In my book, Superman movies were just below Star Wars in my little guy geek spectrum.   So it was that my dad took me to see what would be Christopher Reeve’s final portrayal of The Man of Steel.

Even as a chunky ten year old kid I knew something was off about this movie.  There was too much humor.  Superman always looked just the same when he came flying onto the screen.  By “looked the same,” I mean that it appeared that someone had cut out a picture of Superman flying and pasted it onto the film.  (Apparently that’s exactly what they did.)

In the years that followed, whenever I talked to friends or fans about SUPERMAN IV, it was always the same thing.  ”That’s the worst Superman movie EVER!”  ”They should have stopped with three.” “It’s sooo bad.”

The problem is I could never not watch it.  If it happened to be on TV, or if it was in a video store to rent, I loved to watch it.  When I finally got the first set of Superman movie DVDs that were released back in 2001 I would often come home on a Sunday afternoon, pop in SUPERMAN IV and watch it again and again.

For a few years, this was something I would never admit to my geekier friends except jokingly.  Why?  Because everywhere I turned, whenever Superman IV was mentioned, it was mentioned in groans and moans.

I refuse to accept that SUPERMAN IV is a movie with NO redeeming qualities, and I refuse to believe that it’s simple childhood memories that fuel my love for SUPERMAN IV.  In fact, I maintain that were it not for the poor special effects, SUPERMAN IV may not be held in such disdain.

Superman IV did have many glaring problems.  If one is going to take an honest look at the film, then that has to be an admission.   Those problems have been dealt with again and again and again.  In the end, I had to wonder, “Why do I keep subjecting myself to this movie?  If it’s so bad, why doesn’t it sit on my DVD shelf in a relatively unwatched condition?”

The answer screams back at me, “The movie has a heart of gold.”  Sure, there’s a nostalgia factor of sitting in a theater in Athens, GA watching this movie with my dad.   Sure, it’s Christopher Reeve as Superman.  Yes, the premise is a classic comic book premise.  There’s more to it than that though.  Unlike it’s predecessor, Superman IV doesn’t feel like a movie made simply to cash in on the name of Superman.  The people involved at the base level seemed to be trying to genuinely recapture some of the magic that made the first movie so special.

In 1978,  Gene Hackman was one of the names attatched to SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE on the basis of his “star power.”  By 1987, Hackman had been solidified as an actor to be taken seriously.   He wasn’t contractually obligated to return to the Superman film franchise.   He wasn’t hard up for work.  There was a reason he slipped back into the role of Lex Luthor.

In fact, as you look around the Daily Planet, you’ll find no roles recast from the original Daily Planet primaries.   Why would these people come back to a film so destined for failure.   Granted, Margot Kidder and Marc McClure didn’t have studios beating down their doors with movie offers, but it’s highly unlikely that those two or Jackie Cooper would have returned to the roles of Lois, Jimmy, and Perry if they had absolutely no desire to do so.

All of these actors had one thing in common outside of sharing the screen in the original two films.  They had only a treatment and a script to go on.   A glorious, aggressive, peace mongering, simple script wherein nothing but the heart of this movie could shine through.  They didn’t have shoddy special effects to sit and watch.  They didn’t have to wonder how Lacey would be able to breathe in space.  They didn’t have to hear the terribly dubbed voice of Jeremy.  (Or see his acting for that matter.) (That’s a little harsh, but director Sidney J. Furie should have coached the kid a little better.)  They didn’t have to see how poorly portrayed John Cryer’s Lenny would be.  (Again, a flaw of direction rather than the caliber of actor…in my opinion.)  What they had was a Superman story wherein Superman deals with the real problems of a world he calls home and is met with resistance not only from Lex Luthor, but a whole underworld conglomerate of arms dealers.  (One of which was Porkins from Star Wars no less.)  They saw Superman struggle with the idea of using his power to impose peace on a planet on the brink of self destruction.  They read about The Last Son of Krypton fighting for his life after being infected with some otherworldly virus by The Nuclear Man, and using the last bit of power from his home planet to save himself so he can save his adopted home.

