Superman III 4K UHD (1983)

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by steev210

I wish Warner would also release SUPERMAN RETURNS with a new scan from the OCN with an HDR pass. That 2006 master is really starting to show its age.

There is no OCN because most of Superman Returns was shot digitally on the Panavision Genesis HD Camera, with a final output resolution of 1920X1080.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by ravenus

There is no OCN because most of Superman Returns was shot digitally on the Panavision Genesis HD Camera, with a final output resolution of 1920X1080.

That's what makes the notion of a "new DI" somewhat strange to me, to change tack for a second, as it was literally shot 1080p as you say. Nothing doing. But as long as the digital source master is meaty enough then there should be plenty there for HDR to exploit, the Genesis-shot Predators came along a few years later but that looks damned good on UHD IMO. I think SR could end up being a fabulous UHD but sadly it looks like Warners are washing their hands of it.

[jess1581]

Originally Posted by ravenus

There is no OCN because most of Superman Returns was shot digitally on the Panavision Genesis HD Camera, with a final output resolution of 1920X1080.

Which is unfortunate. You think an upscale could even do it any favors?

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by jess1581

Which is unfortunate. You think an upscale could even do it any favors?

Have a look at the Genesis-shot Predators on UHD and decide for yourself.

[ProfXtacy]

The Donner Cut is more of curiosity than anything as the ending doesn’t work because it’s the same ending as Superman The Movie - turning back the world. It’s something that really doesn’t make much sense (although we are buying into the idea of an alien whose body stores solar power which translates to super powers, but hey ho)_ I tend to think of it more as Superman flies fast enough to break the time barrier and go into the past to rectify all of the problems and what we see on screen is just a very simplified visual representation.

Superman IV has some nice ideas and a few nice scenes but they are ruined by cheap special effects, the annoying Lenny Luthor, Mariel Hemingway’s character being able to breathe in space and repair the Great Wall of China vision.

I would hope we will also get Superman Returns in 4K. Despite some serious issues with Superman being portrayed as a stalker and the Superman / Lois relationship (the comics do that so much better) - I do like Brandon Routh as Superman and you felt like he was channelling Christopher Reeve who will always be the best Superman.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

The Donner Cut is more of curiosity than anything as the ending doesn’t work because it’s the same ending as Superman The Movie - turning back the world.

It really is a blueprint of a film and not just because of the climax. If he had been given the chance to come back for S2, I'm sure he and his team would have thought of a different climax. But there are a lot of pacing and other problems with the Donner version he didn't have enough of his own footage for a complete film. People complain about how Lester put in cheap humor, but the Donner cut includes a scene where Miss Tessmacher is looking for the loo flush in the Fortress of Solitude, classy stuff. The use of audition footage and inserts is jarring. But the good bits with Brando, and the finale

[Show spoiler]where Supes burns down the FoS

make for a grand arc. The film could have ended right there.

Superman IV has some nice ideas and a few nice scenes but they are ruined by cheap special effects, the annoying Lenny Luthor, Mariel Hemingway’s character being able to breathe in space and repair the Great Wall of China vision.

Yeah, Superman IV had some nice potential to show him as a global hero, but there were serious lapses in the execution no thanks to the Cannon guys literally halving the budget shortly before it went into production. I also don't think it would benefit from a longer DC because at least some of the footage, including the previous version of Nuclear Man, is just embarrassing.

Despite some serious issues with Superman being portrayed as a stalker and the Superman / Lois relationship (the comics do that so much better) - I do like Brandon Routh as Superman and you felt like he was channelling Christopher Reeve who will always be the best Superman.

The Lois-Supes-Clark equation here was quite strange. How come this woman or anyone else never wonder why S-dude and Clark were away for exactly the same amount of time? Why can Clark just waltz into the office after a 5 year hiatus and find his old job waiting for him? It tries too hard to reference the first film, right down to the villain plotting an similar real estate swindle. Routh was cast for his ability to resemble Reeve's performance, and he does good even if he doesn't quite exude the same level of charm. What bothered me was that there's never any growth in the relation between Lois and Clark. Aren't they friends, doesn't the passage of time bring any change for them - Clark is still defined as a klutzy nobody she barely regards. I feel the film would have really benefited from a warmer interaction between them.

[ProfXtacy]

Originally Posted by ravenus

The Lois-Supes-Clark equation here was quite strange. How come this woman or anyone else never wonder why S-dude and Clark were away for exactly the same amount of time? Why can Clark just waltz into the office after a 5 year hiatus and find his old job waiting for him?

