Blu-ray Movie Reviews

The 1978 story of the comic hero Superman was far from the first live action realization of that character, but it has become a classic. Christopher Reeve, in the title role, was an appealing actor. While he was never a great one, he was a good choice for the Man of Steel. It's no accident that Brandon Routh, a Reeve near look-alike, was chosen for the lead role in the new Superman Returns.

You know the story: the infant Kal-El, son of Jor-El of Krypton, is sent to Earth to escape his home planet's destruction. On earth Kal- El possesses super powers. Raised by John and Martha Kent in Smallville, he later goes off to Metropolis to become a mild-mannered reporter who, in his off (and sometimes on) time, fights for Truth, Justice, and (at least in 1978) the American Way.

What you get on this HD DVD release (or an essentially identical Blu-ray disc) is not the original theatrical cut, but the extended version that was released on DVD in 2000 (though going by the jacket covers the latter appears to have been three minutes longer than this new HD version). It also includes a re-mastered audio track. More on this "updated" audio a bit further on.

There's nothing technically earthshaking about the film. The special effects were above average for 1978, and while hardly spectacular in 2006, they still work. Though computer controlled cameras were available at that time, thanks to Star Wars and George Lucas' then new Industrial Light and Magic special effects house, CGI was still a gleam in Hollywood's eye. Special effects in that era were a high wire act (pun definitely intended).

This HD DVD looks good for a film that's 28 years old. The colors are true, and the transfer has surprisingly few glitches. But it's often a little soft looking and a long way from demo quality.

The same goes for the audio. While the bass is better than I expected, the recording is a little more raw-edged than the best modern soundtracks. Some of this may be due to the 5.1 soundtrack remastering from 2000. There were clearly enhancements made here to pump up the wow factor from the 1978 original. While I don't find this objectionable, some fans do. I'd like to have the original track, too, but it clearly does not exist for this extended cut.

The soundtrack's limitations are most evident in the recording of John Williams' classic score—one of his best. On the plus side, the disc does include a music-only track. This track was also an extra on an earlier DVD, along with additional features that this HD DVD version omits.

(Picture: 6.5 (out of 10), Sound: 6.0, Film: 7.5)

Superman II, from 1981, has an interesting history. To save money, most of it was shot simultaneously with Superman: The Movie by director Richard Donner. But because of differences with the producers, Donner was forced to leave Superman II before he could finish, and director Richard Lester was assigned to complete the film. Lester added a number of additional scenes&$151;enough to qualify for sole director credit. The Eiffel Tower sequence, Lois jumping into the rapids below Niagara Falls, the substitution of Superman's mother Lara for his father Jor-El in key spots—all of these were Lester's work.

(Marlon Brando's Jor-El scenes for II had already been shot, but Brando must have had contractual rights to re-negotiate their use in the second film. He had reportedly already received $3M for his few minutes of footage for both films, but his money demands for their use in II were too high for the producers.)

While I agree with Donner's reasoning behind his use of Brando here (explained on the commentary track), the rest of his changes fall clearly into the realm of creative differences.

In an interesting sidebar gleaned from the commentary track, many critics justly praised Gene Hickman's sharp comic performance as Lex Luther, the same role he had played in the first film. They credited Lester's direction. According to Donner, however, it was he, and not Lester, who directed all of Hackman's scenes.

As originally released, therefore, didn't represent Donner's structural and dramatic vision for the film. What we have on this new release is the result of Warner's offer to Donner (presumably with one eye on the DVD market!) to restore his concept in this special edition. He could not do it completely, of course, since he hadn't shot all the scenes needed for continuity, plus other scenes he would have shot had he been in on the project until the end. So he had to use more of Lester's work here than he might have preferred. But this is as close as we'll ever get to what Donner wanted, and judging from the commentary track on this HD DVD, he appears reasonably satisfied with the result.

The major changes involve how Lois discovers that Clark is Superman, how this knowledge is ultimately erased from her memory, how the film opens and ends, and, most importantly, the return of Jor-El to the narrative and how Kal-El/Superman relates to him. There are a lot of other little tweaks here and there, but they're much less important.

The similarity of the ending on this special edition of Superman II to the final scenes in Superman: The Movie was unavoidable. The conclusion used for Superman: The Movie was originally shot for Superman II, but was used instead for the first film. Donner was replaced on Superman II before he conceived a new ending for that film.

Donner didn't like the ending Lester later devised for Superman II (or much else about Lester's creative decisions, for that matter, judging from Donner's commentary). But his only choice for this new release was to go back to the original plan, since reshoots in 2006 for a 1981 film were clearly out of the question.

The quality of this transfer is very similar to that of the HD DVD of Superman: The Movie. It's far softer-looking than the best new films on HD DVD. The small details you expect to see in high quality high definition just aren't there. There's not much else wrong with the image, but you won't use it to demonstrate your home theater system. As for the audio, the bass is strong (and, I suspect, as with the sound on the HD DVD of Superman: The Movie discussed above, enhanced from the original source), the dialog crisp.

The score was composed largely by John Williams, who also did the first film. But he's supplemented here by John Thorne. An interesting revelation on the commentary track is that Donner originally wanted Jerry Goldsmith to compose the music for both films, but he wasn't available.

But the recording of the score here (and in the version of Superman: The Movie discussed above) is hampered by a hole in the middle of the front soundstage and a top-heavy balance that lacks the majesty a more full-bodied sound would provide. Compare this with the recording of the score for the new Batman Begins (reviewed below). Is it unfair to compare a 1981 film to one made in 2005? Perhaps, but any audiophile can tell you that they had the capability to make great recordings in 1981!

Overall, however, the soundtrack on this version of Superman II is far more enjoyable than the lame sound on my 2001 Dolby Surround DVD. The latter may well be the audio from the original theatrical release, but sounds more like it might have come from the master used for the 2.0 Dolby Surround optical prints instead of the master for the limited release, 70mm (blow-up) prints with their discrete, uncompressed, 6-track audio.

I like both the Donner and Lester versions of Superman II, but it's fascinating to see how the visions of two different directors can subtly (or not so subtly) drive the direction of a film. This is the only clear example I'm aware of that offers such a comparison on home video, and is very different from having the same director later rethink his vision in a new director's cut. This alone makes it worth adding to your collection, particularly if you already own the DVD of the theatrical version.

(Picture: 6.5 (out of 10), Sound: 6.5, Film: 7.5)