Superman in San Antonio

"An Ode to Spring"

by Jeffrey C. Lewis

On March 31 I received an unexpected yet serendipitous work assignment requiring me to travel by air to either Austin, Texas, or San Antonio, Texas. Having closely followed internet reports on the isolated theatrical screening in San Antonio of the remastered, re-edited "Superman -- The Movie," choosing between the two cities was a "no brainer."
 
I have seen "Superman" on the big screen twice -- during its original release in 1978 and a few years ago during the WB anniversary "road show." I have worn out the first VHS release (the 127 minute edit in the old oversized paper carton) and the later, "complete" Hi-Fi VHS version. And now, thanks to American Movie Classics, I have on S-VHS a widescreen version.

I also own all versions of the soundtrack (the 2-LP album, the truncated CD, the Japanese CD, the Rhino set, even the Varese set).

Multiple theaters in San Antonio were screening the movie. I cannot fathom the marketing strategy of sending multiple prints to multiple theaters in only one city rather than selecting one theater in multiple cities (as was done with the anniversary "road show") to gain a wider audience. But I digress. I chose a theater (the Alamo Quarry) closest to the airport and my hotel. Only two screen times were offered: 7 p.m. and 9:55 p.m. "Spy Kids" occupied the earlier times for this particular screen. Less than ten people attended the screening (four college boys who had a good belly-laugh at the "How big are you" interview question from Lois Lane and three adults with a child who got antsy and played with folding arm rests about two-thirds through the movie.)

I settled in my comfortable, stadium seat wanting to thoroughly enjoy this "new, improved" version of one of my favorite movies with one of my favorite music scores.

Another digression. With some time to kill before the screening, I went to a local mall and browsed in a Warner Bros. Studio Store. Nothing in the store referenced the fact that "Superman" was playing at any local theater. The faux movie marquee in the store announced only the arrival of another "Pokemon" movie.

The good news: The picture looks great. Superman's suit was blue throughout, even in the infamous fly-by to Hoover Dam to rescue Jimmy Olsen. The Krypton scenes with the bright, white costumes were most impressive. I noticed details in the movie heretofore unnoticed (e.g., an exterior building name seen through the blinds of Perry White's office; the texture of Superman's cape during his terrace meeting with Lois Lane).

With one exception, the new sound effects (even the re-engineered opening credits effects) did not distract much from the memories of the original. Three memorable sound effects worth noting are the opening of the Krypton council dome, Lex Luthor's ultrasonic message, and Superman turning back the world. The exception: Back in 1978, I remembered thinking that the understated "breeze" flying sounds complemented, without overpowering, the spectacular visuals to "make you believe a man can fly." Indeed, with the groundbreaking visuals, there was no need to have exaggerated flying sounds (as in the George Reeves television show). But the new flying sounds brought back to mind unfavorable comparisons to the old TV show.

Regarding the restored footage, the exposition (before the music starts) in the Krypton council scene, the brief shot of Kal-El's star ship passing the Phantom Zone criminals, the extension of Clark's first morning at the Daily Planet, Donner's cameo, Luthor's lair tests, and the extended earthquake footage worked well (although the pacing in the lair scene would have been improved by deleting the ice/snow test). Brando's added scene in the Fortress is a mixed bag. The poignancy of the scene -- Jor-El commenting on Kryptonian vanity as being the reason he could not embrace his son at that moment -- is diminished by a mawkish end with Superman holding out his arms to embrace his father's hologram. The tracking of music from earlier in the film (Jor-El's goodbye speech to baby Kal-El) did not complement the scene, either. The scene would have worked better had it ended with Jor-El's words about not being able to embrace his son, sans outstretched arms and tracked underscore.

While others have gone into greater detail on the restored footage, I have yet to see any reference to the one deletion: the "Next Year Superman II" card from the end credits.

This new version includes more of John Williams' score than had originally been heard in the 1978 version. Referencing the Rhino track titles, the film now utilizes additional material from "The Trip to Earth" and "Welcome to Metropolis." With the inclusion of the aforementioned additional earthquake footage, the opening bars of "Super Feats" make their debut.

In sequences with existing musical underscore, it was to be expected that the inclusion of additional footage would require new music edits. These sequences include the Kryptonian council scene additions, the scene with the Krypton elders dispatching the guard to apprehend Jor-El, and the young Clark/train scene (the Noel Neill/Kirk Alyn cameos). Perhaps those who are unfamiliar with Williams' score will not notice the new edits. Nevertheless, because of the music alterations, I would have preferred seeing these scenes in a supplement on the DVD. (There was also a brief, noticeable edit in "The Trip to Earth," but I cannot readily recall the change.)

Surprisingly, multiple music editing changes from the 1978 version could be discerned in places I had not expected:

• In the original, when the writing credits appear in the opening credits, an edit beginning with pick-up notes from the flutes shortens the march. What I heard in the Alamo Quarry theater is a more abrupt edit which loses the pick-up notes from the flutes. (Perhaps it was just a glitch in the print.)

• In the original, when the star ship crashes through Jor-El's skylight, the crash is immediately followed by the opening bars of "Star Ship Escapes." Williams had scored the scene up to that point (the latter portion of "Destruction of Krypton"), but that music had been edited out in the original version. In this new version, the music edit begins with the last chord of "Destruction of Krypton," with an immediate segue into "Star Ship Escapes."

• The latter portion of the end credits in the 1978 version utilizes an edited version of the concert love theme, eliminating the opening bars and containing an internal edit deleting a portion of the track. The 2001 version apparently recreates, note for note, both edits; but then editorially repeats and extends the ending bars to accommodate the restoration credits.

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