Superman (1978) Movie Reaction *First Time Watching*
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- Опубликовано: 15 июн 2022
- I love watching Superman fly!
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The tagline for this movie was "You Will Believe a Man Can Fly." All these years later, this movie still makes me believe.
I remember running up the aisles of the theater, age 9, leaping into the air, sure I could fly...
I’m 55 and remember the trailer with that line running on TV. It was true. We hadn’t seen realistic flying like that before in cinema or TV.
@@AlanCanon2222God loves you. Repent of your sins and turn to God. Believe in his Son Jesus and you'll be saved. Hell is REAL. RUclips: 30 Days Touring HELL
@@accidentalhippie943God loves you. Repent of your sins to God. Believe in his Son Jesus and you'll be saved. Hell is REAL. RUclips: 30 Days Touring HELL
Christopher Reeve as Superman is the closest thing to "perfect" casting. RIP
Of course - Christopher Reeve is perfect casting… but I would like to give Margot Kidder some love… There was never a more perfect actor cast as Lois Lane! She was spunky, sassy, and held her own throughout the entire movie. No Lois Lane since even compares. “Do you know what happened to me while you were out flying around?” 😂
The whole theater busted up when he looked that telephone "booth" up and down. I remember it like it was yesterday.
This was such an unbelievably HUGE movie when it came out. My parents, born in the 1920s and 1930s, made sure we were first in line opening day to see this movie. The hype on television and in the newspapers was unbelievable.
I was nine. Thank God Richard Donner was such a fan. I'm a Marvel dude, but this movie is so much better than almost anything made today (yeah yeah, even with the goofy turn-back-time resolution).
And it was worth the hassle of being there on opening day; this is still the best portrayal of Superman (wrapped in what is certainly now a *slightly* corny movie).
@@MrRezRisingGod, I really wish the time reversal thing wasn't in it, the movie would be perfect to me with a different conclusion.
I just love the way that Christopher Reeve did his body langue for this role like he distinctively made Clark and Superman feel so different on screen. It’s cool that no matter what actor they get for whatever superhero they really get the essence of the character down
He got some acting tips from David Prowse. You may know him as the man Darth Vader's armor.
Yeah, no other actor pulled off Clark Kent like Reeve.
"Easy, miss. I've got you."
"You - you've got me? Who's got you?"
Fun Fact: It was Marlon Brando's idea to have Jor-El wear the same "S" symbol on his clothes that Kal-El would later wear as Superman. This was adopted by every subsequent adaptation of Superman and even made canon in the comics.
Uncooperative Fact: Marlon Brando refused to memorize most of his lines in advance. In the scene where he puts infant Kal-El into the escape pod, he was actually reading his lines from the diaper of the baby. He told director Richard Donner that the only way to keep his performance fresh, and not over rehearsed, was to record the first time he read the lines.
Preeminence Privilege Fact: The filmmakers made it a priority to shoot all of Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman's scenes first, as they were the most in-demand actors, and were committed to other projects right afterward.
They were banking on Brando and Hackman’s names to make this movie a success. Film them first and pay them the most. lol
Brando was paid 5 mil up front and got 11.75% of the films profits, giving him 19 million overall.
For ten days work.
Donner hated working with him, but in the end he praised Brando's performance.
Apparently that Superman suit still exists. Henry Cavil was given the opportunity to try it on and it fit, but he didn't want any pictures taken. Apocryphally he said something to the effect of "That belongs to Christopher Reeve, not me." Some actors do Superman very well and some do Clark Kent very well, but nobody has matched Christopher Reeve in doing both. (With the possible exception of George Reeves.)
Henry Cavill and Dean Cain both played Superman really well, but their Clark Kents were meh. It's hard to find an actor that can get both right (good writing and direction definitely helps, too).
Respectfully, George is surpassed by Christopher.
@@nickperkins8477 Agreed, but George was pretty good too. Christopher played Supes like a younger, romantic hero, while George played him like the older fatherly hero. Different, but both good. But I still prefer Christopher.
George Reeves played Clark Kent and Superman identically - the only difference was the suit.
Christopher Reeve said that that was something that he felt was lacking: that there was not a difference in demeanor between the two that would further disguise Superman from his "human" persona.
Needless to say, it was quite effective.
"And how big are you? ...How tall are you!"
Boy, that just flew right over my head as a child, lol!
Superman: The Movie is the single greatest superhero film of all time. Both Kevin Feige who runs the entire MCU and Bryan Singer who directed X-Men & Superman Returns worked for Richard Donner who directed Superman, and credit this movie with being the standard that they have chased for their whole careers. Feige even stated publicly that they watch it before making every Marvel movie. Christopher Nolan also said that he patterned the structure and pacing of Batman Begins after Superman: The Movie.
Comic book movies would not have grown into the blockbusters they are today if this movie did not exist. It paved the way for everything after it. Christopher Reeve is an absolute legend in this role and nobody will ever be able to compare to his dual portrayals of both Clark Kent and Superman.
