Superman (1978 film)
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Superman (also known as Superman: The Movie) is a 1978 superhero film based on the fictional DC Comics character Superman. Richard Donner directed the film, which stars Christopher Reeve as Superman, as well as Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Marlon Brando, Ned Beatty, Valerie Perrine, Glenn Ford and Jackie Cooper. The film depicts the origin story of the character from being infant Kal-El of Krypton, and then being rocketed to Smallville by Jor-El. There he is discovered by good-natured farmers who raise him to be an honest and faithful teenager, an aspect that will help him in future years. In his wake, he fulfills his destiny at the Fortress of Solitude, discovering his past and knowing what he specifically is to do on Earth. He takes up the guise of mild mannered reporter Clark Kent and falls in love with fellow reporter Lois Lane, though to make conflicts even more is the villainous Lex Luthor, who sets a dire plot that will ultimately face consequences for The Last Son of Krypton.
The film was initially conceived as far back as 1973 by Alexander Salkind, his son Ilya and fellow partner Pierre Spengler. The project went through various directors and scripts by Mario Puzo, David Newman and wife Leslie, and Robert Benton before given the directorial job to Donner. Donner in turn, brought in Tom Mankiewicz to make changes as a means to what he calls, "respect the character, not do a straight face parody." Due to Puzo's original 500 plus page script, it was decided to shoot Superman and Superman II simultaneously. Locations during the shoot included Shepperton Studios, Canada, New York City and New Mexico. Due to the film's excessive budget, tensions rose between Donner and the Salkinds, to which it was decided to finish filming Superman while Superman II was already 80% finished. This would eventually give birth to Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut.
Superman was released to positive reviews and a box office success. Some critics found analogies similar to Jesus, which Mankiewicz claims were set purposely as he himself finds the character to be a symbol of Christ. It was this film that sparked and inspired the birth of comic book movies.
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[edit] Plot
On the planet Krypton, the Council sentences three insurrectionists, General Zod, Ursa and Non, to isolation in the Phantom Zone. Later, believing that the planet will shortly explode, Jor-El launches a spacecraft containing his infant son, Kal-El towards Earth, a distant planet with a suitable atmosphere, and where his dense molecular structure will give him superhuman powers. Moments after launch, Jor-El's prediction comes true: Krypton is destroyed.
The ship crashes in an American farming town, Smallville, where little Kal-El is found by Jonathan and wife Martha Kent and raised as their own son, Clark. Eighteen Earth years later, when Clark learns the truth about his heritage, he leaves the homestead and heads to the Arctic, where a vision of Jor-El appears before him, explaining his responsibilities on his adoptive planet. More years pass, and Clark Kent finds a job at the Daily Planet in Metropolis, where he meets and develops a crush upon fellow reporter Lois Lane, whom he later rescues from a helicopter accident after switching his street clothes and glasses for a costume bearing his father's symbol.
Later, he visits her at home, takes her for a flight over the city and allows her to interview him for a newspaper article in which she names him 'Superman.' Meanwhile, criminal genius Lex Luthor diverts two nuclear rockets from a missile testing site, one to Hackensack, New Jersey, the other to the San Andreas fault line. The latter, he hopes will knock California into the sea, increasing the value of his real estate on what would become the new West Coast. To stop Superman from preventing the disaster, Luthor lures him to his underground hideaway, where he exposes him to Kryptonite, the only substance known to cause him harm.
Superman escapes, in time to prevent the first impact but too late to stop the second; the missile explodes, and as a consequence, Lois Lane is killed. Unable to cope with her death, Superman ignores his father's warning not to interfere with human history, and spins the world back to its axis, effectively turning back the clock, and saving the woman he loves. While Lois is left to ponder why Clark Kent is never around when Superman shows up, Superman delivers Lex Luthor to his new home: prison.
[edit] Cast
- Christopher Reeve as Superman / Kal-El / Clark Kent: After discovering his roots and origins from his native planet Krypton, he sets himself to be fulfill his destiny and help those on Earth. In his wake, he finds the villainous Lex Luthor which sets dire consequences. As a means protect his identity, he works as mild mannered reporter Clark Kent at the Daily Planet.
- Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor: A villain armed with an excessive amount of money and various knowledge of science. His only counterparts are bumbling henchman Otis and gorgeous girlfriend Eve Teschmacher.
- Margot Kidder as Lois Lane: A fellow reporter at the Daily Planet who becomes a crush of Clark Kent. She is madly in love with Superman and often ignores Clark.
- Marlon Brando as Jor-El: Kal-El's father on Krypton. He has a theory of the planet exploding, though the Council refuses to listen. He dies as the planet explodes but successfully sends his infant son to Earth as a means to help the innocent.
- Ned Beatty as Otis: Lex Luthor's bumbling henchman.
