Movie & Video reviews

Travis Lavan

1/18/2007 - Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut

I have a good friend who insists that she’s never seen a movie more than once. Her assertion is that upon the first viewing one already knows what happens; so why watch it again, she asked?

  The last time we discussed this, I asked her if in the time they’d been married she’d kissed her husband more than once, since this activity was no doubt pretty much the same every time as well. Obviously she had; her reasoning was naturally that this was something she enjoyed and because she loved him, she got something new out of it every time.

  At that time I suggested to her that she may have answered her own question.

  That said, I can conservatively say that I have seen the theatrical version of Superman II no fewer than thirty or forty times since its release in 1980 and have always considered it—like the original—among my favorite films.

  It is widely known that there was a great deal of drama with regard to the making of this film and for years there had been rumors surrounding the existence of unused footage. Originally, director Richard Donner filmed Superman I and II concurrently for release in 1978 and 1980. Both movies had been essentially finished when a studio dispute resulted in Donner being fired, and replaced with Richard Lester.

  To use a sports analogy, this is a bit like replacing a three-time All-Pro quarterback with your uncle, but I digress.

  In order to receive credit for directing the film, Lester had to have shot at least half of it, so a great deal of footage was discarded and Lester decided to place his own stamp on the story, changing the story, the tone, the cinematography as well as huge chunks of dialogue and exposition.

  In fact, author Mario Puzo (The Godfather) had written the original screenplay, and so little of it was eventually used, he asked for his name to be removed from the film.

  Add to this the fact that Marlon Brando, who had already been paid a lump sum for his participation in the project, saw the box office success of Superman: The Movie and insisted on a share of the gross for the sequel. The resulting lawsuit meant that most of the footage he’d shot for the sequel could not be used, resulting in that footage being discarded as well.

  The result was the movie most of us have seen and enjoyed for almost thirty years.

  Then in 2004, an offhand remark by Margot Kidder (Lois Lane) during an interview brought to light the fact that enough of Donner’s footage existed for his entire film to be reconstructed. Plus, with Brando and his ego having gone on to their reward, it was now possible to use his footage.

  Most likely sensing substantial DVD sales, Warner Brothers buried the hatchet with Donner and the massive job of restoring his vision began. The result was most likely a first in cinema history—an existing film re-released using enough discarded footage to make it an entirely different film.

  I have to admit that the sensation of seeing the same characters portrayed by the same actors in the same movie but with an almost entirely different story was one of the most remarkable and surprising experiences I have ever had, and it was a pleasantly surprising experience!

  Restored are original cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth’s brilliantly epic work, Mario Puzo’s original themes, and a slightly darker, less campy tone. Perhaps the most surprising addition is a clear link in continuity between the events of the first film and the second—gone are the Eiffel Tower sequence, Lois’ plunge over Niagara Falls and Clark’s bumbling into the fireplace that exposed his identity as Superman.

  Do you remember that, when Superman tripped over the rug?

  Superman trips over a rug!? Let me get this straight. He’s faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive but he trips over a rug?

  I didn’t buy it when I was nine and I don’t buy it now. In place of this grotesque fluke is a more plausible chain of events that begins with Lois’ innocent suspicion and ends with her taking matters into her own hands and tricking Clark into revealing his identity like the investigative reporter she is.

  The moment is shocking, beautiful and far more respectful to the audience and the characters involved. Scene after scene unfolded before me and I found myself certain I knew what would happen and what would be said because I’d seen it before, only to find myself seeing something vaguely familiar for the first time.

  The opening sequence, the freeing of General Zod (Terrence Stamp) and his gang from imprisonment, the famous brawl in downtown Metropolis, the invasion of the White House…everything is different and better. I felt like a giddy nine-year-old in a plaid shirt, polyester pants and Hush Puppies watching the movie for the first time way back in 1980.

  I even almost took myself to McDonald’s for a Happy Meal afterward.

  Thankfully restored are Marlon Brando’s critical scenes with Christopher Reeve that literally lift the entire production to a whole new level and are alone worth viewing this version of the film. At last, Superman’s motivations for wanting to become human, his relationship with his father, his mission on earth and the eventual restoration of his powers makes sense and shares complete continuity with the first film.

  Marlon Brando’s acting pedigree is of course not to be questioned but the surprise is the degree to which Christopher Reeve showcases his range in these scenes—it is truly a poignant joy to behold. Reeve and Brando capture perfectly the moment when a young adult finally becomes a man, respectfully defies his father’s advice and chooses his own path for the first time.

  Later, when the tables are turned and forgiveness is required, Jor-El’s (Brando) compassion and Kal-El’s (Reeve) shame are literally palpable and the words Brando speaks ring with verisimilitude you just can’t buy:

The father becomes the son, and the son becomes the father.

  Richard Donner himself has indicated he had big plans for the series after Superman II and that the misbegotten third and fourth installments would have been quite different with him at the helm.

  Hearing that is like hearing George Lucas say there’s a version of The Phantom Menace out there that is actually not awful! Finally revealed to me is the train wreck that actually was Superman II and in its place is an unexpected gem of a movie that not only takes me back to my childhood but actually restores a little of it.

  The reason you watch a film more than once is not only because you’ve enjoyed it but because it took you somewhere, filled you with something, revealed something to you or even changed you in a way that you want to experience again and again.

  I feel pretty certain that twenty-seven years from now, I’ll probably have watched this film thirty or forty times.