Donner's SUPERMAN II: First Clips Online

[AndyDursin]

First thoughts -- and you will need Windows Media Player (hit PLAY if it doesn't automatically start up when the clips begin to load):
http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=co ... &Itemid=38

-Call me crazy but I can fully understand reshooting Lois falling out the window trying to prove Clark is Superman. That scene is just too over the top for me, too comical. We'll have to see how it fits in the context of the movie overall, but right off the bat I can totally understand the need to re-shoot that. I'm guessing the Lester version is more dramatic by comparison, showing Clark WANTING to save Lois but feeling the need to guard his identity at the same time. That's something, I'm assuming, we don't see out of the Donner edit of that sequence.

-Weird to see all sorts of Daily Planet footage that looks just like SUPERMAN I (no surprise obviously since it's Donner's). Almost looks like outtake footage from the TV version we haven't seen before!

-Margot Kidder seems a little over the top as well in these scenes.

-Ken Thorne's music might all have been rearranged Williams cues but the music editing of Williams' actual score is HORRIBLE in those clips, especially the fight scene. I hope the music editing isn't from the final assembly of this cut, because what's there is pretty awful.

-We're getting Brando's footage this time, right??

-Anybody know exactly what was left for Donner to finish before he was fired? How much Lester II will be in this?

Anyway despite my reservations this is going to be thrilling to see -- any footage from the "real" Superman IMO (Reeve that is) that we haven't seen before is grounds for celebration.

[Paul MacLean]

Lois jumping into a river (and Clark trying to hide his "super" abilities) is definitely more dramatic than Lois jumping out a window. Jumping into a river is also a more plausible risk for her character to take.

Donner's fight with the villains is a little awkward, but I think Superman smashing into Lady Liberty's torch is a little more dramatic than General Zod getting hurled into a Coca-Cola sign.

But I always felt Superman II was little too silly. The guy on the roller-skates, the kid taking about a half hour falling into Niagra falls, Superman ensnaring Zod with a giant vinyl Superman emblem, etc. And Superman having sex just makes my skin crawl. Regardless of whether these were Donner or Lester scenes (and I've liked the other films by both directors) they were just too goofy for me.

So far, the only Superman movie I really like is Superman: The Movie...but I will watch Superman III next time I'm in Rhode Island, Andy!


Paul

[DavidBanner]

I believe the clips released so far are more of a work in progress than anything else. I also understand that after saying he wasn't going to have anything to do with the recut, Donner saw footage and began giving a bunch of notes to Michael Thau. So this will be more of what Donner had in mind when we finally get the DVD in November.

Donner had shot a little more than 70% of the film at the time they stopped the simultaneous shooting of I & II. It might be even more than that but I doubt it. He shot all the Marlon Brando scenes (which WILL be on this DVD, finally), all the Daily Planet scenes for his version, all the Gene Hackman scenes, all the Fortress scenes and the moon sequence, as well as a ton of fighting material and the Diner material.

When the Salkinds fired Donner, Richard Lester then reworked the film, which was rewritten to his sensibilities. He then shot the Niagra Falls material and the villains' takeover of "East Houston", as well as the new Eiffel Tower opening. He also reshot material at the Fortress and the Daily Planet, and added the new opening and the incidental Planet scenes. Since the Salkinds didn't want to pay Brando any more than they already had, Lester reshot the material Brando had done with an ND Kryptonian elder (the "Trees" bit) and with Susannah York. The crucial repowering scene with Brando was completely omitted. The fight scenes at Metropolis were almost completely refilmed, although by this point it appears that they were starting to run out of funds because you can easily see the backdrop on the soundstage, and the shots of the cars flying in the wind are obviously miniatures. It should be noted that Margot Kidder was openly unhappy about working this way, and that Gene Hackman refused to return to reshoot anything or loop any new dialogue. Because of this, a body double was used for some shots and a soundalike was used to throw in some new dialogue here and there. As a result of the reshoots, Lester could honestly say that over 50% or 60% of the released film was directed by him, and therefore he got a solo credit on the film. We wouldn't see a true Richard Lester Superman film until III came out...

I wouldn't judge these new clips harshly - wait until you actually see the DVD. There will certainly be some issues - some scenes were never completed, and the sound will likely be unsweetened, meaning that, for example, Ursa's voice will be a little higher pitched.

I expect that they will use a minimal portion of Richard Lester footage to fill in the areas Donner couldn't finish - Niagra Falls, East Houston, etc - but that this will constitute just over a quarter of the film, as per Donner's original intentions.