While the final product lacks the edge it could have with such heavy subject matter, the heart of the film is apparent the minute we find ourselves in Smallville with Clark Kent who is selling the family farm, but rather than sell out to a big developer, he maintains the whimsy that a simple family will one day call the place he grew up home.   Through Jeremy, we have the child’s perspective on all that Superman could be for all of us.  Living in the eighties, nuclear war was much more of a real threat than it is today.  I’m not saying we went to bed every night scared that we would be vaporized in the blast that would kick off the annihilation of all life as we know it, but the Cold War seemed to be far from over.  (Even though it would come to an end in two short years.)  As a kid I often imagined how different things would be if there was a real Superman. How much safer it would be in a world where The Man of Steel watched over us.  We wouldn’t have to worry about strangers kidnapping us.  We wouldn’t have to worry about gang violence.  We may not even have to worry about war.

While the subject of Superman fixing the world’s real problems tends to be a faux pas in the pages of comic books, Christopher Reeve tackled the subject well.  He walked the fine line of what Superman COULD do versus what he WOULD do.  In the end, Superman says it best, “There will be peace when the people want it so badly that their governemts have no choice but to give it to them.”

Quite frankly, while the verisimilitude that Richard Donner preached to his cast and crew while filming the first movie isn’t present in the special effects or some of the characterization of the supporting cast, it is there as far as Superman is concerned.

Then there’s the film’s score.  What a great score.  Of course John Williams’ original music is present throughout, but Alexander Courage did a fine job of composing new music to compliment the themes that Williams already established.  If you’re a movie music fan, seek out the score to Superman IV, you won’t be disappointed.

Watching Superman and Nuclear Man fight, there are two very unfortunate things that come to light.  The first is the most glaring of the entire movie…the special effects.  After the flying sequences of the original films, these effects just don’t stand up.   The second, and less obvious to the casual viewer is that an opportunity was missed in using an established DC villain, namely Bizarro rather than a whole new character.  However, that’s a minor quibble as Mark Pillow did a fine job as Nuclear Man.  His voice was of course dubbed with that of Gene Hackman’s, and maybe the sound editors didn’t need to add all the reverb and stuff to it, but Pillow emoted the raw, nearly unintelligent monstrousness of a villain who could stand toe to toe with Superman.

It’s truly unfortunate that the flaws of this movie have been the focus of what people see over the past twenty plus years.   When I watch the movie, it reminds me of a simpler time.  When good guys were good guys and the bad guys were always trying to stop them.  I’m reminded of how cool it is to see Clark Kent step into a phone booth only to emerge as the world’s greatest hero.  I’m reminded of how much the trials of the world he loves weigh heavy on the shoulders of Krypton’s Last Son.   I’m reminded of just how much Superman serves to inspire humanity to greater things.

In all of the things we as geeks love, there is stuff to complain about, but in most of it, there’s gold to be mined.  This movie is a diamond in the rough that, with a little more money, and little more care by the higher ups, could have launched Superman back into the stratosphere cinematically.   I challenge you to sit down and watch the movie again, and rather than groaning at the things that hurt the movie, laugh.  Approach it with a light heart and maybe…just maybe…you can learn to stop worrying and love a movie that bombed.

It’s no secret to anyone, much less comic book and super hero fans, that Warner Brothers hasn’t quite been able to appropriately tap into what should be an easily accessible cavalcade of characters.

I have my opinions on this ranging from too many people trying to get in on the action to legal reasonings (what with the the ongoing battle between DC/WB and the Siegels and all) to ineptness on the part of the studio. While there may be some truth to all of these, one thing is certain. THE DARK KNIGHT has set a new standard for what Warner Brothers thinks a super hero movie should do for the studio. That’s good and bad.

