DIGGING FOR KRYPTONITE: The highs and lows of one of superherodom’s greatest films…
I never get tired of talking about the first two Christopher Reeve Superman movies. (The second two, well…)
Superman: The Movie set the standard for all superhero movies that followed and Superman II is in some ways its superior, and in other ways it’s stark inferior.
The latter, 1981 film is a Frankensteined collection of scenes helmed by two directors — Richard Donner and Richard Lester — with very different approaches to the material, and yet thanks to a certain amount of wizardry and across-the-board winning performances, it holds together well despite its obvious seams.
It’s that dichotomy that’s at the heart of the latest episode of Anthony Desiato’s Digging for Kryptonite podcast. Anthony invited me on to talk about the considerable highs and admittedly wonky lows of one of the most beloved superhero flicks of all time.
We had a blast, with a lot of laughs and a lot of love for the movie. I think you’ll dig it.
Click here for a listen or look for it wherever you get your podcasts.
As Christopher Reeve never says: Up, up and away!
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MORE
— The TOP 13 SUPERMAN II Collectibles — RANKED. Click here.
— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale This Week — in 1981! A SUPERMAN II Special. Click here.
November 19, 2024
Thank you for discussing “Superman II.” Yes, it has its flaws, but it’s really enjoyable.
November 19, 2024
The nightmare of criminal supermen unleashed on Earth had always lain pregnant in the Phantom Zone concept, but in story terms it had never been fully realized until the great “Superman II.”
The Zone was first revealed in a Superboy story; and it was evidently in Supergirl stories that the concept received its greatest development. (In fact, it is my belief that the Supergirl backups in Action #297-298 were the template for the plot of the 1981 film.)
But in terms of Superman himself, the menace posed by the Phantom Zone was limited. In the late ‘70s there was a high-stakes battle with a bunch of Zoners in Action #471-473, in the Cary Bates’ story that introduced Faora Hu-Ul (and also clearly influenced the movie). But as far as I can tell, Superman never faced the challenge of a full-scale conquest of Earth.
“Superman II” delivered the spectacular story I had long wanted to see, but that the comics had been reluctant to tell. I saw it on opening night and watched it again recently; the passage of several decades did not diminish the anxious thrill of seeing Terrence Stamp make the world’s leaders kneel before him. Thank goodness Chris Reeve was made of sterner stuff, as both actor and hero, and prevailed.