"Superman IV" Director Sidney J. Furie: From the Archives

Man that interview was hard to listen to.. almost as hard as the movie was to watch. I heard a rumor that Chris Reeve said he wouldn't do another Superman movie unless he was able to write the script. I think that was a bad idea.. I think Superman III retrospectively wasn't bad but it sucked in comparison to I and II. I believe the story was just poor.. I picked up the Richard Donner cut of Superman II and it just makes more sense even though the original release is still a good movie I kind of wish the producers hadn't canned Donner and ruined what would have been an amazing franchise. With all the talk about the next movie and whose directing it and what the story will be reboot or not I hope they remember the audience in this one pay homage to the real fans of the comics. I think when you get a bunch of Hollywood suits involved they wreck the movie trying to target audiences instead of being true to the material.

On another note because this comment made me think of it.. Anyone see the director's cut of LEGEND? Man.. I hate to say it because I'm such a fan of his work but Ridley Scott's version was boring as all get out.. I'm glad someone stopped him from releasing that garbage I think THAT film needed the changes it recieved and the crazy Tangerine Dream soundtrack that made the move stike a chord with the kids of the time.. just an opinion..

Be that as it may ED, i'm pretty sure that the year it came out there were a whole slew of very decent action adventure films that were produced so there are NO excuses to have made Superman fight like a girl and fill the movie with an undisputed amount of "S"'s being thrown around! These aren't the consequences of a lack of "tools", they were a jaw-dropping display of a lack of directing talent. I've said it too many times already, if you have a great director, it doesn't matter how much the script sucks, the movie will still come out decent as did X3 and Superman Returns even if they weren't "as good" as their predecessors. Shit, Star Wars is older then that movie and most the tools Superman4 had didn't even exist back then and look how good it turned out. No excuses aloud period!

Believe me, I'm in no way defending Superman IV (it's painful to watch in so many ways -- except for that one amazing moment when Superman first addresses the U.N. -- for just an instant, you believe). I was merely offering up my reasons for presenting the interview -- so people could see Sidney Furie's point of view at the time the film was being made. But the movie is a disaster, plain and simple.

I think I liked Superman IV when I was a little kid. Probably because I had no filter for crap at that age. I do remember not liking that one as much as the others though. Upon (sphincter clenching) re-watching, the UN scene is pretty great, but uh...yeah...what a stupid kid I was