Another certainty is that SUPERMAN RETURNS didn’t blow the doors off as everyone expected. I have my opinions on that as well. I loved SUPERMAN RETURNS, but I also see and understand the criticisms of the film. WB’s biggest criticism? It didn’t make enough money. Which, from a studio’s point of view, is a legit criticism of a film that was so costly in it’s production.

The final piece of the certainty equation? THE INCREDIBLE HULK from Universal and Marvel Studios showed movie-goers and movie makers that the reboot format can work and work well.

Armed with those facts, Warner Brothers has made the decision to reboot the Superman franchise on the big screen. (Can you hear the noise as half of fandom rises and cheers and the other half rises to grab their torches and pitchforks?) So, we will never know the fate of Jason, we will never see if Richard dies heroically or makes the turn to become Superman’s greatest nemesis, Lex Luthor and Kitty Kowalski are forever doomed to remain on a tiny uncharted piece of beach in God-knows-where, and most tragically Brandon Routh may never get to don the suit again.

In an article by the Wall Street Journal, Jeff Robinov, Warner Brothers’ Picture Group President, spilled the beans as to why WB is making this move in the here and now. Sadly, the success of THE DARK KNIGHT is leading the company to think that darker is the way to go with it’s heroes. That’s just dumb. Superman is not a dark character like Batman. My fear is that WB will attempt to do just that though, make every character Batman. Hopefully, the creators chosen to tackle not only Superman, but the vast amount of other properties Warners has at it’s disposal will not try to mimic what Christopher Nolan has done with BATMAN BEGINS and THE DARK KNIGHT, but instead will explore the characters as we all know and love them.

This situation is good and it’s bad. That’s all there is to it. If you loved SUEPRMAN RETURNS then this news will come as a blow to you. If you hated SUPERMAN RETURNS then you are in the half of geekdom that is cheering. If, like me, you loved SUPERMAN RETURNS but are well aware of the problems the movie had, then, like me, you are waiting with very…extremely…cautions optimism that in the next few years we will once again believe that a man can fly.

To read the article in it’s entirity from the Wall Street Journal, click here.

For now, though, I stumbled across this clip from The Tonight Show on YouTube. It’s fun to hear the audience laugh at a joke that isn’t all that fresh to any of us anymore, but you have to remember the audience, for the most part, is probably seeing this clip for the first time. Also, I thought it was an interesting clip to bring to a talk show. Nowadays, the temptation would be to bring a quicker more action packed moment.

Then, there’s the talk about the second film. I can only imagine if there were internet in those days. Movie news sites and the blogosphere would light up with speculation on what the sequel would hold for the audiences of the day.

The thing that strikes me most, however, is the humility and passion with which Reeve approaches this interview. The opening moments of the interview are some classic interactions between a few legends of the stage and screen. So, enjoy this interview with Christopher Reeve from The Tonight Show circa 1978:

I am unashamedly a fan of Superman. I have been for years, even though I forgot that for a while. I said from the outset of my top ten list, and I have said several times on Geek Out Loud, that my favorite super heroes are the ones who are heroes. Superman epitomizes this. He is a hero at his very core. Every villain he’s ever faced, every evildoer to ever cross his path, even those who claim to fight for the same tenants of truth and justice have pointed out that Superman’s biggest weakness is not krypronite, rather it is his concern for the people he has chosen to protect.

I also think it’s important to point out that Superman has CHOSEN to protect the people of the world. Wonder Woman is a warrior. Batman is on a crusade. Superman would love to be able to live a normal life, but he realizes he can’t sit back with all of his power and do nothing to save mankind. It can be a bit cheesy at times, and Superman has for years suffered criticism because of his do-gooder nature. It is that nature that interests me about the Man of Steel.

A lot of people complain about how powerful Superman is, but that appeals to me as well. It is a strong individual that can wield the power of Superman and not abuse it. His immense power speaks volumes about the strength of his character.

