Reel Comics #15: Double Take: Superman

In response to rumours of a gay-ish new Superman, Clark and Jimmy pack up their stuff and leave the offices of the Advocate.

When you go to the theatre next week to see Bryan Singer's Superman Returns you will probably experience a strong sense of deja vu. Granted, Superman has achieved an almost mythological familiarity and recognition in Western culture, but I suspect this will not be the reason. Instead, I suspect it will have to do with the fact that Superman Returns is heavily influenced by Richard Donner's blockbuster 1978 Superman: The Movie, starring Christopher Reeve, which ignited the Superman movie franchise, has influenced our popular imagination, and become the iconic representation of the character for many movie goers. Obviously, Brandon Routh who plays Superman/Clark Kent in Superman Returns
possesses an uncanny resemblance to Christopher Reeve. The original musical score for the film by John Ottman draws heavily on John William's score for Superman even reprising the famous Superman theme. Also, it seems, from advance reviews, publicity and trailers, that the production designs and styles of Superman from the rural All-America look of Smallville to the crystalline and glowing architecture of Krypton, are also being reprised. They've even managed to digitally resurrect the specter of Marlon Brando to reprise his role as Superman's father, Jor-El.

It is no secret that Superman Returns is meant to stand in as an after-the-fact sequel to Superman: The Movie, and possibly even Superman II (1980). So, what is so iconic about that original Richard Donner film? I recently sat down to screen Superman: The Movie to question the appeal. There are many different cuts and editions of Superman: The Movie (various cuts of different lengths were produced for home video, subsequent theatrical releases, and television). I sat down with one of the most definitive editions, the 151-minute restored "Special Edition" by Richard Donner and Michael Thau prepared in 2000 and released on DVD in 2001. The film was cleaned, sound was restored
and rerecorded, and missing or deleted footage and extended scenes were reinserted,
culminating in a far more impressive and engrossing story than the theatrical cut. What is immediately striking about Superman: The Movie, by the standards of the late 1970s if not even today, is the initial sense of the film's sincerity as well as epic scope. It aims high, and for the first half of the film it soars. Unfortunately, the film also suffers from a lot of dead weight in terms of some substantial camp, intentional and unintentional.

Beginning on planet Krypton with the trial of three criminals who Jor-El (Brando) is persecuting for treason, the film establishes Jor-El as a man of wisdom, humanity,
strength, and justice. Even after his death, Superman's father acts as a guiding force throughout the entire film. The three criminals, General Zod (Terence Stamp), Ursa (Sarah Douglas), and Non (Jack O'Halloran) only appear for a few scenes before being sentenced the Phantom Zone, but they reappear as the main villains of Superman II. Because the first two Superman films were shot back to back, these continuities lend a greater sense of scope and purpose to the films.

Jor-El warns that Krypton is doomed, but no one believes him, so he sends his nly son to Earth where he may prosper and live a good life in Kansas. These scenes on Krypton, and later scenes on Earth where Jor-El communicates via crystals with his son, are incredibly satisfying because Brando brings a gravitas to the role in which he manages to appear simultaneously as a cold and distant teacher as well as a man who, although dead, has managed to preserve the essence of his pain and loss at having to orphan his son. The other reason this film succeeds is due in no small part to the dearly departed Christopher Reeve (1952-2004). In the dual role as Kent and Superman that made him famous, Reeve managed to strike the balance between awkward buffoonery and sincere nobility that the rest of the film has trouble negotiating. His Clark Kent is hapless (perhaps a bit too hapless as he often comes across as clownish) but still lovable. His Superman embodies all the Boy Scout nobility, politeness, and virtue of a hero, as well as a slightly mischievous side. Reeve's Superman is subtly humorous, able to joke, and does not take himself too seriously although the sincerity of character's drive for
truth and justice are never really questioned. This is a key point because Superman is almost always subjected to questions regarding his relevancy in the modern world. In the context of the 1970s, Reeve's Superman manages to transcend the cynicism of the decade without sacrificing a necessary awareness that a flying man in a red cape and boots is inherently silly. Thankfully, this self- awareness as it relates to Superman as a character never becomes campy, a fate that cannot be said for other aspects of this film, not to mention Superman II from which Richard Donner was fired for resisting campy elements.