David Prowse who was the man in the Darth Vader suit in all 3 original Star Wars movies was an ex bodybuilder and personally trained Reeve for the role of Superman, helping him add nearly 30 pounds of muscle onto his 6'4" frame!
Reeve was also a trained glider pilot and performed his own flying often suspended on cables from a crane as high as 50 feet in the air. This movie and everyone involved in it was the real deal.
Thank you for reacting to this movie. It is one of my favorite films ever made. Hope to see you stick with the series.
Well said. All superhero movies done right come from this source.
30lbs of weight. not all muscle. that would be crazy
I agree with you,Superman:the Movie is the greatest super-hero film of all time. it's the grand daddy of super-hero films also. NUFF SAID.
I agree with you,Superman:the Movie is the greatest super-hero film of all time. it's the grand daddy of super-hero films also. NUFF SAID.
I agree with you,Superman:the Movie is the greatest super-hero film of all time. it's the grand daddy of super-hero films also. NUFF SAID.
I like how "out of time" the setting is. Clearly the late 20th century, it's set in present day (late 1970s), but the costumes (fedoras!) are very much of a piece with earlier eras, like the 1940s. It makes it even more like a comic book come to life.
Note on the cinematography, it was done by Englishman Geoffrey Unsworth, who also photographed "2001: a Space Odyssey" for Stanley Kubrick, one of the most visually impressive films ever made. On this movie, Margot Kidder was extremely self conscious about her looks and age compared to the god that was her co-star Christopher Reeve. To get her over this, the normally quiet and reserved Geoffrey Unsworth would demand complete silence on the soundstage as he set her lights, shouting "QUIET, I'm lighting The Lady." She said she'd never felt more beautiful in her entire life.
This film was historic in that it was the first real superhero film ever made. This movie was the prototype for every superhero movie to come along after. All the Marvel movies, all the Batman movies, they all owe their existence to the success of Superman The Movie.
I always thought Christopher Reeve had the hardest acting job in history. He had to turn a cartoon into a real person and boy did he ever. It's normal now to play fantasy characters, not then.
Amen!
I do not agree it was the first superhero film ever made. People who overlook the 1966 Batman feature with Adam West overlook the entire history of comic book superheroes.
@@reesebn38 Superman was one of the films that made it normal. The mid-to-late 1970s and 1980s were arguably the golden age of mainstream fantasy and science fiction films.
@@philliplozano7587 !975-85 was also the greatest period of comedy, Stage, album, tv, movies. All the best.
Greatest theme song ever. Totally fits the character forever.
He did save Hackensack. The missile he threw into space was the one heading towards the East Coast.
Ah yeah I think I briefly mentioned that in the full length reaction but I might have cut it out of this edit 😅
@@NoxSoSubtle Superman also went after the second missile after it struck California which explains why he was in San Francisco so fast when he saved the kids in the school bus.
Considering Metropolis is actually NYC, Hackensack is very close and would have been intercepting the rocket, not chasing after it over what looked like the Grand Canyon. Sup could have just redirect the Hackensack missile on his way to the West coast and make it on time.
NO WAY!!!!!! I just finished watching this movie! This is one of my all-time favorites!
Christopher Reeve WAS the ideal actor to play Superman. 6'4", he trained a lot to build up his muscles for the part, and he already had the superhero handsome looks. He was also a super nice guy, studied with Robin Williams who became his best friends. They were an odd couple, the tall, handsome Reeve and the kind of funny looking wildly talented Williams. On May 27, 1995, Reeve broke his neck when he was thrown from a horse during an equestrian competition in Culpeper, Virginia. He landed head first, shattering his first and second vertebrae. In fact, he was basically decapitated; the only thing that kept his skull close to his body, was his skin. He had fusion surgery during which his skull was attached to his spine again, but with the first two vertebrae crushed, he remained paralyzed from the neck down for the rest of his life, depending on a ventilator to breathe for him. In early October 2004, he was being treated for an infected pressure ulcer that was causing sepsis, a complication he had experienced many times before. On October 4, 2004, he spoke at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago on behalf of the institute's work; it was his last reported public appearance. On the night of October 9, 2004, Reeve went into cardiac arrest after receiving an antibiotic for the infection. He fell into a coma, and was taken to Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, New York. Eighteen hours later, on October 10, 2004, Reeve died at the age of 52. Such a sad ending of such a nice guy.
The one thing that people don't know is Chris, Robin and I think it was Billy Crystal were all together and great friends in Juilliard. They all made a pact that if something happened to one of them, the other two would provide and help as much as humanly possible. Robin and Billy kept that promise and helped Chris, his family, and his kids to the extreme
Saw at the theater in 78 and in my opinion there’s Christopher Reeve as Superman and then everyone else, thanks again!
I wish I could have seen it then. But I did get to see it a few years ago in a theater.
I did too. I remember how everyone in theatre looked at each other thinking we where watching the real Superman.
