Saturday, January 20, 2007

Superman II (1980) ,Part 2


It was released in Europe and Australia (December 4, 1980) before being released in the United States (June 19, 1981).
The original script had the nuclear missile from Superman: The Movie releasing Zod and companions from the Phantom Zone, instead of the Eiffel Tower bomb.
In the version of the film planned by Richard Donner, Superman flies around the Leaning Tower of Pisa at incredible super-speed, accidentally causing it to stand up straight. This was dropped by Richard Lester, but re-used in Superman III, where evil Superman straightens the Tower of Pisa on purpose.
Some scenes from the Metropolis battle may have been shot and then cut: the destruction of the Washington Monument, the Statue of Liberty's arm being destroyed, melting of the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and Ursa's reshaping the faces on Mount Rushmore.
In one TV version, a US "polar patrol" is shown picking up the three Kryptonians and Lex Luthor at the end of the film. Without this ending, it appears that Superman has let the Kryptonians die, though Superman has a strict code against killing and their deaths aren't necessary once they are depowered.
Superman also uses the rare "super-kiss" to make Lois forget he is Clark. While this was a real power Superman had in the comics, it was rarely used, and eventually removed.
The scene where Lois Lane discovers Clark Kent's true identity was scripted for use in the first Superman film.
Richard Donner briefly appears in a "walking cameo" in the film. In the sequence where the de-powered Clark and Lois are seen approaching the truck-stop diner by car, Donner appears walking "camera left" past the driver's side. He is wearing a light tan jacket and appears to be smoking a pipe.
In the scene where the young boy falls over the rail at Niagara Falls, as Superman is rescuing him, a woman's voice can be heard saying in a stereotypical New York/Jewish accent, "Of course he's Jewish." "He," obviously referring to Superman. The creators of Superman, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, were both Jewish; as was Batman creator Bob Kane.
Selected premiere engagements of Superman II were presented in Megasound, a high-impact surround sound system similar to Sensurround.

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