Happy 30th Anniversary to the Worst Superman Movie Ever Made...

[johnmiic]

Oh this is a powder keg....

Couldn't be any worse than "Custom Mego Carnage". : )

[palitoy]

Couldn't be any worse than "Custom Mego Carnage". : )

Nice callback!

[Nostalgiabuff]

I think S3 has some charm all it's own and I like it a whole lot more than I like S4

[Brue]

3 was better than 4 by a mile. And if you are going outside the lines - Supergirl is the worst.

[thunderbolt]

Couldn't be any worse than "Custom Mego Carnage". : )

that thread was awesome.

[huedell]

Man, where is Hue?

Swamped with finishing up a webseries variety show... webseries short film series... in the midst of filming a documentary on a time table, moving apartments, and prepping to go back to school among other things... so parading out the same old "Superman III is underrated" and "Superman III is a better movie than most comic geeks think" seems redundantly sour at the moment... but call on me, and I shall appear.

One thing's for sure, with all the pop-culture media mashing for those aforementioned projects I've been doing these days, and after taking into consideration what has gone down over the years at the MM because I've championed S3 and there seems to be a recurring need for me to trumpet it's stronger points on these boards...well, a little video piece called "Why Superman III Is Underrated: The Movie Is 'Superman III'... And You're NOT" is DEFINITELY in order.

I think Attila the Hun once said: "It's not enough that I succeed. Everyone else must fail"." Seems fair.

[huedell]

^Agreed. Those scenes are really nice, as is the chemical plant rescue. It gave Marc McClure more screen time than the previous films as well. Sure the frozen lake thing is kind of out there, but it's something you'd see from the comics.

I think there was a LOT of great Silver Age type feel in S3.... I know Pryor's presence kinda cancelled that out for many comic (especially Superman) geeks, but it WAS there and likely more prevalent in 3 than in 2 or the original Supes movie. Maybe now that MOS is out, people can start to forgive a bit... I mean, now ya have your SERIOUS take on Kal-El.

[huedell]

So sayeth Dalton Ross of "Entertainment Weekly":

http://popwatch.ew.com/2013/06/17/superman-3/

Incidentally, have any of you READ that article?

The points it makes are horrible.

Earth2Chris makes more sensible logic in one sentence than that dude does in his whole "reaching" article.

Criticizing the gag-filled opening sequence... um... okay...

...but then even HE admits that Supes 2 had IT'S moment of camp as well... Supes 3 apparently was unacceptably "over-the-top" camp... and, hey... you guys have even focused on that here at the MM... so, I'll give him a pass on that one...

but how about:

Criticizing Clark fooling around w/Lana over the dog food/pate? (Actually, a great acted moment)

And criticizing what he calls "the jello" at the close of the film which was actually a sharp move by the writer to connect the earlier chemical plant concoction that Supes knew would be able to fool the "evil" computer long enough to destroy it. Better ending than spinning the world backwards, make no mistake on that. The writer seems to have missed the whole point.

The writer's a tool and the article's a bust... whatever THIS board has to say about Superman III. THAT'S a whole other can of Kryptonite I'll address at a later date

Oh, yeah... and here's this dolt's grand finale... he takes the one universally (here at the MM, at least) valued scene, the "junkyard fight" and devalues that as being stupid as well.

Bravo EW... bravo. How happy were you that the timing of S3's anniversary synched up with MOS's release so you could present this super-article? Journalism at it's flimsiest.

[Captain]

I have a bit of a soft spot for 3, only because they filmed it here.
Its kind of meat to see Calgary and area circa early eighties.
Me and my buddy rode our bikes out to the Balzac gas plant to watch them film there. We sat out on the road and watched them swing Reeve and a stuntman around on a crane. Good memories.

Of course story wise.... Peeyuu

[huedell]

Of course story wise.... Peeyuu

Well, we can comfort ourselves with a story like: "Guy comes from another planet, grows up on Earth, falls in love with a girl and turns the world backwards in order to save her from death" for it's finale ending.

Or maybe end the story with "a super-kiss that erases the girl's memory so that she never knew the alien was the reporter that worked alongside her day in and day out."

I lean towards this story: "Computer genius dupe manipulated by would-be world conqueror to claim world, despite superhero opponent. World conqueror defeated when superhero's organic intelligence wins out over computer genius' high tech software in the destruction of the most powerful computer ever created via a "simple can of acid'".

[Mikey]

I'd like to know how Superman welded the hole closed but the oil didn't catch on fire ?

[Bionicfanboy66]

This movie always seemed like a Richard Pryor film featuring Chris Reeve as Superman. Still waiting for the real Superman 3 to be released. Oh wait, that was Superman Returns. Nevermind. As you were.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I'd like to know how Superman welded the hole closed but the oil didn't catch on fire ?

He was pushing it back with his super-breath.

[Figuremod73]

Interesting videogame/superman 3 trivia (start around 3:08):

[Brue]

It was only the first in a series of bad Superman movies

III was too heavy on comedy (that wasn't funny) and too light on effects.

IV was too chopped up to be comprehensible (DVD extras help) and was low budget.

Returns relied on the one thing II did wrong to base its script (unplanned super baby) and had the worst Lois casting ever.

MoS killed off Pa Kent for no reason and had such gigantic plot holes I can't rewatch it.

Superboy was fun but super cheesy. Smallville had pockets of really good peppered in-between long runs of bad to really bad.

Can Superman Batman redeem this? If so, we will know once and for all that if you could be anyone -be Batman.

Pre !!! was Superman's reign (Pun intended to S&S original comic).

II -Awseome!
The Movie -WOW!
Adventures of Superman -TV at its best
Superrman and the Molemen -Aw yeah!
Superman versus Atom Man -Comics brought to life in a pioneering era.
Superman the Serial. I still enjoy watching this.

I love Superman for who he was. But today he does not make for good story telling. He holds a special place in our hearts but has been replaced by characters who must overcomes obstacles. Charters who are more relatable -more vulnerable.

I truly love you Superman but next time you die, I hope you stay dead. Don't just fizzle out.