I saw Superman 2 in the theater at age 7, and I was hooked. Christopher Reeve forever
Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve were best friends. When Robin received the Cecil B Demille award, he dedicated it to the memory of Reeve. In his speech Robin said, "I miss you and may the flights of angels sing thee to thy rest sweet prince." Powerful ❤️
16:26 "Poor guy. I wish he would show more of _himself,_ a little bit. He's a _strong man._ Gotta get more _confidence_ in there. Show people what you're _made_ of."
I think it's safe to say he's got _plenty_ of confidence. _Superman_ has _plenty_ of confidence. But remember, he's playing a _part,_ here; a part that plays a key role in protecting his _identity._ He probably would not _hesitate_ to show more of the confidence he has, but he knows that, sooner or later, the world is going to _encounter_ Superman, and Superman can serve his intended purpose _so_ much better if they don't trace him back to _Clark._
"I fight for truth and justice, the American way." - Superman 1978
They want to change that saying in the comics taking out "the American way." Awsome review as always
@@Simplesource98 They have already actually.
@1984 is now. Yeah, the argument was that if he hailed from Kansas, he is technically American.
@1984 is now. Oh we are fine with the change. Just pointing out DC's views.
They call him the last son of Krypton, but Kandor and Kara exist.
@1984 is now. Again very true
I saw this in the theater as a kid. Loved it. When that music starts up, I still get chills. But I did notice the excessively slow parts even then.
Also, when Pa Kent keels over in the farmyard in that wide shot... I think that that was the first time I ever saw someone die. The long view and the quiet made it seem so real. It was very effecting. I still remember it over 40 years later.
I saw it in the theater as a 9 year old, and a little-known movie called "Star Wars" in 1977. We 70's kids were lucky.
"he's a strong man, got to get more confidence in there, show people what you're made of". Strong men don't need to show people anything, that's why they're strong. It's only the weak that has a need to show off.
This was such a treat! Superman is my 3rd favorite movie of all time (right after Rocky and Back to the Future).
I was 3 years old when Superman came out, yet I have a memory of going to the theater and my dad really wanting to see Superman, so my mom and dad went to see that and my grandmother took me to see Disney's Pinocchio which had been re-released to theaters at that time and I really wanted to see that. Because it was a lot shorter, Pinocchio finished first and I remember going into the theater showing Superman to find my dad and tell him we would be in the lobby when his movie was over. Funny how some memories just stick with you.
About 4 years later Superman was going to be shown for the first time on network TV and ABC wanted to make it an event so they added a whole bunch of deleted scenes to make the movie 4 hours long (with commercials) and showed it over 2 nights. The point where Lois completely falls out of the helicopter but before Superman catches her is where part 1 stops on a freeze frame and you get told to "tune in tomorrow for the conclusion". We had a Betamax vcr at the time and we recorded both parts on 2 different tapes. I watched that movie over and over and over so many times as a kid. Only, back then I found the Krypton scene to go on way too long and most of the origin stuff in part 1 to be boring so I ended up mostly just watching the second tape that started at the good part as far as I was concerned. I also hated the credits, how they just go on and on, and was happy I could fast forward through them.
Now though, I love the first part of the film! Some of my favorite scenes are there. And I love the credits! The way they come across the screen in 3D with John Williams' amazing score playing...it's a wonderful experience to take it all in. Also, as I got older I began to catch Superman on cable or I'd rent the VHS after our Betamax was no longer hooked up. It perplexed and vexed me that scenes I absolutely remembered were cut out of these versions. I didn't realize until years later that it was because the version I grew up watching was the edited for television version with all the extra scenes and footage added.
For example, sometimes it was footage that just added to a scene like when teenage Clark was running faster than the train, the little girl that sees him out the window is Lois Lane as a child. Not only that, but the actress playing her mother was Noel Neil who played Lois Lane in the George Reeves Superman TV series from the 50's.
Other times it was completely cut bits from the story. Like Lex Luthor kept some kind of pets in a pit in his lair. Lex would order Otis to "feed the babies" and Otis would plead with Luthor not to have to do it, that it was Miss Tessmacher's turn but Lex made him do it. You never saw the animals but you heard growls that sounded like it could be lions or tigers or something like that and they would completely devour in seconds the raw meat Otis would lower down to them. Then at the end of the movie, after Superman saves everyone from the missiles, the earthquake, and had spun himself around the Earth into a time warp to save Lois Lane...Lex has Miss Tessmacher tied up and ready to lower to "the babies" because he knows it was her that freed Superman from the Kryptonite. Lex has Otis lowering her down while he plays "You must have been a beautiful baby" on piano. Otis is crying and blubbering but doing what he's told. But then Superman crashes in, saves Miss Tessmacher and grabs Lex and Otis to bring them to that prison.
Eventually I hooked the old Betamax back up to transfer a lot of those old tapes to VHS, then in the 2000's I transferred a bunch of the VHS tapes to DVD. That 1982 recording of Superman made it through all the transfers and I still have it, I'm pleased to say.
