The Superman: 5-Film Collection has four movies making their debuts on 4K, though really only two of them are worth a damn. I suppose if you’re a Superman fan, maybe it’s worth it, but probably only when it’s on sale.
The less said about Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, the better. It was a misfire from the go and even the charms of Christopher Reeve could make this watchable.
Superman III was pretty much the beginning of the end of the Superman franchise. It’s not terrible but not very good either, moving to full-on goofy humor (versus a more wholesome variety of the first film), and an awful villain.
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut does a valiant job giving viewers Donner’s original concept for the sequel and utilizing not only some new visual effects but some rehearsal footage to give as complete of a vision as possible.
Superman II is hardly perfect and with Richard Lester replacing Richard Donner probably made for a whiplash of a movie in terms of tone, but this still managed to be an entertaining sequel though the goof levels were taken up a notch.
Superman: The Movie is a special movie that perhaps the current generation might find a bit hokey in its innocence, but I think it still holds up pretty well, albeit I’m still not a big fan of some of the goofier moments.
It is quite the time we live in for media, even if the physical is on the decline, as now after decades where it lived only on the bootleg forum, we finally get to see Superman: The Movie – Extended Cut aka the TV Version, restored in HD and although I’ll be sticking with the other version.
John Carpenter’s Village of the Damned has its good moments, propelled by a solid ensemble cast from Christopher Reeve to Michael Pare, and a bit of the cheese factor that is kind of amusing. This Collector’s Edition release by Shout Factory offers well done video and audio transfers and a nice selection of bonus material to peruse.
Speechless has a nice spin on the classic romantic comedy formula (opposites attract and all that) and Michael Keaton and Gena Davis share some nice chemistry and as a bonus for geeks, we do get to see Keaton and Christopher Reeve share a scene.
Although the disc is pretty light on features – damn near empty, in fact – the fact that Deathtrap finally gets a proper widescreen release is good news for any fan, especially those in North America.
The Superman: The Complete Anthology is a fine set for sure and while the features are certainly comprehensive between vintage featurettes and multiple expansive documentaries and commentaries, but in particular the video has much to be desired. This isn’t to say they don’t look good but compared with the work Fox did with their Alien complete set, this one pales by comparison.