Superman (1978)

His Review:

When Jar-El (Marlon Brando) knows his planet Krypton is dying, he sends his only son, Kal-El (Christopher Reeves) to planet Earth to survive.  He is taken in by the Kents, an older farming couple who live in Smallville and name him Clark.  As Clark grows up, he discovers he has special powers that no human has such as super speed, the ability to fly and x-ray vision.  As an adult, Clark moves to Metropolis and gets a job as a journalist at the Daily Planet where he meets Lois Lane (Margot Kidder).  Lois is the head reporter who breaks the huge story of a new hero named Superman who saved her life.  Clark wants Lois to notice him, but she is in love with Superman, and doesn’t know they are the same person!  As Superman becomes more and more popular, criminal mastermind Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) plots to find a way to kill Superman and take over the world.

Directed by Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon, X-Men, Maverick), Superman was the first of it’s kind to put a comic book hero on the big screen in such a big way.  It may seem puny compared to the last 12 years of comic book hero movies since X-Men came out in 2000, but you have to remember that Superman was made in 1978.  As a movie watcher, at times I do think Superman is cheesy and the special effects are laughable, but for that time, they were top of the line and some of the best.  Christopher Reeves was cast perfectly as Superman and he does the Clark Kent buffoon role great as well.  Gene Hackman is also cast perfectly as Lex Luthor, the bad guy who can charm better than anyone.  The feel of the film is right out of the comics and blends action, adventure and comedy together in a nice package. Co-starring Ned Beatty and Jackie Cooper.

8/10 Stars – It suffers from being a “classic” to all the other big and loud heroes of today, but still a fun enjoyable adventure.

Click below for links to IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078346/

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/superman_the_movie/