They filmed Superman 1 and 2 mostly simultaneously, the three Kryptonians in the beginning are being set up for the sequel. The leader of the criminals is General Zod and the mirror prison thing Jor-El put them in is the Phamtom Zone. During filming the closer they got to the release date the more of a concern having the first film finished became, so Richard Donner concentrated on completing Superman 1 as time became a constraint.
Then Donner had a falling out with the producers and was replaced by Richard Lester as director for Superman II. However, Donner had already filmed close to 80% of Superman II and there is a rule that for a director to be credited as the director of a movie he has to have shot at least 51% of the movie. So new scenes were written for Lester to shoot as he completed the movie and when Superman II was theatrically released it was 51% the new scenes written plus the remaining scenes Donner hadn't completed all directed by Lester and 49% Donner's footage.
Then in the early 2000's Warner Bros. allowed Donner and assistants to release a Donner Cut of Superman II. Because so much time had passed, the actors had aged, and Christopher Reeve had then had his accident that paralyzed him, it was impossible to shoot the remaining footage they needed to finish Donner's version. So they used test footage and some of Lester's footage when they had to and did the best they could to get the movie as close as they could to the way Donner had originally envisioned he wanted Superman II to look.
Now I like both versions Superman II a lot, but I like The Donner Cut the most by far. However, my recommendation for anyone who has never seen any version of Superman II is to watch the theatrical version first. That way you will have seen the completely finished, polished, and produced film first. Then after you've given given yourself some time to digest the movie, go and watch The Donner Cut and that way you'll get the best idea of what they were trying to do.
But whatever version you decide to watch, I highly highly recommend watching Superman II. It's a bit more silly and corny and nonsensical, but there are some really great things in it too!
Superman III, I have a controversial opinion on...I love it! Not nearly as much as the first two, but I still love it. A couple of my favorite Superman moments of the entire franchise are in this movie. The thing is...they, or Richard Lester rather, who was back to direct, made it into a comedy... actually it is really like they made two movies...a Superman movie and a comedy movie starring Richard Pryor and then smashed them together. But I say if you can put yourself in the mindset that this movie is trying to be a whacky comedy and just go with it, it can be a lot of fun.
Supergirl is a terrible movie that makes no sense but I personally still like it. It's a guilty pleasure for me. The best part of the movie is the music. Jerry Goldsmith this time is doing the score and he does almost as wonderful a job for Supergirl as John Williams did for Superman. Mainly I like this movie for the music and because it shares continuity with the Christopher Reeve films. But it really is a bad movie. If you decide to watch it don't go in expecting it to be anything else.
_Sigh_ Superman IV: The Quest for Peace is absolutely the bottom of the barrel. It is terrible! But guess what? I still like it. I've been in love with seeing Christopher Reeve as Superman almost all my life. This was his last time in the suit and I can't not like any performance of Reeve as Superman. No matter what, it feels like a privilege to see him in the role. But the movie itself is horrendous.
Sorry for the long comment, I have a lot of history with this movie.
Best Regards!
Superman 4 was TERRIBLE.
omg that long ass fight scene where they just keep showing the same exact footage over and over and over and over again because they didn't have the budget (or whatever the reason) to film more.
Yeah, there's more. You are going to love Superman II. They were shot together and split into this and a quick sequel.
Villains telling the hero their plan is a staple. I feel it was particularly well done in Goldfinger. It's cat-and-mouse, like Lex said, to face the challenge of the century while pulling off the crime of the century. Christopher Reeve gives the most wholesome portrayal of a wholesome hero you can imagine. In my opinion, this and its sequel are the very best installments in modern Superman films. He was my favorite superhero from the comics from when I was a little kid.
Christopher Reeve will always be Superman. He knocked it out of the park and it's almost impossible to think of anyone else in the role. I do love Henry Cavil, unfortunately the scripts and directors have not been able to match his performance of the character, so those movies suffer. RIP Christopher Reeve, you will always be my hero.
Let's not forget this was in 1978 before ANY hero movies were even thought about. This one set the bar and Chris Reeve embodied the character like no one will ever be able to match. This film started it all while setting the bar beyond anything CGI can do. Perfect film.
Fun fact: A lot of this was filmed at Pinewood studios in England. Many of the actors in it are actually British affecting an American accent or dubbed over in post production. The Air-force One pilot who says "Just fly" was dubbed. This was very common and can be found in the Batman 1989 movie where a lot of the actors are also British including the thug who asks Batman "Who are you?" when he responds with his iconic line, "I'm Batman."
Ya, you've heard it before, It's John Williams!
Superman (1978) has, IMHO, the single greatest soundtrack in movie history.
@@thewab1974 I have 80+ John Williams Albums. Superman is the best.
Everyone gets a laugh out of him changing body position while flying, but as an awarding winning pilot Reeves knew what adjustments were needed to turn, invert, etc. Like he actually banks his body like a swimmer does in the water, like a plane in the air. It showed he was in control of his flying, not just a long for the ride. Like so many actors today or bad CGI flying
I'm Brazilian and SUPERMAN the movie (1978) for me is the best superhero movie of all time! I watched it at the cinema when I was a child and I still feel like a child today and I am enchanted by the action scenes and special effects! For me it will always be a wonderful and untouchable classic.