- Valerie Perrine as Eve Teschmacher: Lex Luthor's girlfriend. She falls in love with Superman's charms when Luthor nearly kills him with Kryptonite and walks away. As such she saves him, though strikes a deal for him to stop the missile heading towards Hackensack.
- Glenn Ford as Jonathan Kent: Clark Kent's father in Smallville during his teenage years. He is a farmer who teaches his son ideal skills that will help him in the future. He later suffers a heart attack that will forever change Clark's philosophy on life.
- Jackie Cooper as Perry White: Clark Kent's tempering boss at the Daily Planet. He assigns Lois to uncover the news of an unknown businessman purchasing a large amount of property in California.
- Marc McClure as Jimmy Olsen: A teenage photographer at the Daily Planet. He is present with Lois in California, though doesn't die as he is at a different location.
- Jeff East as Young Clark Kent: He is confused over how to use his abilities in either sport, or simply helping others in trouble. He is guided by fellow parents Johnathan and Martha and after finding out about his heritage, he ultimately finds his path into becoming Kal-El, The Last Son of Krypton.
- Phyllis Thaxter as Martha Kent: Clark's faithful mother who also helps in raising him in addition to Jonathan.
Both Kirk Alyn and Noel Neill cameo as young Lois Lane's mother and father on the train when the young Clark Kent is running alongside, racing the train.
[edit] Production
[edit] Development
Ilya Salkind had conceived the idea of the film as far back as 1974 and presented the concept to his father Alexander Salkind and Pierre Spengler. Although Ilya openly states it was his idea, he claims that the film would never happen if it hadn't been his father's ability to persuade financiers to provide the money, Ilya calling his father "a financial Wizard." Salkind also felt they should produce and film Superman and Superman II simultaneously, a previous (and what he believed to be successful) attempt they made on The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers. In addition Ilya felt not to do a straight face parody of the character, calling the style of the film to be "fictional reality." Securing the film rights from DC Comics was an unbearable experience for the Salkinds and Spengler, whom Spengler had to spend two weeks in meeting with the company specifically on a "Integrity of the character" clause. However, the producers did make sure DC approve over every aspect of the film (including dialogue).[1]
With the film rights set in stone, William Goldman was approached to write the script though Ilya personally cited creative differences with the writer. Mario Puzo was then hired after the producers were impressed with his work on The Godfather, and Alexander approved over "his famous credibility." As Puzo wrote the script, the search for a director took place. Steven Spielberg expressed high interest and Salkind felt comfortable in hiring him to direct upon being impressed with his work on Duel and The Sugarland Express. Ilya personally predicted his future filmmaking success and approached Alexander to hire Spielberg. Alexander was skeptical, feeling that Spielberg wasn't famous enough and claimed they needed to wait until "that fish movie of his" was released. Jaws was released with unanimous success, though by this time it was far too late as Spielberg opted to do Close Encounters of the Third Kind instead.[1]
Peter Yates was interested in directing and was involved in negotiations though for unknown reasons the deal collapsed. Both William Friedkin and Sam Peckinpah were offered the chance to direct. Friedkin turned down the offer outright while Peckinpah dropped out of the running when he produced a gun during a meeting with Ilya. Guy Hamilton, George Lucas, John Guillermin and Ronald Neame were then considered though Lucas was dropped as Ilya found out he was too committed on Star Wars. It was decided to go with Hamilton as Ilya was impressed with his work on Goldfinger and Battle of Britain.[1]
Ilya originally recommended Puzo to write the script as a serious science fiction epic. Although Puzo did impress Ilya with certain aspects, Ilya felt the script remained intact with being overall campy, as did Hamilton. In addition they cited too much "Greek tragedy and Shakespearean" elements. A fourth villain sentenced to the Phantom Zone named Zak-Ur appeared as a comedic henchman. Hamilton and Ilya brought in David Newman and Robert Benton to rewrite Puzo's draft as a means to delete objectionable material concerning an excessive amount of comedic scenes. Although Ilya does admit an infamous scene written (featuring Telly Savalas in Kojak appearance interacting with Superman), he does openly support their rewrite, claiming "not that much had changed [between the finished film]." Leslie Newman was brought in once Benton left to direct The Late Show.[1]
By this time sets were being initiated in Rome, Italy as well as having flying tests being experimented. However, Brando couldn't arrive in Rome as there was still a warrant out for his arrest in Last Tango in Paris due to "sexual obscenity." It was decided to move the production to England but Hamilton himself was a tax exile from his native country, which only allowed him to spend no more than 30 a year. Hamilton was forced to drop out because of Brando's actions and by this time six million dollars had already been spent on the production. Mark Robson was then in negotiations to direct after Ilya was impressed with his work on Earthquake. However, after viewing Richard Donner's The Omen it was decided otherwise.[1]
Donner read the script but thought there was too many comedic aspects. Fellow friend Tom Mankiewicz was then brought in and sets started to be constructed at Shepperton Studios for Marlon Brando's filming dates that would happen in less than three months. Meanwhile James Caan was considered to portray Superman while Neil Diamond expressed heavy interest, but was ignored. James Brolin, Lyle Waggoner and Perry King were looked at as well though nothing happened beyond that. Casting director Lynn Stalmaster was then brought in to help out on the complicated situation. It was then agreed between Ilya, Donner and Stalmaster that the only actor suitable for the role would have to be an unknown. Christopher Walken (then unknown at the time) auditioned for the role as did dozens of other actors, including Christopher Reeve. Reeve was ignored as the three felt him to be too skinny and too young. The casting notice became so desperate, that the dentist of Ilya's then wife at the time was screen tested as the filmmakers felt he had an uncanny resemblance to Superman. Stalmaster still felt Reeve would be the best choice and convinced Donner and Ilya to have him audition once again. Reeve surprised everyone with his performance.[1]
