Siskel & Ebert - Superman III (1983)

[@danielmarquis5258]

I feel like the “Junkyard Scene” between the bad Superman (Bizarro like) and Clark saved the movie.

[@nickperkins8477]

That, and Christopher Reeve playing Evil Superman in general. And, the Lana Lang/Smallville plot. Maybe if it weren’t so different from the first two movies, I would like it more.

[@jokerswildio]

I agree...so much that I consider that scene as iconic and one of the great Superman 🦸‍♂️ scenes of all time (all franchises and series included).

[@jonnybruck]

It was a great fight scene

[@Xanatos21]

The Bad Superman WAS Bizarro, they just never revealed his name in the film. They also altered his origin story by having him come into existence from the synthetic Kryptonite (whereas in the comics, he originally came from Bizarro World). Also, I agree: the junkyard fight scene between the Good Superman/Clark Kent and The Bad Superman/Bizarro was the best part!

[@ct0760]

Usually a series starts to wear thin by the third installment, and this was no exception

[@clintbronson5]

Yeah Return of the Jedi I was like ....ok 🙄

[@clintbronson5]

Harrison phoning in his acting Chewie doing the Tarzan yell ( really George really ) and Vader shine n polished helmet just spelled toys n disaster

[@Fiveash-Art]

@@clintbronson5 I think that's a bit of an exaggeration to call it 'a disaster'. I know it's now super hip and trendy to knock Jedi, but being a kid and seeing that movie in the theater, it was just as much of an experience as the previous two. It has it's faults, but it's greatness surely overshadows these gripes everyone seems to think ares so important now.

[@clintbronson5]

@@Fiveash-Art I was 13 and hated it! I loved loved!!!! Star Wars n Empire… glad you enjoyed it have a great night :-)

[@Fiveash-Art]

@@clintbronson5 You hated it? Really? .. come on man? When you were a kid and saw that movie in the theater you 'hated it'? I find that hard to believe. I was 9 , and yeah, the age demographic could've had something to do with it, but I didn't know a single person who didn't love the movie. But hey, .. we all like different stuff. The Death Star Battle scene and the Duel at the end was enough to make this movie much more than 'a disaster'. I mean give me a break ... especially what they were doing with the technology in 83. The story wasn't great, and there were plenty of goofy things going on in the movie, but its core story of Luke confronting Vader was solid.. and the movie looked fantastic. It's still a classic. Empire is a masterpiece, .. hard to compete with that movie. But Jedi is still a solid sci-fi fantasy movie from that era.

[@mamalannightshyaman]

The robot scene fucked me up as a kid

[@Maniac1607]

Yeah, she was pretty frightening for a few minutes.

[@markbruschi6391]

There hasn't been a good Superman movie since Superman 2. It's hard to believe such an iconic character and Hollywood just can't get it right

[@ducktales2020]

He’s harder to write for than you think, which is why I think this era of superhero movies has largely passed him over. Where’s the suspense in an invincible man? Gene in particular hits the nail on the head, that as silly as it sounds, a love story is a good way to add weakness and humanness to him. He may be invincible, but the people he cares about are not. Villains can get to them instead of using Kryptonite every time. But you can only play the love card so many times, which is why Superman wore out onscreen.

[@binksmcgowan4212]

Watch superman and lois, it's a fantastic telling of the superman mythos

[@dbreiden83080]

He’s not invincible at all. He can be defeated, hurt, even killed in the comics. Superman has incredible supervillains like Darkseid and Brainiac. All Hollywood has to do is brighten it up and let actual writers of Superman comics capture the soul of the character in a script. Then hire a director committed to honoring the true Superman as he was intended to be by his creators..

[@ricardocantoral7672]

@@dbreiden83080 Exactly. I would love to see a proper Superman film again AND a animated short that duplicates the beautiful Fleischer era shorts.

[@jedijones]

Man of Steel was a fantastic movie. Made the right choice to break Superman out of the relics of the past and modernize him. They'll never succeed if they go back to trying to give us an old-fashioned retro Superman.

