Superman II (1980)
Directed by Richard Lester, Richard Donner

Film Review

The first sequel to the phenomenally successful Superman: the Movie (1978) is easily the best, and certainly the most enjoyable, in the entire Superman franchise, partly because it has the best constructed narrative, partly because it has just the right balance of family-friendly comedy and special effects-laden action, but mainly because it features Terence Stamp as one of the most superbly bonkers super-villains of all time.  The film's slick storyline and polished production values disguise its troubled production, and you would hardly notice that it was actually two films, shot two years apart by two different directors, spliced seamlessly together.

The shooting of Superman II began in parallel with that of Superman but was aborted when the producers got cold feet over a likely overspend.  When filming was resumed, director Richard Donner was replaced with Richard Lester after a dispute with the film's producers.  Over half of the footage shot by Donner was re-shot by Lester, so that he could claim the sole director's credit.   Unhappy with Donner's dismissal Gene Hackman declined to reshoot his scenes and so his character, Lex Luthor, has less of a presence in the film than was intended, with all of his scenes as shot by Donner.  In view of all this, it is remarkable that the film manages to be as coherent as it is.  You can just see the join if you look closely enough, but you have to have pretty good eyesight and an extraordinary level of self-control so as not to be distracted by the delights offered by the film.

Unburdened by the necessity to account for Superman's origins and introduce all of the characters, Superman II is able to dive head first into the action, beginning with a spectacular sequence on the Eiffel Tower - just one of the many familiar world tourist attractions to appear in the film.  The writers were also able to have much more fun with the Clark Kent-Lois Lane-Superman quasi-love triangle-thing, and they pull off the implausible feat of allowing Lois to get her man and then conveniently (for the sake of future sequels) forgetting all about it.  Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder handle their scenes together superbly, with Reeve once again doing a superlative job of delineating Kent from his super-alter ego whilst investing them with the same irresistible gauche charm.  What we admire most in Reeve's Superman is not his physical prowess or his plethora of special powers but his humanity - he genuinely does have a love for humankind.

With so many villains ranged against him, all bent on pretty much the same objective, Superman more than has his work cut out this time.  As if Gene Hackman's mischievous Lex Luthor wasn't enough to contend with the heroic Kryptonian in the fetching red underpants has to fend off three of his own kind, which wouldn't be so bad if one of them wasn't Terence Stamp at his most uncompromising.  Stamp's General Zod isn't just evil and power-mad - we expect that as a prerequisite for any self-respecting super-villain - he is also lethally sarcastic.  One disapproving curl of the lip or contemptuous raised eyebrow from Zod cuts far more deeply than a manic rant or punch in the kidneys.  As far as psychotic, power-crazed villains go Zod is a cut above the rest, and Stamp gained a reputation for playing cool, sardonic men of power that would serve him well for the rest of his career.  Expect the mother of all punch-ups when Zod and Superman come face-to-face in Metropolis.  So what if the effects look slightly dated?  This is comicbook action at its most exhillarating.  Roll on Superman III.

Film Synopsis

In the nick of time, Superman manages to thwart a plot by terrorists to blow up Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower with a hydrogen bomb, but when the bomb detonates in deep space it releases three criminals from the planet Krypton from their two-dimensional prison.  Guided by their super-powers, General Zod, Ursa and Non make a beeline for planet Earth, where they are soon asserting their supremacy over the President of the United States.  Only one man can oppose them in their plans to subjugate the peoples of the world, but unfortunately he has just given up all of his superpowers so that he can live a normal life with the human female he has fallen in love with, namely Lois Lane.  Once he has escaped from prison, criminal mastermind Lex Luthor seeks an audience with General Zod, hoping to gain control of Australia if he reveals the whereabouts of the feared son of Jor-El...