Anna Daniels
In 1978, Superman: The Movie was a genuine cultural phenomenon. Superman II was similarly well-received, but the series started sputtering with Superman III, which was widely hated for plunging into slapstick and goofy side characters.
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace was, in part, an attempt to get the franchise back on track with a more serious sequel, but those efforts were undermined when the budget was severely slashed. In his biography, Superman actor Christopher Reeve wrote about a scene in which his character walks down 42nd Street in New York on his way to give a speech at the United Nations. “If that had been a scene in Superman I, we would actually have shot it on 42nd Street,” he imagined. “Instead, we had to shoot at an industrial park in England in the rain with about a hundred extras, not a car in sight, and a dozen pigeons thrown in for atmosphere.”
In a Q & A video, Jon Cryer, who played Lenny Luthor, was even more scathing when reflecting on the film. “The movie is not finished,” he asserted. “There’s effects shots that don’t make any sense, there’s huge scenes missing. I swear, in the original script, it made more sense.”
Superman III and Superman IV were both failures, but in very different ways. Superman III is fun to pick on. Superman IV is a tragedy. It’s just plain depressing to see this once-great character stuck in a clearly doomed low-rent production.
Written by: Looper
