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Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1Audience Rating: Unrated Binding: Blu-ray Brand: Warner Brothers Fabric Type: 0085391131045 Graphics Memory Size: Color, Closed-captioned, Director's Cut, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen Manufacturer Labor Warranty Description: Maximum Color Depth: Warner Home Video Maximum Focal Length: Metal Type: Warner Home Video Pearl Type: WARBR113104 Processor Count: 1 Total Firewire Ports: Warner Home Video Total Metal Weight: 1 Total Parallel Ports: November 28, 2006 Total S Video Out Ports: 115 minutes Warner Home Video Editorial Review: Product Description: Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 11/28/2006 Run time: 116 minutes Amazon.com essential video: The Richard Donner cut of Superman II is an infamous legend come to life. Director Donner shot most of the sequel at the same time as his first blockbuster film, but somewhere along the line, the producers and studio lost confidence and brought in Richard Lester (The Three Musketeers) to rework the film, and receive sole credit. For years fans speculated on how different the final film was from Donner's original until an underground copy appeared showing a fully formed feature. In an unprecedented move, Warner Brothers officially embraces this alternate version. For those who have not been part of the rumor mill, know that Donner shot all the footage with Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman). You can find blow-by-blow descriptions of what is new/changed elsewhere, but most of the changes deal with Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder as the comic-book couple. Donner's cut provides alternate scenes for how Lois tests her hunch that Clark is Superman, the moment he reveals his identity, and how Lois unlearns that truth. Thing is, Lester's reshots are stronger, adding weight to the romance between the two, lifting the picture's stature. Lester also added the dandy Eiffel Tower opening. Donner's chief additions are in the Fortress of Solitude, where Marlon Brando returns to teach (Susannah York, as Superman's mom, appears in the Lester cut). The producers cut Brando's footage so they wouldn't have to pay him millions. The Brando/Reeve scenes continue the father/son dynamic of the first film. There is a great lesson in editing--Lester's less is better than Donner's more--when you compare how Kent turns back into Superman after losing his powers. The Donner cut is completely formed but does use some rehearsal footage, new effects, and some pieces shot by Lester. The history of cinema has many of these stories of movies reshot, hijacked, and changed from the original version, but here the underdog wins and Donner gets his chance to change history, even adding a note in the end credits about the use of fur and smoking as regrettable choices of the time. Director Donner and creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz have a jolly good time revisiting their past on the commentary track. You get a clearer picture of who shot what, but the two have nothing good to say about Lester's edition. Donner doesn't go much into why he was dropped, just a difference of opinion and the need not to pay Brando. He also explains why the déjà vu ending of this edition was used in the first movie and a new ending would have been thought up for part 2. A quick featurette looks at how Michael Thau and a small crew reconstructed the film and compares several scenes from both versions. Also added are additional scenes shot by Donner but not used, most with Hackman. --Doug Thomas Average Rating:
![]() Rating: - Lester's version is Superman 2 but this is interesting.I just bought the great priced four movie set only to find out that their is an extended cut of Superman 1, not pleased with that. In a bad economy you don't like to buy 5 versions of the same film! I am 34 years old, when I was a kid the theatrical version of Superman 2 got four stars and blew me away! I though it was more fun campy and I love campy also action packed! It didn't drag and wasn't as boring as Superman 1. I thought so as a kid. Richard Donner is a wonderful director but I don't understand ... Read More Rating: - Too Many ChangesThere are several differences between the original movie shown in theaters and this Donner version. Most of my favorite scenes are missing, as well as a plausible ending. For Donner to chose this ending, which is completely and utterly unoriginal, made the final diner revenge scene between Clark and the bully impossible. Here's a few of the endearing scenes that were left out of Donner's version. The Paris bomb scene where Lois gets into trouble -- Missing. Lois jumps into ... Read More Rating: - The original theatrical cut - the Lester Cut - was SuperiorI DVR'd Superman II to watch with my son. I saw Superman II with my uncle in theaters when I was a 9-year-old. I had no idea of the controversy surrounding the Donner/Lester "transition." Having viewed the Donner cut without any expectations - I can say the original, in my view, is far superior. Many interesting scenes which were pretty cool - the arm wrestling scene, the townspeople attacking (man being raised by finger beam), some of the dialogue - were removed. I feel the additions were ... Read More Rating: - Dick Lester's style of directionThe problem with that Lester is that he is his style of direction doesn't fit with the first film and so I always found this film to be a huge disappointment after the first . Silly slapstick and this weird preoccupation of dubbing every character in a scene(no matter how minor) detract from the more dramatic elements of the film. Although I have to admit that Donner's use of test footage and repeating the reversal of time gag, also detract from his version, it is more in keeping with the first film and therefore ... Read More Rating: - Liked It Better Than The OriginalLess campy and kept the action moving. I agree with others that the change at the end was lame, but I can still pretend that the original ending was used. Although I also agree that the "magic kiss" was lame. This was fun to watch and I feel the scenes with Brando give it more weight and tie it better in overall theme to the first one. A great movie from my child hood. It was nice to watch it with a different twist. Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [Blu-ray] Buy superhero comic book collectibles at the Superhero Mall! |