My Favorite Movies: Superman (1978)

I was privileged to have been a child in the late 70s for a lot of reasons, but for one I remember a time when superhero movies were rare, almost non-existent. But through a miracle of good timing, Richard Donner’s original SUPERMAN was not the washed-out kiddie matinee nonsense that had been the cinematic journey of The Man of Steel up to that point. Like much like STAR WARS, Donner and screenwriter Mario Puzo (yes, THAT Mario Puzo) took the story seriously enough that it defied the crummy expectations of its genre and it became something more modern, more real. In lifting the story out of its three-color comic book conventions and employing a peppy script and a lot of fun special effects, we really did believe that a man could fly.

SUPERMAN had IT. It had a fun script, a lovely pace and a zillion dollar cast that included no less than Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Ned Beatty, Glenn Ford, Larry Hagman, Trevor Howard, Jackie Cooper and Terence Stamp. AND an epic score by John Williams that I think is going to last forever.

The movie celebrates this character by sectioning off the story into four distinct chapters, each with its own personality: the formality of Krypton; the bucolic Americana of Smallville; the snappy ‘Front Page’ manner of Metropolis and the vast open spaces of California. The movie is loaded with action, with the death of Krypton followed by no less than a falling helicopter, a bridge collapse, a train derailment, an accident aboard Air Force One, a massive earthquake and, yes, that ridiculous nonsense where Superman reverses time by spinning the Earth backwards. Let’s face it, the movie isn’t perfect but with all those action set-pieces, who could argue?

But of all the special effects, the most lasting element was the emotional one, and one of the greatest love stories ever put on screen. Superman and Lois are like two giddy kids on a first date, played with the genius casting of Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder who bring their performances down to Earth. They have that chemistry – that THING – that makes us believe that the feelings are real. Without it, I think all of those action bits would be just an exercise.