faster than a speeding train and launching a football to Jupiter while pondering the use of his superhuman powers. But as with the first, this part also ends the death of Superman’s father.

These two sections contrast beautifully in style: Krypton is a cold, alien world, with strange, foggy lighting and mysterious crystalline technology, while the Kent’s farm is apple-pie Norman Rockwell with large fields, cheerleaders, and cloud-filled skies (they must eat roast turkey and stuffing every night). When Clark Kent finds the green, glowing Kryptonian crystal, it looks completely alien as a result. Yet both sections end with the death of someone close to our hero, showing how no matter where he journeys, he may face loss and sadness.

What’s crazy is all this transpires before the actual movie begins. It’s nearly fifty minutes in when we finally see the iconic Christopher Reeve as Clark Kent / Superman and Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, both working at the Daily Planet newspaper in Metropolis.

Part three tells Superman story familiar to all: a caped, tight-wearing he-man fighting crime in the big city, matching wits with Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) that despite working with two morons, lines up a nefarious plot to start an earthquake in California and make him rich. Meanwhile, Superman must juggle his secret identity of Clark Kent and a budding relationship with Lois Lane.

At film’s end, Superman again faces the death of someone close to him, Lois Lane. His solution is heartfelt as we’ve seen both of his fathers die, and he must defy Jor-El in order to prevent yet another loss. In a sense, he cheats, demonstrating that because of his human upbringing, he’s been instilled with human values and emotions - and therefore the pain they cause.

The hurt is palpable because we care for Lois Lane and Superman and root for their relationship. There’s a delicious contrast between Reeve’s wimpy and confused Clark Kent, and Kidder’s response as a confident and sassy Lois Lane that nearly seems like an attempt to protect him from himself. But as Superman, Reeve is a benevolent, perfect uber-man, while Kidder becomes starry eyed and careful. In a sense, as Superman changes identities, Kidder also transforms, displaying two sides of the same character.

Superman is filled with memorable scenes that are as dear to me as the flying bicycles in E.T. Young Superman jumping in front of a speeding train. Superman and Lois’s aerial date. Lex Luthor hamming it up in his gaudy underground hideout. How the opening scene becomes the plot of Superman II. Oh, and the John Williams music is great, too.

So if you haven’t seen Superman in a while, I strongly suggest checking it out. Just don’t remind me of the debacle that is Superman IV.

IMDB: Superman
Wikipedia: Superman
Rotten Tomatoes: Superman 93%

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