[@clintbronson5]

I remember seeing the poster first and at 13 thinking Oh! Oh! I mean I love Pryor I love Superman ....but not together 🙄 the first one the FIRST one is a masterpiece and the 2nd is fun but after that ooooof

[@jedijones]

I saw this in the theater at age 6 and it was my first exposure to Superman. I'd say from a kid's perspective, it was a real mixed bag. Superman himself was a lot of fun to watch. The transformation scenes between Clark and Superman were always amazing. Watching him rescue Jimmy from the fire was exciting and the showdown in the junkyard, if a bit confusing, had some stuff in it we kept talking about for years. I also particularly loved seeing Superman stuck in the kryptonite bubble in the final battle with the computer. Richard Pryor was likable and easy to relate to as someone who was behaving in a childlike way. Some of the scenes, though, were inappropriately terrifying, notably the bleeding child almost being run over by a thresher, and the evil woman being sucked into the computer and turned into a robot. The romance scenes in the movie were boring, with Lana and especially Lorelei. Whatever was going on there sexually obviously went completely over my head. I think the plot about the villains controlling oil was poorly chosen for the kid audience, and wasn't something I could understand. The idea of Superman becoming a "mean" version of himself due to corrupted kryptonite wasn't the clearest concept in the world to me either. Perhaps it didn't work as well because I wasn't familiar with the "baseline" Superman other than what this movie showed me in the first act. Seeing Superman not care about saving the truck from falling off the bridge was kind of uncomfortable and confusing. I think they needed to be more explicit in demonstrating that Superman was changing. When Indiana Jones drank the blood of Kali in Temple of Doom the next year, I completely understood what was going on there, because they drew a clear dividing line for when and how Indiana Jones changed. It wasn't too long before me and my friends would regularly mock aspects of Superman III, including the Pac-Man sound effects used on Vaughn's computer screen and the fight that the Walk/Don't Walk signs get into. Some of us liked Richard Pryor in the movie and others liked the junkyard fight, but this never became one of those childhood classics that we would go back to watch over and over again. Eventually, thanks to VHS, that IS what happened with Superman and Superman II. Once you could put those movies on the TV screen up against this one, Superman III just crumbled in comparison.

[@thescribe3184]

I was also 6 when I saw this movie, but I had seen the other Superman movies first. And I loved Superman 2. This was the very first movie I didn't like coming out of the theater. I was so disappointed. I hated the scene when that woman was turned into a cyborg.

[@peterkrug2327]

So many comedic youtube movie reviewers have already reviewed "Superman IV: The Quest For Peace". (Nostalgia Critic, Cinema Snob and the guy who does Cinematic Excrement) I really want to see someone review this one, it certainly is a worthy contender.

[@paulienuti8031]

Doug just reviewed Superman 3

[@misterquantum7767]

This movie is truly terrible, but it's more watchable than Fan4stic.

[@ViciousAlienKlown]

Just wait until you see Superman 4....yikes.

[@navylaks2]

True, but it does have one of the greatest horror scenes in all film history, the lady turning into that robot, that scared the shit out of me as a kid.

[@robertpolanco1973]

@@navylaks2 The lady character that turned into a robot or a cyborg was the lead villain's sister played by Annie Ross. Personally, I found it laughable and stupid in "Superman III."

[@NeoConnor1]

Not saying much.

[@Xanatos21]

Nah, Superman 3 is very underrated! Superman 4 was/is total garbage! I like to pretend that one never happened.

[@tateyambrose7290]

Not only is Superman III a really bad movie (in many ways), it is even far worse than Siskel & Ebert say it is. It still ranks as one of the most disappointing movie experiences of my long moviegoing experience.

[@clintbronson5]

Yeah the title opening at age 13 I knew us fans were in trouble....not the same feel

[@sjdrifter72]

I remember seeing a review of the film on Eyewitness News where one of the anchors said "It's a bird, it's a plane, and it's BORING!" just like Gene's sentiments. I was 11 when this came out in theaters and had no desire to go see it. I saw it later on HBO or Showtime and didn't like it, although the android scene really creeped me out.

[@Mr.SP78]

They're careful not to spoil the movie's main plot of Superman's darker turn, but they did throw out a hint.

[@rosario508]

Easily in my top ten of most hated movies.

[@clintbronson5]

Wow?!! Must ask why? ( I didn’t like it either BUT HATE?? ) is it because it didn’t live up to the others

[@Stevenirons]

This movie makes the mistake of not only being a bad movie but also a bad superman movie as well. Thumbs down for me 👎

[@Jbaxter85]

Only mistakes I see for starters too much comedy with Pryor in the movie, he messed up a lot by playing nice guy tries to be evil & too many stunts that just not entertaining. Didn't performance well not only with critics also the box office.

[@Maniac1607]

Richard's humor was as incongruent as it was effective. The junkyard fight was very good, though.

[@Dim4323]

I bet they didn't review superman 4.