They had this problem in the comics with a couple of storylines, the Exile in Space and the Death and Return storyline. With the exile story they had the Matrix character (a shapeshifter) who was the Supergirl at the time impersonating Clark if I remember correctly. With the death and return they claimed Clark had been buried under the rubble during Doomsday’s attack and had Matrix impersonate Clark when Superman rescued ‘him’. You would think people would be suspicious when both Superman and Clark returned at the same time with long hair. Of course Lois knew Clark was Superman by that time.

Not really an issue now because the world knows that Superman and Clark are the same person. Unless DC have retconned that in the last couple of years. It can be hard to keep up with DC Continuity!

[Torgon]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

The Donner Cut is more of curiosity than anything as the ending doesn’t work because it’s the same ending as Superman The Movie - turning back the world.

Well, that wasn't quite the intention. Superman the Movie would not have had the same ending as the Donner Cut because that was not the original ending for STM. It was supposed to be a cliffhanger not the reversal of time ending that we got; they didn't want a cliffhanger if the movie failed at the box office. Both movies were shot simultaneously to save money but there were issues and Donner was fired before finishing filming of part II. Part two's ending was to be the reversal of time to fix what the villains destroyed.

[ProfXtacy]

Originally Posted by Torgon

Well, that wasn't quite the intention. Superman the Movie would not have had the same ending as the Donner Cut because that was not the original ending for STM. It was supposed to be a cliffhanger not the reversal of time ending that we got; they didn't want a cliffhanger if the movie failed at the box office. Both movies were shot simultaneously to save money but there were issues and Donner was fired before finishing filming of part II. Part two's ending was to be the reversal of time to fix what the villains destroyed.

I know that - the point I was making was that it doesn’t work anymore after they used that ending for the first film.

[Torgon]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

I know that - the point I was making was that it doesn’t work anymore after they used that ending for the first film.

Yeah. To make it work they need a Superman the Movie Donner Cut. I think he was trying to make the beginning of part II a new ending of part I. You’d have to cut off the end of part I to make it fit properly but we didn’t get that option. Just have to ignore the last part.

[The Watcher 69]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

I know that - the point I was making was that it doesn’t work anymore after they used that ending for the first film.

As you say, it needs to be viewed as a curiosity, with the knowledge that the plans changed at the time.

I know at least one person who didn't view it from that perspective and thought Donner was lazily using the same plot device again!

[Hardback247]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

The Donner Cut is more of curiosity than anything as the ending doesn’t work because it’s the same ending as Superman The Movie - turning back the world. It’s something that really doesn’t make much sense (although we are buying into the idea of an alien whose body stores solar power which translates to super powers, but hey ho)_ I tend to think of it more as Superman flies fast enough to break the time barrier and go into the past to rectify all of the problems and what we see on screen is just a very simplified visual representation.

Probably the best way to watch Superman II, then, is through a "best of both worlds" fan edit.

[Robbie The Robot]

Superman III rocks! It has some sweet stuff with Lara, bad Superman and a killer computer!!!!! Plus the scene with Richard Pryor getting the security guy drunk to break into the computer with the joint access cards is just total class!

Superman needed fun at that point. As we see headlines now of Henry donning the cape again wanting the next movie to be inspiring. III was a reaction to world politics and emerging technology.

At the end of the day it is goofy loveable fun well made and way more entertaining for me than any current cape movie.

Superman III rocks and anyone that doesn’t agree can fux off!

There I said it!

[ProfXtacy]

Originally Posted by Robbie The Robot

Superman III rocks! It has some sweet stuff with Lara, bad Superman and a killer computer!!!!!

You mean Lana, it was Superman II that had some sweet stuff with Lara.

[mar3o]

Can we please finally get the extended TV cut with all the additional scenes? Some of those scenes and extensions were quite good and that's how many of us grew up watching it. I can't stand the theatrical cut with so many scenes cut short and even the opening titles trashed.

[ProfXtacy]

It was in many ways the biggest problem with Donner’s Superman because it essentially made Superman a god. That was one of DC’s own biggest criticisms of the character preceding Crisis and the John Byrne reboot, that he was too powerful, able to move planets with barely a shrug. I’d never read a lot of DC’s comics before Crisis and I came on board in the late 80’s with the Batman movie (although I’d grown up with the Superman films), but I really got into comics again with the reworkings of characters like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman after the Crisis.

[Gizz]

Love Superman II so that is a day one pick up. Superman III I liked. Superman IV is all right in parts. However, Superman Returns I was not a fan of however hope it comes out for the fans. I was just bored by it. Not seen it since the days of DVD.

[ProfXtacy]

I would like to see Supergirl too, I know it’s not well loved by many but Helen Slater was the perfect Supergirl.

[DR Herbert West]

Originally Posted by ProfXtacy

I would like to see Supergirl too

Ditto.

[The Watcher 69]

Reeve Superman's best power: