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thehefnerDear God. I pray, pray deep down, that you guys feel even half as moved and passionate about this news as I am. I really don't want to be the only one.
Some of you may know the tumultuous history regarding SUPERMAN II. The quick version is this: The first two Superman movies were initially shot simultaneously under Donner's direction, until a dispute with the producers led to his replacement on the second film by Richard Lester. Subsequently, most of Superman II was reshot, with the majority of Donner's footage left unused. However, a number of Donner's scenes were reinserted into the first televised broadcasts of the film.
Some of the new scenes included the final fate of the Kryptonian villains (having them being taken into custody, thus Superman is NOT a murderer), General Zod blowing apart a portrait of Nixon with a machine gun, and the destruction of the Fortress of Solitude. Later airings of the film reverted to the theatrical cut, leaving the new footage largely unseen, until a a group of dedicated Superman fans around the world sent out the call for video recordings of the first televised broadcasts.
Thousands of dollars and countless hours were spent restoring the footage and reintegrating it into the film. They put together a fan-produced DVD called SUPERMAN II: RESTORED DIRECTOR'S CUT and offered free copies to whoever wanted them, so the true original movie (as much as possible) could finally be seen.
The Superman II RIC was covered in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, in which a reporter from EW interviewed one of the RIC project leaders. In the course of the story, the reporter also notified Warner Brothers Home Video Department for their take on the situation. Surprise surprise, the WB swiftly sent the guys at www.supermancinema.co.uk notice to remove all details about the RIC. So the free DVDs ain't gonna happen. The project leaders are withdrawing, having achieved their stated goal to raise awareness of Richard Donner's original Superman II footage. Coverage in Entertainment Weekly will reach a far wider audience than anything on the internet.
"So what's the big deal?" some of you may still be asking. In an article released today, the reviewer goes into some depth revealing what the different footage is, and while it's all very interesting, the real prize... even more than absolving Superman of murder...
At the arctic, Lex and the Kryptonian villains have been taken away. Superman and Lois are alone. With his heat vision, he melts the Fortress of Solitude, then turns to her and says:
Superman: Look Lois, I...
Lois: Hey! No regrets, okay. I did it. I got the man I love, to love me... Didn't I?
Superman: Oh yeah.
Lois: Well okay then, those people need you. I mean I'd be buying... my little rainbow at the expense of those people that go, "Help, come quick!" You think I don't understand that? I mean it's... It's the old eternal triangle, only... only in this case... I have all of humanity waiting the next room.
Superman: We can still see each other, you know. I mean all the time. But it... it just can't be...
She kisses him.
Lois: Just don't forget. That's all. Don't ever forget...
Can you believe that? When all this time we were griping about that goddamn "amnesia kiss" ruining an otherwise perfect superhero movie, THIS ending has been out there this entire time! An ending that's so moving, so beautiful, its inclusion would have made this the single greatest superhero movie of all time. Just as today's X-MEN and SPIDER-MAN sequels have outshone and improved vastly on their precursors, so did the original cut of SUPERMAN 2.
I pray WB will get their heads together and release the original intended film, professionally remastered with as much love and care they gave their DVD of SUPERMAN. I pray that I'm not the only one who got a little misty-eyed just reading that original ending.
You can get more detailed info on the history of this amazing project and screenshots in these two articles. In the second, there's a link to contact WB's home video department, and rest assured I will be.
Some of you may know the tumultuous history regarding SUPERMAN II. The quick version is this: The first two Superman movies were initially shot simultaneously under Donner's direction, until a dispute with the producers led to his replacement on the second film by Richard Lester. Subsequently, most of Superman II was reshot, with the majority of Donner's footage left unused. However, a number of Donner's scenes were reinserted into the first televised broadcasts of the film.
Some of the new scenes included the final fate of the Kryptonian villains (having them being taken into custody, thus Superman is NOT a murderer), General Zod blowing apart a portrait of Nixon with a machine gun, and the destruction of the Fortress of Solitude. Later airings of the film reverted to the theatrical cut, leaving the new footage largely unseen, until a a group of dedicated Superman fans around the world sent out the call for video recordings of the first televised broadcasts.
Thousands of dollars and countless hours were spent restoring the footage and reintegrating it into the film. They put together a fan-produced DVD called SUPERMAN II: RESTORED DIRECTOR'S CUT and offered free copies to whoever wanted them, so the true original movie (as much as possible) could finally be seen.
The Superman II RIC was covered in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, in which a reporter from EW interviewed one of the RIC project leaders. In the course of the story, the reporter also notified Warner Brothers Home Video Department for their take on the situation. Surprise surprise, the WB swiftly sent the guys at www.supermancinema.co.uk notice to remove all details about the RIC. So the free DVDs ain't gonna happen. The project leaders are withdrawing, having achieved their stated goal to raise awareness of Richard Donner's original Superman II footage. Coverage in Entertainment Weekly will reach a far wider audience than anything on the internet.
"So what's the big deal?" some of you may still be asking. In an article released today, the reviewer goes into some depth revealing what the different footage is, and while it's all very interesting, the real prize... even more than absolving Superman of murder...
At the arctic, Lex and the Kryptonian villains have been taken away. Superman and Lois are alone. With his heat vision, he melts the Fortress of Solitude, then turns to her and says:
Superman: Look Lois, I...
Lois: Hey! No regrets, okay. I did it. I got the man I love, to love me... Didn't I?
Superman: Oh yeah.
Lois: Well okay then, those people need you. I mean I'd be buying... my little rainbow at the expense of those people that go, "Help, come quick!" You think I don't understand that? I mean it's... It's the old eternal triangle, only... only in this case... I have all of humanity waiting the next room.
Superman: We can still see each other, you know. I mean all the time. But it... it just can't be...
She kisses him.
Lois: Just don't forget. That's all. Don't ever forget...
Can you believe that? When all this time we were griping about that goddamn "amnesia kiss" ruining an otherwise perfect superhero movie, THIS ending has been out there this entire time! An ending that's so moving, so beautiful, its inclusion would have made this the single greatest superhero movie of all time. Just as today's X-MEN and SPIDER-MAN sequels have outshone and improved vastly on their precursors, so did the original cut of SUPERMAN 2.
I pray WB will get their heads together and release the original intended film, professionally remastered with as much love and care they gave their DVD of SUPERMAN. I pray that I'm not the only one who got a little misty-eyed just reading that original ending.
You can get more detailed info on the history of this amazing project and screenshots in these two articles. In the second, there's a link to contact WB's home video department, and rest assured I will be.