[@Xanatos21]

Probably because they refuse to acknowledge its existence. The first three Christopher Reeve Superman films were great, but S4 was absolutely abysmal.

[@Truthseeker1515]

I remember the TV adverts, first time was on VHS rental. No idea why so much hate, it was what it was....

[@nickvoss7954]

This movie could’ve had Bizarro and Brainiac and been epic. Instead it had Bad Superman banging floozies, committing vandalism, getting drunk, and doing damage to a commercial trade ship while only making use of its computer theme to briefly introduce an evil cyborg out of the sister to the main mustache-twirling evil rich tycoon. It was still a somewhat fun movie, but it should’ve had better antagonists.

[@jokerswildio]

The mishaps are the result of getting rid of Richard Donner. Though the fight scene between Clark and evil Superman was awesome! Also, I felt the chemistry between Clark and Lana and having much of the movie take place in Smallville was refreshing. Donner would have turned this into the classics Superman 1 and 2 were. With all due respect for Richard Lester (I loved A Hard Days Night!), he just wasn't made for comic book movies but for comedy movies. You can't blend the two and take it seriously.

[@ToyFiend]

How do they not mention the red kryptonite arc when Superman turns bad and needs to fight himself to come back?! The main villain of Superman III is weak but its a good movie. Superman 4 is when this series jumped the shark.

[@tnawcwvictoria]

I agree that Richard Pryor was wasted here, plus as much as I like Robert Vaughn as The Man From U.N.C.L.E., he was a poor version of Lex Luthor and Gene Hackman did not appear in this film mainly because he didn't like the way the Salkinds treated Richard Donner and Richard Lester turned it into a slapstick comedy fest I wonder how Siskel & Ebert felt about Superman IV: The Quest for Peace?

[@NovaFeedback1979]

Superman IV wasn't reviewed in advance for most critics because the studio knew they had a bad movie. It was never featured on their show.

[@knownpleasures]

Great movie, a typical early 80s film experience alongside the likes of Wargames

[@mtut]

It's a frustrating movie because parts of it are good. I appreciate Richard Lester's irreverent sense of humor enough that the slapstick title sequence (an obvious fuck-you to the solemnity of the first two movies) didn't have to mean the movie would just fall apart. The good/vs bad Superman stuff is great and Reeve is just amazing - but it could have paid off if the script didn't just try to get Lois out of the way while Clark/Superman is stirring things up with Lana. Even if Lois isn't onscreen, he has feelings for her, right? And he also has feelings for Lana. There are dramatic and comic possibilities that should have been obvious. Superman's ethically compromised in a big way by this development. While Richard Pryor was misused here - a big problem in early 80s movies that generally forgot that he was funny because he was real - the screenplay is really shoddy. I expect some b.s. in a Superman movie, but the moment it totally lapses into sitcom logic is when Pryor's character is sent to hack the computer system from ... the Smallville office of... THE COMPANY THE VILLAIN OWNS! Set aside that this is utterly stupid as a matter of computer security; the villain would either want his power to be known (like Zod), or not (like Lex Luthor, before his scheme works). The villain has to have a scheme that has a chance at deceiving someone. The screenplay wants to make us think it's clever that he conveniently sends his computer genius to Smallville, where the guard is coincidentally some drunk douchebag. It's unexplained why this plot point is so convenient to the screenplay but so utterly discredible for the seriousness of the villain's scheme. An audience can only overlook so much. The focus on Pryor is kind of irrelevant, for the critics and also for the film. The had some ideas; they gave up on the story and expected Pryor to turn the movie into a comedy. You know what? If this was the movie they came up with from the Newmans and Richard Lester? They should have brought in Paul Schrader to fix it. Paul Schrader's Superman III would have been better.

[@seanmc7128]

If you took the comedy and Richard Pryor out of the movie then it would've been better

[@JosephMartin-o4l]

I agree 100 percent. This debacle tries to be a laugh fest (at which it totally fails) instead of a struggle for Superman’s true identity and desire to be loved. In short, this movie is a complete disaster. Whoof! 🤷‍♂️

[@stephenkissane4268]

Richard pryer wanted to do a serious role in the movie

[@seancooney368]

An endless stream of superman movies...well not so much.

[@Xanatos21]

Sadly, Superman 4 is what killed the possibility for any more Christopher Reeve Superman movies.

[@ViciousAlienKlown]

It always happens to super hero movies. they start out great with a serious story with some action. Then as the sequels roll in they become dumber and more cartoon like. An insult the originals with an ever decreasing budget to add sauce to the shit show. Batman did the same thing.