Superman is able to appear genuine and sincere in this film because of the success of the practical special effects and the musical score which bring Superman to life in the world of cinematic amazement. Superman flies in an age before digital computer technology. He flies in an age where all special effects were practical effects: wires, models, miniatures, optical illusions, and pyrotechnics. In this context, Superman's flight scenes are remarkable, even today. Until Superman: The Movie, Superman usually flew as an animated character or by having the actor jump in and out of frame to simulate a takeoff or landing. Although other effects are not so seamless (such as some obvious miniature work in the Dam sequences) every time Christopher Reeves leaps into the air I am amazed. Superman's flight is lifted by a brilliant score by John Williams from start to finish. It's grandiose, whimsical, and epic (just like his work on Star Wars) and is integral to selling the emotional and sensational aspects of the movie.
Disappointingly, these truly remarkable elements just do not pay off in the end because the film is crippled by the heavy weight of camp and ridiculous plot holes. Unitentionally, the film is dated in terms of fashion and social issues. But besides that, there is a lot of intentional camp. Just before Superman takes to the sky for the film's first major rescue, a garish pimp comments on his outfit. I guess the filmmakers
thought that the meeting of Superman and Superfly was good for a brief laugh, but it leaves a bad taste in my mouth and jostles me out of the scene. When Superman is flying with Lois Lane (Margot Kidder), she delivers a moronic voice-over poem called "Can He Read My Mind" that is purely laughable and kills the credibility of the character which has until that point been promising. Thankfully, the rest of the supporting cast, Jackie Cooper as Perry White and Marc McClure as Jimmy Olson, remain endearing.

The worst offenders of this over-the-top farce, by far, are the villains Lex Luthor Gene Hackman), Otis (Ned Beatty), and Ms. Teschmacher (Valerie Perrine). Although Hackman brings a sinister flippancy to Lex Luthor that I enjoy in small doses, the majority of his performance is an exercise in exaggerated foolishness. While masterminding a devastating scheme to virtually destroy the west coast of America in order to raise the property value of desert real-estate he owns ? a deadly, but not exactly sensible plan ? Lex Luthor is never given any realistic, believable, or sincere motivation on which Hackman can hang Luthor's embellished egotism. Sure, Superman's virtue can be said to lack a realistic base, but Superman is a mythic archetype, and the best way to counter that kind of character is with a villain who has some concrete and conceivable reasons for his actions, not cartoonish dreams of mass destruction. Luthor calls himself the greatest criminal mind, but he acts more like a bemused Disney villain. This is only encouraged by Otis, a bumbling lackwit who acts as clunky comic relief and Luthor's whipping dog.

Let's not forget the inexplicable Ms. Teschmacher who acts as a sexy moll for Luthor to trade banter with. He ends up constantly shouting her name in frustration like he's Ricky Ricardo berating Lucy. They are all downright useless characters. There is nothing in the story or characterization to give any indication that Luthor is at all a credible threat or capable of figuring out the secret of Kryptonite as expediently as he does, not to mention hijack missiles. The whole villain plot is a complete write off, as far as I'm concerned. This campy aspect is further cheapened by the film's conclusion. After averting a series of disasters, Superman fails to save Lois. The solution? Fly around the world super fast, changing the direction of Earth's orbit, and thereby turn back time. It makes perfect sense...in Bizarro world! As the climax to one of the earliest
accomplishments in comic book filmmaking, the audience must swallow an implausible plot device that could never, ever, ever possibly make any sense. It greatly inflates Superman powers, making him almost Godlike. If Lex Luthor wasn't already an implausible
threat, the end of the film demonstrates that there were essentially no stakes at risk if Superman can simply erase time. It cheapens the whole experience and it pisses me off every time I watch it. It is easily one of the worst endings in movie history.

So, in the end, what are we left with? I can see the appeal of Superman: The Movie. Richard Donner and his cast and crew were perfectly able to capture the tone of Superman. For a lack of a better phrase, they tapped into the "essence of the character" that makes him appealing. The practical visual effects, the acting by some key players, and the epic score set up a strong film. On the other hand, in the practical execution of involving Superman in dramatic conflict after dealing with his origin, the film stumbles and staggers through absurd acting, campy situations, an extremely cheap ending, and more comic relief than is necessary. A highly unstable mix, if you ask me. The movie may not be viable as a plot, but it excels in tone, atmosphere, and emotion at least.

Grade:
B-