[edit] Principal photography
Superman started filming on March 24, 1977. It was shot simultaneously with Superman II, including eleven different units on location. The scenes of Krypton were shot at both Pinewood and Shepperton Studios. Smallville was shot on location in High River, Alberta while Metropolis was filmed in New York City. For scenes involving the Daily Planet, The New York Daily News was put in its place.[2] Filming was to remain very secretive as Christopher Reeve would have to literally walk in a bathrobe between shots as a means to not reveal the Superman suit to magazine spies/photographers. During the stressful shoot, tensions rose between the Salkinds and Donner as the two were barely speaking. Salkind blamed it was the fact they were constantly over budget, behind schedule and lack of a teaser trailer.[1]
Tom Mankiewicz claims that Donner was never given a budget or a schedule, and was constantly told by The Salkinds that he was either over budget or behind schedule. Warner Brothers would eventually stepp up and provided more money for the film. Richard Lester, who directed the Salkind's previous films The Three Musketeers and its sequel The Four Musketeers, was brought in as an uncredited producer, setting a balance between Donner and the Salkinds who were barely speaking. Mankiewicz claims the Salkinds brought in Lester because they were either waiting for Donner to quit, or having Donner go so over budget, that he would be fired. Lester refused to be credited and went uncredited for his work. Although Donner and Lester got along great, it was Lester who came up with the idea to stop filming Superman II and instead focus on finishing Superman. By this time 80% of II was finished; that included every scene featuring Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman, as it would be impossible bringing back the two high profiled actors. This would eventually spark the birth of Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut. The remaining 20% of Superman II would be finalized provided if Superman were a success.[1]
Superman is well-known for its large-scale special effects sequences, all of which were created without the benefit of computer-generated imagery. The sets of Krypton were built at Pinewood Studios with the "Kryptonian Council Dome" being designed as a miniature. The Golden Gate Bridge miniature stood 70 feet long, and 20 feet wide. During the construction of the scene involving the Hoover Dam, a miniature was built and as an affect to simulate the vast amount of water, slow motion (an over-cranked camera) was put in process. The Fortress of Solitude was a full-scale set, though some scenes required matte paintings. The Destruction of Krypton was also filmed on a full-scale set, though would eventually be crushed to pieces. Young Clark Kent's long-distance football punt was executed courtesy of a cannon placed in the ground. Discarded footage exists of Superman literally flying in lava during the earthquake scene though for unknown reasons it didn't appear in either of the original release or Richard Donner's director's cut.[3]
Of all the visual effects, the flying sequences were the hardest. The first test involved simply catapulting a dummy out of a cannon. Another technique was to have a remote control cast of the character flying around. Both were discarded due to lack of movement. High quality, realistic-looking animation was tried, with animated speed trails added to make the effect more convincing. Finally, a technique was developed that combined front projection with specially designed zoom lenses. The illusion of movement was created by zooming in on Christopher Reeve while making the front projected image appear to recede. For scenes where Superman has to interact with other people or objects while in flight, Reeve and fellow actors were put in a variety of rigging equipment with careful lighting and photography to hide the equipment. The Superman costume was originally a much darker blue, but had to change to a more turquoise color in order to composite better with the blue screen.[3]
[edit] Music
Richard Donner originally had in mind for Jerry Goldsmith to compose the music for the film as the two had worked together on The Omen. Goldsmith was set to work on the film but backed out due to scheduling conflicts. However, pieces of Goldsmith's musical notes for Capricorn One coincidentally found its way into the teaser trailer of this film, and years later, Goldsmith would find himself writing the film score for Supergirl. It was decided to hire John Williams as the filmmakers were impressed with his work on Jaws. Salkind also felt comfortable in hiring Williams as he felt "he could bring a 'bigger-than-life' feeling [for the film]" in comparison to 2001: A Space Odyssey. In the scene whereas Lois Lane and Superman are flying through the New York City atmosphere, it was originally intended for Margot Kidder to sing the words rather than narrating. Lyrics were written by Leslie Bricusse though the idea was ultimately dropped.[1]
[edit] Release
Many publicity still photos were released either well ahead of the film itself, or concurrent with it. Some of the photos were related directly to scenes in the film. These examples may serve to illustrate the differences between the still and the film frame. This shot occurs late in the film, immediately after Superman has broken through the roof of Lex Luthor's subterranean hideout, and is flying to try to intercept nuclear missiles sabotaged by Luthor. In the film, Superman's image is overlaid on a city street scene, with the character streaking toward and then above the camera (not quite making eye contact) and out of frame. The film then cuts to a panorama of the city skyline, again with Superman flying toward the camera and then turning to fly out of frame to the left. In the still, Superman is facing the camera directly, with a frame of that same street scene projected behind him.