"He's nifty, you got to keep him" is the clever content that keeps me coming back.
Your laugh and smile ain't too shabby either. Plus that infectious positive attitude....mixed with the language of a part time sailor.
One of my favorite reaction channels. Thanks for the good content!
It was SO fun watching this with you!! My Dad took my brother, sister, and me to see this in the theater when I was 11 years old. We snuck in hoagies and iced tea, and I brought in a cassette tape recorder and recorded the audio of the whole thing. It was ... pure magic. I played that cassette for HOURS over and over at night for nearly a whole year. The wide-eyed wonder my Dad had at seeing the film made it even more special. His favorite superhero, LITERALLY came to life right out of the comics!! I wish I could have thanked the director Richard Donnor for what he did for us. He really made us believe a man could fly, and more than that ... he gave us Superman.
Great comment. With you in spirit on this one.
@@MrRezRising ❤
I love how the first scene of the first movie sets up the second movie. Kind of brilliant.
You were asking why Clark didn't reveal himself to Lois. There were two reasons for this. 1. At the time when the movie was made, the comics depicted Clark as someone who you would least suspect as someone who could ever be as brave and heroic as Superman. This changed in the early 1990's when Clark not only revealed himself to Lois as being Superman; but he proposed to her. And 2. In the Special Edition of this movie, there was a scene in the Fortress where Superman spoke to his father Jor-El about his heroics (saving Lois in the helicopter, rescuing Air Force One, etc.). Jor-El says that he must keep his secret identity as Clark Kent because a) He can't serve humanity "28 hours a day" and b) that if you ever dealt with an enemy, the only way to hurt you is by hurting the people you care for.
Check out the Special Edition of this film. It's got about 20 minutes of footage added.
I also remember in the old B&W Superman TV series, Clark kept his true identity secret as well.
Reeve was such a good actor. It's stunning, honestly, that Clark and Superman are played by the same man. Entire mannerisms, the way he walks, talks, everything.
As I understand it (from behind the scenes Star Wars stuff) movies were required to show credits at the start of the film. George Lucas received heavy fines for choosing to show his credits at the end of the film on Star Wars. Then he quit all the guilds and film associations because he didn’t want that issue with the second and third movie. Superman being around the same time shows how long it can take to show all the credits on a heavy “effects” film. For the time anyway.
People don't realize how Lucas was never a part of Hollywood. He was a complete independent filmmaker.
Yeah, and Lucas wanted Spielberg to direct Return of the Jedi, but the film association wouldn't allow Spielberg to do it because Lucas wasn't apart of them. ROTJ was great, but could you imagine if Spielberg directed it? The world was robbed forever of something amazing by people in a damn film association.
@@Dangersuit RotJ still turned out to be my favorite Star Wars movie but Steven Spielberg’s version would have been really cool
The thing about Superman that has been explored in comics for decades is the idea that Clark Kent is the real persona while Superman is the mask, unlike Batman whose Batman persona is real while Bruce Wayne is the mask.
Of course neither of them are all the way one way or the other. Clark is in-part an act, hamming up his true self with some bumbling and mannerisms. And Superman is not entirely an act. Bruce similarly is not always an act, such as when he attends a board meeting or gala with a steely resolve to use his status to achieve a good outcome for Gotham.
But you are right, for the most part Superman is actually Clark Kent's alter ego and the Bruce Wayne that the world sees is Batman's one.
32:15 your expression when he starts to fly around the Earth is priceless. HAHA.
Christopher Reeve is the Gold Standard for playing Clark Kent. Nobody apart from Lois would ever put 2 and 2 together and make the connection. I'm 45 now and this is still one of my favourite movies of all time....It always makes me happy,
I was the technical director for Christopher Reeve's power wheelchair after his accident on the horse.
I've always liked this movie, and I think you did a good job of reacting to it.
Awesome
The 12 year span of time was kind of like Kal-El was in stasis gaining all the knowledge necessary to become Superman. That's why he comes out in "modern" Metropolis still in a 1950's/1960's mindset. Golly, gee wiz, swell, etc. The beginning of the film was a nod to the fact the old comic book was being translated to a big, theatrical, wide-screen spectacle with, at the time, brand new special effects to make Superman fly.
I've seen this movie hundreds of times - I LOVED your reactions! It was like seeing it again for the first time through your eyes! Great video!
Glad you had fun with this one. Hope you watch 2. 1 & 2 are basically one movie. Fun as well whatever version you see. I miss the earlier films. The tech wasn’t there, so people had to depend on acting, ingenuity,and music to make a film work. Nothing against current stuff, and of course I saw this as a youngster. It seems like you get it. Nice work.
I remember seeing this in the late 80’s as a kid. There was something magical about it.
Superheroes and the actors who portray them come and go, but there'll never be another Christopher Reeve.
"All those powers and I couldn't even save him." Such a powerful line and really opens you up to Clark/Superman knowing he cannot save everyone. Also, the fact he went from saving plane of people to getting a little girls cat shows that Superman helps for even the smallest issues. :) Christopher Reeve was amazing man on and off set. He literally embodied Superman.
This is an absolutely wonderful film. I saw this film with a live orchestra performing the score with a screening at the Royal Albert Hall, London 2 days ago.
To me, Christopher Reeve had this special quality as Superman, that none of the other actors have been able to copy.
BLOWS THE OTHER "SUPERMAN" MOVIES FROM THE LAST 20 YEARS OR SO. OUT OF THE WATER.
Apparently Reeves was having difficulty playing 2 people. Ricard Donner helped him with some clarification essentially saying that Reeves is playing Superman who is pretending to be Clark Kent. Reeves was playing it as Kent pretending to be Superman.
Fantastic John Williams score, then again is anyone surprised? Great film composer.
31 years ago, I wrote 2 short stories. The first was about a superhero who can fly but is afraid of heights, so he has to fly 3 feet off the ground. The other is a villain who has the thirst of destruction, but he can't stand the sight of blood.
One of the most compelling scenes was left out, the "You are here for a reason.." .fatherly advice from Earth dad, Jonathan to a confused teenage Clark. Very moving
The thing where he changes with no visible changing is meant to portray just how fast he moves - it's not that he just flashes, he just moved so fast the eye can't follow. These days they do it with a combo of CG, slow-mo and running cameras at different speeds, but back then they didn't have those tools. IMO, this works just as well.
Agreed. It's a comic book story, anything goes.
This film was released in December 1978 and was immediately a huge hit. It was still playing in theaters more than 6 months later. I was 12 years old and I saw the film 7 or 8 times theatrically during that time (home video was only just beginning but was pretty expensive for most people, and movies took a long time to show up on television, sometimes years, so if you wanted to see a movie more than once, you had to see it in theaters or wait for years, if ever, for it to show up on TV).
I absolutely loved this film and even remember reading a paperback book, with some photos, about the making of it.
Other than some location photography in New York City (Metropolis), near Gallup, New Mexico (the desert scenes toward the end), and especially Alberta, Canada (all the Smallville, Kansas scenes, as well as the mountain scenes involving Luthor and his gang intercepting the Navy missiles), the film was shot on soundstages in England, primarily at Elstree Studios (where the Star Wars Original Trilogy and Stanley Kubrick’s THE SHINING (1980) were photographed) and Pinewood Studios (where many James Bond movies were shot, including on one massive stage that was the largest in the world at that time), as well as the backlots of those studios. The Golden Gate Bridge scene was a mix of miniatures and a huge recreation of a portion of the bridge on the Elstree backlot.
The beautiful cinematography was the work of legendary British cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, O.B.E., B.S.C., who died at age 64 in Paris shortly before the film was released, after a career lensing nearly 90 films, including 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) and CABARET (1972).
The More you were looking for from this movie is answered in the sequel which expands on Lois & Clark's story but brings more to the Superman story too.
You really need to watch Superman II, it's mandatory viewing now you've watched part one.
I used to rewatch this movie over and over and over as a kid. It was the closest thing to the comics I use to read. I even had a Superman encyclopedia. Christopher Reeves was awesome as Superman. Great reaction.
Reeve*
This was the first superhero movies that genuinly took itself seriously... it paved the way to what we have today.... I LOVE it....
I've seen this a million times but when he starts reversing time you said 'ya, but where would he be in this situation'....my mind exploded. Now I won't sleep for three days trying to figure out the complexities of quantum physics.
It's so easy to take this for granted now, but it was massively difficult to achieve at the time. And it was really the first time that people could really believe in the character - totally sold by the late Christopher Reeve. And, perhaps most important to its success in the context of a more adult 1970s audience, it's really a romance. The seriousness with which comic strip culture is taken today just wasn't a thing then.
My favorite part: Miss Tessmacher followed by Say, Jim. WOO! That’s a bad out-FIT! WOO!
I found that horribly racist. Black men at that time never dressed or sounded that way. Look at Barack Obama!
@@trhansen3244 It is. But hey, it’s was the ‘70’s. We’re all individuals and we’re not all Obama. Dude’s a pimp and I think it was playing on late 70’s blaxploitation, an era that was coming to an end. It’s messed up but I still love it and it’s still the coolest part of the movie. Woo!
@@davidbeck7615 I was just kidding. Obama is a schmuck.
I ❤️ This movie!!!!
I was 4 when this movie came out and watched it repeatedly on VHS. That helicopter scene is my favorite.
Rest In Peace Christopher Reeve.
What most reactors don't realize is that "Poem in her head" is the lyrics of the love theme for this movie. It was a big hit song at the time. Look up: CAN YOU READ MY MIND by Maureen McGovern.
