from digitalbits:
Also today, there are online reports from various Superman-themed websites (including Superman Cinema) that Warner Bros. and producer Ilya Salkind have finally negotiated a deal for the release of director Richard Donner's original unused footage from Superman II. This would allow for the creation of a long-awaited Superman II: Director's Cut that would be closer to the film Donner was crafting before the film was taken away from him by the studio back in 1979 and given to replacement director Richard Lester. Donner, as many of you know, also directed the original Superman: The Movie (the two films were shot, for the most part, simultaneously). The idea behind all of this, of course, is that Warner wants to release new DVD special editions of Superman II, Superman III and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace in conjunction with the theatrical or DVD debut of Bryan Singer's currently in production Superman Returns. The new film is expected to hit theaters in June 2006.
We've got our sources checking on both of these stories, and we'll let you know when we're able to confirm them.
Stay tuned...
I actually liked Superman 2 quite a bit... though havent seen it in years... but remember liking it more than part 1....
does anybody know what exactly happened there?
Superman 2 DC?
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Eric Paddon
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AndyDursin
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I'm going to be thrilled to see Brando's footage -- though I thought Bryan Singer had gotten the clearance to use it in SUPERMAN RETURNS?
It's simple Roman: Donner was axed shortly after SUPERMAN finished filming. He did film numerous scenes in SUPERMAN II (mainly those with Gene Hackman) -- you can see the discrepencies between Donner and Lester's footage via the length of Margot Kidder's hair (it changes at times in the same scene!). Richard Lester had been supervising SUPERMAN (uncredited) as a line producer and liason between Donner and the Salkinds, whose relationship soured as the original film's production progressed, and when Donner departed, Lester took over.
I have very mixed thoughts about this. The Superman Cinema website is somewhat naive in their criticism of SUPERMAN II. What they want to see happen with a Donner's "Director's Cut" ISN'T possible because he never completed the film. Typically, they blame Richard Lester for all the movie's problems and laud Donner for everything good about the movie. Somehow I don't see it in those strictly black-and-white terms, and I doubt it's as simple as they describe.
I'd LOVE to see all the cut footage which has been shown in US and international TV versions of the film -- some of Hackman's best scenes were excised -- but I have a very strong objection to Richard Donner going into a movie where he was fired and putting his "vision" back together. Frankly it's not his movie -- it wasn't his production -- and you can't change the fact that Donner was shown the door by the Salkinds.
You can argue whether or not that should have happened, but I have a strong artistic objection to this, IF it comes to pass (which I doubt). Many scenes Donner WANTED to shoot didn't happen -- so it's never, no matter what they do, ever going to be viewed as a "DIRECTOR'S Cut."
More likely we'll see a much better looking and sounding DVD (the current DVD's soundtrack for SUPERMAN II is absolutely HORRIBLE), with either restored footage or at least all those deleted scenes in a supplement.
I'm all for an EXPANDED Cut of the movie, but the people who keep pushing for this DIRECTOR'S Cut don't really know the whole story.
Then again, I'm still annoyed they didn't include all the deleted footage from SUPERMAN in that DVD -- and that Donner chose to restore some of the footage in his Director's Cut that he did (the scene with Superman entering Lex Luthor's lair is, as Tom Mankiewicz points out in the commentary, needless and slows the movie down).
It's simple Roman: Donner was axed shortly after SUPERMAN finished filming. He did film numerous scenes in SUPERMAN II (mainly those with Gene Hackman) -- you can see the discrepencies between Donner and Lester's footage via the length of Margot Kidder's hair (it changes at times in the same scene!). Richard Lester had been supervising SUPERMAN (uncredited) as a line producer and liason between Donner and the Salkinds, whose relationship soured as the original film's production progressed, and when Donner departed, Lester took over.
I have very mixed thoughts about this. The Superman Cinema website is somewhat naive in their criticism of SUPERMAN II. What they want to see happen with a Donner's "Director's Cut" ISN'T possible because he never completed the film. Typically, they blame Richard Lester for all the movie's problems and laud Donner for everything good about the movie. Somehow I don't see it in those strictly black-and-white terms, and I doubt it's as simple as they describe.
I'd LOVE to see all the cut footage which has been shown in US and international TV versions of the film -- some of Hackman's best scenes were excised -- but I have a very strong objection to Richard Donner going into a movie where he was fired and putting his "vision" back together. Frankly it's not his movie -- it wasn't his production -- and you can't change the fact that Donner was shown the door by the Salkinds.
You can argue whether or not that should have happened, but I have a strong artistic objection to this, IF it comes to pass (which I doubt). Many scenes Donner WANTED to shoot didn't happen -- so it's never, no matter what they do, ever going to be viewed as a "DIRECTOR'S Cut."
More likely we'll see a much better looking and sounding DVD (the current DVD's soundtrack for SUPERMAN II is absolutely HORRIBLE), with either restored footage or at least all those deleted scenes in a supplement.
I'm all for an EXPANDED Cut of the movie, but the people who keep pushing for this DIRECTOR'S Cut don't really know the whole story.
Then again, I'm still annoyed they didn't include all the deleted footage from SUPERMAN in that DVD -- and that Donner chose to restore some of the footage in his Director's Cut that he did (the scene with Superman entering Lex Luthor's lair is, as Tom Mankiewicz points out in the commentary, needless and slows the movie down).
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AndyDursin
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I'm excited that we'll see a new DVD of SUPERMAN II. The current DVD sounds awful and the transfer isn't that hot. Whatever they do with the restored footage, there's no question that there's PLENTY of it to use one way or another.
SUPERMAN III, which I plead guilty to enjoying, has plenty of extra scenes in its TV version that are worth watching (opening credits included), so that ought to be OK. I'd even be up for SUPERMAN IV, as much as I can't stand the movie, since plenty of material was left on the cutting room floor -- much of it uncompleted as far as I know.
SUPERMAN III, which I plead guilty to enjoying, has plenty of extra scenes in its TV version that are worth watching (opening credits included), so that ought to be OK. I'd even be up for SUPERMAN IV, as much as I can't stand the movie, since plenty of material was left on the cutting room floor -- much of it uncompleted as far as I know.
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Eric Paddon
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The one Brando scene I would so much love to see back in the movie is when Clark come back to the ruined Fortress to try and get his powers back and Jor-El appears to him and finally does so with a long lecture beforehand about how he'd anticipated this moment. I've read the script for the scene and it's quite powerful, bringing full circle that "Son becomes the Father" dialogue he utters at the beginning of the first film. And then, the moment of him restoring Clark's powers has him walking out to touch him, and this marked the only time that Christopher Reeve and Marlon Brando had an actual scene together on-set, as opposed to Reeve talking to a pre-filmed image from before.