[Richard W. Haines]

Re-screened it again last night and then compared it to the Lester's version. I think the pacing of the Lester version is better and you have an action scene up front. Donner's version works better as a continuation of the first part but not as well as a separate film and of the course the ending is terrible. Both versions are campier
than the first film and have the same shifts in tone going from serious drama to
tongue in cheek comedy to action. I still find the changes disorienting because the
scenes with Brando were so serious. I'm glad they're back and it works better thematically than having his mother but it's remains a very uneven film. I also
thought the explosions, cars crashes and other effects could've been tightened
further. The crowd reactions seems wrong. Why were all those people hanging around? They should've been running away or ducking for cover if there's a mid-air fist fight between Superman and the three villains. They just stood around waiting for something to fall on them. Faster cuts would've made that work better and seem
less silly.



Perhaps what they should do some day in the future (providing Donner agrees) is to recut both pictures into one long epic single feature with an intermission after the
villains are freed from the phantom zone. That way the first film doesn't have the turn back the world ending. The effects were terrible so it would be no great loss. Lois doesn't die. He does some heroic things like save the bus and close up the fault then pushes the missle into outer space and the second story begins for the rest of the film. The villains are far more interesting in part II. The epic movie would end with him turning back the world. Along the lines of a three and a half hour epic removing extraneous scenes that no longer make sense or are necessary like beating up the bully in the restaurant or Lex trying to burn and freeze him in Part 1 even though he knows that can't kill Superman. Basically it would be Donner materials tighted up and trimmed into a "Godfather Saga" type of picture with a climas and all the padding cut out.



I didn't watched the complete end credits of this new version the first time. Yesterday I left it running and saw that ludicrous end notice where Donner appologized for the fur coat and second hand smoke in the film. It was one of the dumbest things I'd ever seen in a movie. I had to zoom back to see what he was even talking about. Jackie Cooper smoked a cigar and Valarie Perine wore a fur in the artic. One of the most absurd cases of political correctness I've encountered. Let's hope it doesn't start a trend. Imagine future editions of "Bullitt" which end with a "Buckle Up for Safety" title card. Unless a movie is specifically about politics or some issue or is an agit-prop piece, they should leave this nonsense out of mainstream entertainment. Movies are for entertainment
not indoctrination.