I stood in line for an hour to see this at 17 when it came out. Before I left the theater I spent part of my allowance on a poster of Christopher as Superman. It went up on my bedroom wall across the room from Elvis. 😁
After watching movies like The Towering Inferno, Cleopatra, Ben Hur and Dr. Zhivago, etc we were used to longer, slower movies in the 70's. 🤷
This movie is fantastic.... the entire superhero movie industry we know today is because of this movie...
I hope you will watch Superman 2. If you do, make sure it's the theatrical cut. The Donner cut is an interesting experiment, but not a true sequel, and it might be kind of confusing . It's worth watching at some point, but not for the first time.
You should also check out the Supergirl movie from 1984. It was the first female superhero movie. Not terribly good, but interesting. I have a feeling it's why the latest Wonder Woman movie was called 1984.
Christopher Reeve practically invented flying acting. There were a couple of actors who played Superman before, but it was Chris Reeve who made it look smooth as butter. Holding hands with a god, indeed.
I love Lois Lane's head poem. I don't think the point was to be brilliant, it was just being honest. Lois is a journalist, she's not Shakespeare writing a sonnet. These are just the thoughts of an expressive person falling in love, albeit one with the urge to be poetic.
The whole reason for introducing the film with a curtain and a comic book was to acknowledge to the general audience that even in 1978, Superman had been an immense comic book, radio, television, and cinematic icon - and even the subject of a Broadway musical - for 40 years, a couple of generations. More importantly, it was recognizing a profoundly appealing symbol of America at its best ideals. I realize it may be lost on younger people who have always known a world with Superman as merely a media franchise, but the fact that he was born in the dark days of the Great Depression and on the eve of global war as an explicit symbol of hope is highly significant and meaningful. The filmmakers did not follow up on the reference because they knew the contemporary audience of the time would understand the intent at the outset through shared cultural knowledge.
Nox, this is the movie that was my first exposure to the Superman character, let alone DC comics. And this is the very same movie that made me believe that a man can fly. Christopher Reeve, rest his soul, was a brilliant actor and he is will always be the equivalent of the Superman character. And this one of the movies that helped put the superhero genre on the movie maps! Superman the movie, baby 😎
Yes definitely continue with your Superman journey
Christopher Reeve did such a magnificent job portraying Superman that everyone who did it afterward came up short to some extent and he really became a big star and identified with the role. Several comics that came out recently showed Superman being drawn to look like Christopher Reeve.
Miss Teshmacher's mother lived in Hackensack, New Jersey - he saved her when he launched the first missile into space. The model work for the flood was not by the model makers through the rest of the film, which is why its more obvious than the the other model work (that you couldn't tell were models, e.g. the bridge).
Everyone who watches this film now, having seen all the other superhero movies made since, says that it reminds them of some other superhero film - that's because every superhero movie was influenced by this one. Yes please at least watch Superman II (theatrical cut) since it is set up at the beginning of this one and is a great follow up.
I can't get over how brilliant that new word you coined is - Squeezed/Wedged = Squedged.
"Wow! Look at her she's all squedged in.."
I'm going to use this new word in conversation, and hope it catches on so it gets in the dictionary. It's just the perfect word, which means squeezed in, and wedged in.
Awesome! (Oh lovely review though)
The Superman comic was published in 1938. The worlds first and greatest super hero. This movie was the first of it's kind. It had never been done before. It is the foundation for every other super hero movie, and tv show to this day.
He did save Ms. Tesmacher's mother first when he sent the first missile into space, which is why he couldn't stop the other missile in time.
Hey Andy, You see parallels with other superhero characters like Spiderman and Batman. You have to understand Superman was the first superhero comic created (in the 1930s). So the alter ego, newspaper job, villain who tells you the whole plan because he thinks there's no way you could ever stop his diabolical genius all of these concepts came from this comic book series and it was brought into the movie.
Lee Falk's The Phantom emerged in 1936, first appearing in newspapers as a comic strip. According to google, Superman first appeared in Action Comics in 1938. The Superman comic series started in 1939. Another source claims that Superman was also featured in a newspaper comic strip (likely during the 30s) but no specific year is given. Apparently, the Superman character was created in 1934.
9:43 YES WATCH IT! Smallville was FIRE 🔥 You’ll love that show
3:49 "That's so cool looking. Oh my god."
Imagine how impressive it was when it first appeared on the big screen.
Another actor who portrayed Superman previously appears in the movie, Kirk Alyn played Superman in the 1948 serial "Atom Man vs. Superman." He was the man sitting in the train window as a young Clark Kent runs by. The woman opposite Alyn was Phyllis Coates who played Lois Lane in another Superman serial "Superman and the Mole Men," and the first season of the 1952 TV series "The Adventures of Superman."
Maybe missed: Perry White: "Lois,Clark Kent may seem like a mild mannered reporter,he has a snappy,punch line and respect for this editor and he is in my opinion 40 years in the business the fastest typest I've ever seen!"
that "Poem" in her head is the spoken part of that music track.