[edit] Advertising
The Salkinds tried a bold approach went it came to marketing. Up from 1974 to 1978 every years at the Cannes Film Festival they would have airplanes and jets fly by the location interpreting the cast and crew involved. A "laster show" at the Hudson River was also put into place and even showcased itself in the New York City atmosphere at night time, which Ilya Salkind personally found to be quite successful. Most critics found the publicity to be the most outrageous ever since Gone With the Wind.[1]
[edit] Reaction
Superman opened on December 15, 1978 in the United States in 806 theaters, accumulating $7,465,343 over its opening weekend. The film went on to gross $300,218,018 worldwide, more than five times the amount of its production budget, making it a financial success.[4] Based on 45 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, Superman received an average 93% overall approval rating;[5] the film was more balanced with the five critics in Rotten Tomatoes' "Cream of the Crop", which consists of popular and notable critics from the top newspapers, websites, television and radio programs,[6] receiving a 80% approval rating.[7] By comparison, Metacritic calculated an average score of 88 from the 12 reviews it collected.[8]
The Visual Effects Society named Superman the #44 most influential use of visual effects of all time.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j (2006). Superman (1978) Audio Commentary by Producers Ilya Salkind and Pierre Spengler (DVD). Warner Brothers.
- ^ (2001). Making Superman: Filming The Legend (DVD). Warner Brothers.
- ^ a b (2001). The Magic Behind The Cape (DVD). Warner Brothers.
- ^ Superman (1978). Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.
- ^ Superman: The Movie. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.
- ^ Rotten Tomatoes FAQ: What is Cream of the Crop. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-09-09.
- ^ Superman: The Movie - Rotten Tomatoes' Cream of the Crop. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.
- ^ Superman: The Movie (1978): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
- ^ "The Visual Effects Society Unveils 50 Most Influential Visual Effects Films of All Time", Visual Effects Society, 2007-05-10. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
[edit] External links
- Superman at the Internet Movie Database
- Superman: The Movie at RottenTomatoes.com
- Superman Cinema, a comprehensive authority for all the Superman movies
- Movie Reviews Superman: The Movie on the Christopher Reeve Homepage
- Why You Should Respect Christopher Reeve - an essay by Alan Kistler.
- MovieTourGuide.com - Maps and Directions to Superman: The Movie Filming Locations
- Superman Homepage: Superman: The Movie - Synopsis/Review/Critique
- Essay: The Themes of Superman (1978)
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope | Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film 1978 | Succeeded by Alien |
DC Comics films | |
|---|---|
| The Serials | Batman (1943) • Hop Harrigan (1946) • The Vigilante (1947) • Superman (1948) • Congo Bill (1948) • Batman and Robin (1949) • Atom Man Vs. Superman (1950) |
| Single films | Superman and the Mole Men (1951) • Batman (1966) • Supergirl (1984) • Steel (1997) • Road to Perdition (2002) • Catwoman (2004) • A History of Violence (2005) • Constantine (2005) • V for Vendetta (2006) • Watchmen (2009) |
| Franchises | Batman (1989–1997): Batman (1989) • Batman Returns (1992) • Batman Forever (1995) • Batman & Robin (1997) Superman: Superman (1978) • Superman II (1980) • Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006) • Superman III (1983) • Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) • Superman Returns (2006) Swamp Thing: Swamp Thing (1982) • The Return of Swamp Thing (1989) |
Films directed by Richard Donner |
|---|
| X-15 • Salt and Pepper • Twinky • The Omen • Superman • Inside Moves • The Toy • The Goonies • Ladyhawke • Lethal Weapon • Scrooged • Lethal Weapon 2 • Radio Flyer • Lethal Weapon 3 • Maverick • Assassins • Conspiracy Theory • Lethal Weapon 4 • Timeline • 16 Blocks • Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut |
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