Superman III (1983)

Director:

Richard Lester

Writers:

David Newman (screenplay) and
Leslie Newman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

17 June 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

If the world's most powerful computer can control even Superman...no one on earth is safe.

Plot:

Synthetic kryptonite laced with tobacco tar splits Superman in two: good Clark Kent and bad Man of Steel.

Plot Keywords:

Kryptonite | Computer | High School Reunion | Smallville | Villain

Awards:

4 nominations

Cast

Christopher Reeve	...	Superman / Clark Kent
Richard Pryor	...	Gus Gorman
Jackie Cooper	...	Perry White
Marc McClure	...	Jimmy Olsen
Annette O'Toole	...	Lana Lang
Annie Ross	...	Vera
Pamela Stephenson	...	Lorelei
Robert Vaughn	...	Ross Webster
Margot Kidder	...	Lois Lane
Gavan O'Herlihy	...	Brad
Nancy Roberts	...	Unemployment Clerk
Graham Stark	...	Blind Man
Henry Woolf	...	Penguin Man
Gordon Rollings	...	Man in Cap
Peter Wear	...	Bank Robber

Also Known As:

Superman III (Canada: French title)
Superman vs. Superman (USA) (original script title)

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

UK | Canada | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Brazil:10 | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Norway:12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Company:

Cantharaus Productions N.V.

Trivia:

The little boy who appears waiting by the photo-booth while Clark Kent changes into Superman was actually the same little boy who played baby Kal-El (Superman) in Superman (1978).

Goofs:

Errors in geography: When Gus attempts to access the Smallville computer, the spelling indicates the scene was shot in England. The sign reads: OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS TWO KEYS REQUIRED TO OPERATE KEY A IN STATION No. 1 KEY B IN STATION No. 2 IMPORTANT BOTH KEYS MUST BE INSERTED AT THE SAME TIME NO UNAUTHOURISED PERSON TO USE THIS MACHINE

Quotes:

[first lines]
Unemployment Clerk: Next. Name?
Gus Gorman: Gus Gorman.

Movie Connections:

References 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Soundtrack:

No See No Cry

You always wanted to fly Kent -- now's your chance!

Superman III is a very misunderstood film. It did lack the epic nature that the previous two films had since they had a lot to do with Krypton with the origin and Phantom Zone villains and did a great job in setting up the mythos, but III just went in a different direction being more down-to-earth, and with a more comic book plot. Different and stranger menaces arose to meet Superman: environmental threats, the growing power of computers, characters blurred between doing good and evil, as well as an internal battle of psyche. The first two movies may have been better made but Superman III still has its moments.

In terms of the comedy, Richard Lester just played to his strengths. He's a good comedic director collaborating with Peter Sellers in the past, and one of the foremost swashbuckler directors with 73's The Three Musketeers, 74's The Four Musketeers and 76's Robin and Marian. So his experience in adventure was appropriate to tackle this type of film but his love of humor was not so widely well received, Supes III just had his regular brand of humor. The opening in Metropolis, the fighting stop-lights, and the kill Superman video-game sequence i found funny as a kid but it's still kind of amusing now. These movies were based off of the 40s originated comic book which had plenty of that humor there. I enjoyed Richard Pryor and thought he had some pretty funny bits here.

But who draws you in is of course Christopher Reeve. He was at his physical prime here, he kept increasing his weight gain with each Superman peaking here (by IV he opted for a more cardiovascular workout) and he really looks the most like the on screen incarnation of Superman, even more so than the comic book incarnations, when i watch him i'm not seeing Reeve but the actual Superman. What i loved was rather than have Lois be Clark's love interest again and Lex be in this again, it is a nice change of pace for another villain and Lana Lang, who actually loves Clark Kent while Lois just liked Superman the most. The scenes with Lana are heartwarming and really sweet. She's a cutie. We get to know Clark a little better and see him in a better light through Lana's eyes than we do through Lois'. He plays a more down-to-Earth Clark, more like Smallville Clark than Metropolis Clark, but still never losing that lovable dorkiness from the first two films, the Clark in this film is my favorite interpretation of him.

Reeve always wanted to challenge himself as an actor, and it definitely shows here. He would have played no less than 4 different characters by III: Superman, his natural Smallville Clark, Metropolis Clark, and the evil version of Superman. The premise of synthetic kryptonite screwing up Supes is excellent: him being lazy, doing mischievous things (like straightening out the Leaning Tower of Piza which was one of Donner's ideas in his drafts), forcefully seducing the evil lady on the Empire State Building, his 5 o'clock shadow and darker suit makes him look like a bad ass. Getting drunk and breaking alcohol bottles by flicking peanuts with a "whattya lookin' at!?" toward the onlookers; instead of making it just a paper thin evil character, Reeve gives legitimacy to it, Supes really disdains everyone and himself included (he burns the mirror when he sees himself with his eyes) and the junkyard battle between Clark and Evil Superman is my favorite moment of the whole series. It was just choreographed so great. Evil Supes screaming "come on, come on!" gave shivers to my spine. The end of the titanic brawl feels like the most Superman-like of the whole series. Evil Superman is truly my favorite villain of the movies. How ironic Reeve could play the best antagonist too, able to control his performance so well.

The computer element, and the super computer felt like an un-named version of Brainiac (which was the original intent but Warner assumed more control over the producers such as more screen time for Pryor). Another moment i liked is the chemical plant disaster, there's a real felt sense of dire urgency, and the coming of Superman feels so heroic. The film has some real neat effects too, the Kryptonite Ray, and one of the creepiest parts ever, that haunted me as a kid, when the lady gets sucked in the computer and instantly transforms into a psycho robot with those silvery eyes. I like how Supes also uses his smarts against the supercomputer instead of his powers. Superman III i feel is a lighter movie from the previous 2 but it's interlaced with the most extremely dark parts of the series, the romantic Smallville scenes, and is a really underrated film that to me, makes a great installment in the series and my favorite Superman film. Experience this gem.