I loved his take on Clark Kent/ Superman. RIP Christopher Reeve. Great film.
It's been suggested by many, and I adhere to it, that the best special effect in this movie is the moment Christopher Reeve switches from Clark to Superman, in Lois' apartment, simply by taking his glasses off and straightening his back.
Superman’s comic backstory is very rich in detail and mythology. No one movie can capture his decades of history. Absolutely watch Superman II. It was filmed back-to-back with Superman I, but the studio fired director Richard Donner before he could complete the second story.
Really cool that you did a reaction to this movie. There are not many that have reacted to it. Glad you enjoyed it. Jackie Cooper was an awesome Perry White.(Clarks boss and was a child actor in the original Little Rascals )
He went into directing as well. One of the films was the made for TV movie The Night they Saved Christmas. Its one of my favorite movies I watch every Christmas.
Hey Nox 👋😊 as a Huge Superman fan,and Christopher Reeve fan,and Who Had the Privilege of Actually Meeting Christopher in Person ,I have to say,Your Reaction to Superman The Movie is the Purest and Most Beautiful Reaction I have Ever Seen for Christopher Reeve's Portrayal of Superman, Thank You so Much for Sharing Your Reaction Beautiful,Live Long and Prosper 🖖😊 Love,Light and Peace
This is the first ever Superman movie 1978, not TV Show, though, there was a TV Show in the 60s and a radio show... When you grab your left arm, like Jonathan Kent did, you're suffering a heart attack, not a stroke. Great reaction. :)
When Krypton blew up, the radiation changed the rubble left over from the planet's destruction into Kryptonite.
Kryptonians don't actually age slower than humans (at least not in the original comics). It's just that it's theorized that, the closer you get towards the speed of light during space travel, the slower you age. If you've seen Planet of the Apes, Charlton Heston talks about how everyone they knew on Earth would be dead by now. Also, when Ripley returns to Earth in Aliens, they touch on the same thing when she finds out her daughter has grown up and died of old age while she was in space.
The poem in Lois' head was actually supposed to be sung as the movie's love theme; it was supposed to be sung by a singer named Maureen McGovern (and it was featured on her own album). For some reason, the producers wanted Lois to recite it rather than have it sung in the background, and I heard the director hated the idea. I agree with the director. Besides being cheesy, it's misleading, because Superman never had the power to read minds. Also, in the comics, he couldn't just make his suit appear out of nowhere. I hate that part; it was lazy storytelling. But he can move at super speed, so I suppose you could say he changed clothes so fast, you couldn't actually see it. In the comics, he couldn't reverse time either; he could use his speed to travel through time, but not reverse the flow of time. So I didn't like that part of the move much either. But a lot of the older super hero movies took a lot of liberties, so I chalk it up to that.
You were constantly looking at your camera during the opening credits, and you missed when it said "Music by John Williams" The same composer for Jaws, the Star Wars movies, the Indiana Jones movies. Hope that explains why the epic score sounded familiar.
He also did the score for the original tv series Lost in Space. His name was Johnny Williams then.
Thank Superman for giving us the live action superhero movies and setting the bar very high for movies to come.
Nice reactions to the original Superman film, Eidig!!!🎬👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 Yeah, for 1978 these were very advanced special effects that ate a good portion of the budget. The selling point was Superman flying, everything else was secondary. The budget was $55 million, which translates to about $246 million today with inflation. That is the price for a high end superhero movie of today. Superman II is a good film. After that, they go down hill a bit.
Hi. Great reaction. Tall and skinny Chris Reeve was a very dedicated actor and went to the gym to build up his physique. He believed in constantly staying in character; Margot Kidder wanted him to lighten up and the pair bickered A LOT. When the cameras went on they were in love, of course. I’m looking forward to your reaction to Superman II.
"I wish they had given us, Clark making the decision to become Superman"
They made an Awesome Tv show about that journey called Smallville. It ran for 10 years
John Williams does the music of Superman, the same orchestra did the Star Wars music. so the music is worth the value of the Movie itself.
The Theme Song Alone is worth the price of admission, TO THIS DAY they have never topped that Theme song. Never.
Christopher Reeve always seemed like such an amazingly nice and decent person before and after his accident. He truly was a Superman and will forever be my favorite to play the character.
Jackie Cooper (editor White of the Daily Planet) was a famous child star who managed to transition to adult roles. He was even nominated for an Academy Award for best actor at age 9.
This movie started the whole super hero genre. Batman, the x-men, iron man.
It’s amazing to meet you through this Kind of RUclips vid, seeing you watching our favorite Movie. We can See how Great you are, Smart, emotional. You have my 👍.
Its a bit cheezy now but in 1978 it was awesome:) the slogan for the movie was 'you will believe a man can fly'..
Basically, to save Lois, Superman flies faster than the speed of light, going back in time just enough to give him a few more minutes to get to her. At least that's how I remembered it. He used to do this kind of thing all the time in comics.
so many good points great review in the end.