 For a long time, I believed that Superman III was the worst of the Superman movies. The franchise had seemed to run out of steam at that point (but maybe it was just Richard Lester's direction), and bringing Richard Pryor into the mix seemed like a desperate attempt at box office success. I figured, at least Superman IV tried. The story was co-written by Christopher Reeve, and it had a worthwhile message: rid the world of nuclear weapons to ensure peace on Earth. I had the chance to see Superman IV again recently, and after careful viewing, I've changed my mind. This is the worst Superman film. The story, while carrying that message of peace, is just plain bad. In a nutshell, it sees Superman seeking to rid the world of nuclear weapons. He flies around the world, confiscating the world's supply of nuclear warheads and throwing them all into a big net, which he then hurls into the sun. Unfortunately, an escaped Lex Luthor has gotten into the business of arms dealership, and has attached a special surprise to one of the warheads: a scientifically-engineered embryo which is birthed when Supes throws it into the sun. This is Nuclear Man, a badly-costumed freak with an aggression complex. Lex's Nuclear Man challenges Superman, they battle, Nuke wins, Supes comes back, they battle again, Supes wins. In between all of this, we have an ill-conceived love "quadrangle" between Lois, Clark, Superman, and Lacy Warfield (Mariel Hemingway), the daughter of the Planet's new owner. We also see Supes reveal his identity to Lois again only to give her the "amnesia kiss". Nuclear Man develops a crush on Ms. Warfield, which leads into a ridiculous outer-space fight scene, and finally, we meet Lex's annoying nephew (played by Jon Cryer). Really now, I can't believe that anyone expected this movie to be good. It was produced by Golan-Globus for God's sake. Golan-freaking-Globus! (These are the people who produced Masters of the Universe for Cannon, as well as Captain America.) The special effects are mediocre at best and the performances are lacking. No matter how hard this movie tries, it can't really be any more than ridiculous. Oh well. About the author: All comments should be e-mailed to AmazinBoyS@aol.com. You may read another review, submit your own, or return home. |