I guess I was introduced to Superman on a bath towel in our home. Seriously. It’s a towel with an image of Superman in the pose from the famous Superman #1 cover. Only instead of the Metropolis skyline as a background, there’s space and some kind of domed city. As a kid, I watched Superfriends on Saturday mornings, and reruns on whatever channels would show them. I also watched the old Filmation cartoons thanks to Bozo the Clown every now and again. I also watched the classic George Reeves Superman show every now and again when it happened to be showing on a Saturday afternoon. Then, of course, there was Superman the Movie and Superman II. I vaguely remember when these movies were being shown on television and how my family scrambled for a blank video tape on which to record them when they aired. Superman II was recorded after a Little House on the Prairie reunion movie. I never watched that movie…except for the end, the littel town was destroyed and there were bunnies all over the place. I digress.

My point is, that Superman has been with me for as long as I can remember, in many different forms, and he has been my favorite super hero for a long time.

Over the years, there have been many criticisms leveled at the Man of Steel. Among those criticisms are that he’s too good, he’s too powerful, and the combination of these things makes Superman boring. Therefore, I think the best way to explain my enjoyment of the character is by answering those criticisms.

As I’ve already said, I like the fact that Superman is so powerful. Let’s face it, through the years, Superman has been given some of the coolest super powers of any super hero. Invulnerability, super strength, x-ray vision, heat vision, super speed, and of course flight. Some would argue that his super breath is kinda lame. I like the power, but I can’t argue with that particular opinion. The thing about Superman is that his powers do not define him. Rather, what defines him is the use of his power. Ask anyone what they would do with the power Superman possesses and the real world answer would be something that would benefit the wielder of the power nine times out of ten. Superman, is completely different. He chooses to use his power to help others rather than himself. He chooses to serve rather than to lead. He chooses to inspire rather than to enforce. The most interesting stories to read about Superman are the stories where he has to make the decision to continue to walk that line. Mark Waid and Alex Ross’s KINGDOM COME is an excellent example of this. Superman crosses the line just slightly and begins to force others to do things his way and the results are quite destructive.

The other main criticism that people level at the last son of Krypton is that he is too good.  Referring to Superman as a boy scout has become somewhat of a backhanded comment, a little bit of an insult.   I disagree with people who think that he’s too good and that makes him boring.   Quite frankly, the fact that Superman chooses right and tries never to skirt the line of darkness makes him more interesting than Batman, Wolverine, The Punisher, or any number of anti-heroes.   Why?  Because in a world as filled with darkness and people who choose moral ambiguity over moral fiber, it’s harder to be a light than ever.  Superman is not naive.  He is not ignorant of the way the world is, but he chooses to keep his light shining as brightly as he possibly can.  That’s something that few super heroes are seen doing anymore.   It’s easy to blend in to the shadows and be a Dark Knight, there are a lot of shadows.  It’s easy to allow rage and revenge to consume the soul and become a Punisher.  It’s easy to shut out the world and ferociously attack like a Wolverine.  What’s not easy is to never cross the line.   It’s not easy to choose the light.  It’s not easy to carry the burden of doing the right thing over and over again.  Superman does it though.  Even when it’s hard to know what is right, when everything seems to be shades of gray, Superman chooses right.  That’s intriguing to me.  That’s interesting.

Finally, I find it amazing that an alien would inspire humanity the way Superman has.  How is this possible?  I think it’s because within every child there is the desire to grow up and be great.  Every child dreams of doing something with his life.  No one ever plans to fail.  No one every plans on being stuck in a monotonous job.  No one every plans on being ordinary their entire life.  Superman appeals to the child that still resides in all of us saying, “You can take what you have and do great things with it.  Don’t abuse your talent, your abilities, you time.  Use them to do the greatest things you can do.”  Though, we often don’t, we always wish we did.  Superman uses what he has to it’s fullest for the best of reasons.  That’s inspirational.  That’s something to work for.  That’s why he’s my favorite.

You know, I just realized that for the past two or three paragraphs, I’ve been writing about Superman as if he were real.  That’s what talking about the character does to me, he gets me talking like a kid again.  So, that’s it, that’s my top ten.  Now, up, up, and away.

Here’s the link promised on the cast: