Superman II Movie Minute #18 – Let’s Make A Deal

7 responses to “Superman II Movie Minute #18 – Let’s Make A Deal”

1. Do you notice that Clark’s face is still bloody by time he got to the Fortress of Solitude. You would think that after a couple of days in the cold weather his face will have stop bleeding since he’s human now. And I was wondering why Clark didn’t buy himself a Han Solo Hoth coat before he made his trip back up to the Artic circle.

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2. Just to focus on the repowering scene and repeat myself but, for all of Superman II’s shortcomings, this is the better version to the Donner cut IMO. It may have to do with me seeing Marlon Brando as only a serviceable Jor-El – really, the one from S:TAS is my titleholder – but I’m glad he’s not there taking away from Clark’s moment. It doesn’t hurt that Brando is an absent figure throughout S2, really from the moment Superman defies him in S:TM. That is not only to Lara’s benefit but also to a feeling of estrangement from “The Father” and culminates in “The Son”‘s desperate plea to emptiness. And what little he gets back in response feels greater than watching the Jor-El AI make the scene about its sacrifice.

   And since the green crystal was what created the fortress itself, I had the impression that it could be a force for rejuvenation as well as creation for Superman and the fortress.

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   1. Hmmm…. I like your theory that Jor-El “snubbed” his son after he disobeyed him in the climax of the first film. That would explain why we don’t see him in the Lester/theatrical cut, beyond contract shenanigans!

      Chris

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      1. My mind rationalizes Jor-El’s absence from experience with my own father. Very loving and doting but also prideful and spiteful, snubbing one of my bros. for a time after a perceived insult.

         And good for Susannah York! It’s amazing how, decades later in a supposedly more progressive age, Lara-El’s basic contribution is birth giver while every other parental figure gets to be Clark’s guide.

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3. Wonderful episode, as ever, thank you so much!
   I have to share a quick story about my first viewing of this film, in my early teens. Here in New Zealand, we have a very ‘frenemy-like’ relationship with our larger neighbours across the Tasman Sea, and when Luthor grinned through his cigar, flourished the ‘V sign’ and asked for Australia, someone in the audience yelled: “Let him have it – we don’t want it!”
   But overall, it was this screening , more than anything else, which transformed me into a life-long fan of ‘the Man of Tomorrow’ . During the climactic battle in, under and above Metropolis, the whole cinema audience (New Zealanders are usually a notoriously reserved crowd unless it’s an All Blacks rugby match) went absolutely crazy for Superman. Perhaps it was a little ironically intended, or maybe this spontaneous release of enthusiasm could have happened at another film – but that night the entire packed cinema clapped and cheered and yelled for all they were worth.
   I’d never experienced an audience responding to a film like that before and I doubt I ever will again – walking out of that cinema, with John William’s beloved score still blaring from the speakers, I felt like I wanted to fly. “We used to cheer the cowboys at the movies” said my Dad afterwards, “Now they’re cheering for Superman!”

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   1. That’s awesome Alastair! The only time I saw a movie with a crowd like that was honestly Avengers: End Game. It was wonderful!

      Thanks so much for sharing that story!

      Chris

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4. When I watch Clark walking back to the fortress, I now hear David Banner’s theme from the “Incredible Hulk” TV show in my head. Crossing the streams again.

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