sum1

Been rewatching the old Superman films. Out of the male DC characters I know, Superman is the one I like most, even if he's is clunky, old-fashioned and seriously screwed up in design. I mean Kryptonite? Pleeeease.

The classic Christopher Reeve Superman films are painfully old-fashioned, not just because of when they came out, but also because that's how DC is. But they benefit from good casting for the main role. Christopher Reeve really is good in the role (and btw, he had both Irish Catholic and Anglo-Irish Protestant in his ancestry). The films could do with taking their subject matter more seriously, but they're enjoyable enough and quite energetic. Not so keen on some of the other casting though, or the writing that goes with it. Take film 1, why does Lex Luthor have to be played as a joke? Gene Hackman is bloody annoying in the role. Ned Beatty as Otis, Luthor's bumbling sidekick, is painful in the extreme. And Luthor's female companion, Miss Teschmacher, isn't much better. Margot Kiidder as Lois Lane has a certain amount of quirky charm, but that's outweighed by how annoyng she can be. And not just when she's screaming like an idiot. The very way she talks is annoying. And her general manner. Lois is played as too much of a goofy comedic character. Kate Bosworth and Amy Adams were both much better in the role.

The second film has great villains in the rogue Kryptonians General Zod, Ursa and Non, but it also has the ridiciulous notion that Superman can't be with a mortal woman unless he ditches his powers. Luckily most Superman films and shows since have dumped that nonsense. There's an endless list of stories that display humanity's terrible hangups about sex and relationships, from the Star Wars Prequels ("no attachments") to bloody chaste Galahad going after the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. I'm rather sick of it.

Film 3 is way too much a silly comedy, but I do like Richad Pryor, and it has some good scenes, such as Superman fighting Clarke Kent and the whole Rogue Superman sequence. It's got a 4.9 rating on IMDB, which is usually saved for total crap, and I can see why. Still, I've got a nostalgic attachment to it from my '80s viewing.

I haven't rewatched the 4th film. I'll get get around to that eventualy, but I'm not rushing. I remember it as beyond terrible and it's widely considered one of the worst films of all time.