[@Horicert]

I disagree with them regarding the love story. I thought Reeve and O'toole had great chemistry together.

[@errolbourgeois8230]

I about the love story. PART 3 is complete mess. I thought that Richard Pryor was miscast and Robert Vaughn was a lackluster villain. A major rewrite was needed

[@nebularain3338]

Reeve had better chemistry with O'Toole than Kidder, The Lana Lang/Smallville part of the move is one of it's strengths. The other is Evil Superman.

[@Jbaxter85]

This didn't work for me because the storyline wasn't as entertaining as first two, I agree there no love affairs between superman & Lois. The little love story with old high school flame was dull, only scene I like was building on fire & Richard Pryor ruined this movie by play a goody guy tried to be evil & doesn't work because he's too nice, so there's absolutely no need for Pryor in this movie. It would've been interesting to have fight between two supermen, good & evil instead. I enjoy the look of picture better than the story. 👎👎⭐⭐ I like to see review of SUPERMAN 4

[@retrogameguy9941]

so cringeworthy now especially when Clark starts eating dog food and reacts like its nothing and honestly? you can blame Reeve who was given creative control at this point. not a good idea just like almost everything else in III 🙄

[@LeeKingsnatch]

His “accident” 😂 look that one up kids.

[@DreBourbeau]

Watched it for the first time recently, quite liked it. No shit adults hated it - it’s obviously made for 8-14 year olds and is one of the only comic book movies that actually attempts to reproduce the look and feel of a corny Golden Age comic. Much prefer that to the dour, “mature” aesthetic of modern superhero movies

[@jedijones]

I saw it as a kid and even I knew most of it sucked then. We had to laugh derisively at the Walk/Don't Walk sign getting into a fight and Vaughn's computer monitor giving POINTS for striking Superman, and playing audio from Atari's Pac-Man game! What a mess.

[@bobthebear1246]

I'm surprised they didn't ask where Lois was. That's because Margot Kidder had the good sense to not come back for this dreck. Saw this in the theater expecting something at least as good as the second installment, ended-up watching crap. _Superman III_ sux. It's a one-star movie.

[@robertmckelvie2968]

Good good observation could have been even more of a disaster they were going to cast Tony danza as Superman in this movie but Christopher Reeve who had refused to participate initially relented and came back after script changes ...

[@babybird871]

this is a lame Superman movie but at least the ending is better than Superman Returns...

[@NeoConnor1]

BS IT IS!

[@justsayin3000]

He's a drunk now, I don't care who writes it as long as it gets written, OK sir...and we get drunk superman...This might unironically have been where it all starting going to shit.

[@larry2612]

I wonder where you got this from?

[@Doobie1975]

6/10 for me, it was a decent movie but was a huge letdown to the first two Superman films

[@billybarnett2846]

Saw this the day I graduated from elementary school and went back the next day by myself to see it again.

[@chicovoylez3216]

Why?

[@billybarnett2846]

@@chicovoylez3216 Cause I was 12 and it was 1983.

[@nebularain3338]

@@chicovoylez3216 Because it's an entertaining and watchable film. Movies don't have to be groundbreaking masterpieces to be enjoyable,

[@robertpolanco1973]

@@nebularain3338 Well, not everyone agrees with you on "Superman III" anyway because of the entertainment aspect of it.

[@Mrclish5000]

Loved this movie

[@bozotheclown169]

i prefer SIII to Returns and the Snyner movies

[@BuckRolly1]

In my opinion, Superman III is highly underrated. Way better than its reputation would have you believe and of course it's got evil Superman!

[@nebularain3338]

I agree. The bits in Smallville and Evil Superman are great, but they don't get enough screen time. The Richard Pryor bits are good in their own way, but they just don't belong here, and would have been better as their own film.

[@hamburgareable]

I dont like it either. The clone doesnt satisfy me at all.

[@nebularain3338]

I disagree. I think the chemistry between Annette O Toole and Chris Reeve is far more genuine than anything he did with Kidder. It was very short lived and largely unexplored, but it was more interesting because she liked Clark and not Superman. Evil Superman and the junkyard fight was great too, but the film does seem to want to be two things which is a shame, because it has some of the best bits of the series.

[@jokerswildio]

I agree, taking place in Smallville made it different from the 1st 2 and great point about Lana being more interested in Clark than Superman

[@jedijones]

The concept in Superman IV was even better, in that Lacey liked Clark but hated Superman. That was a funny idea that, like most of Superman IV, could've worked if executed better.

[@JosephMartin-o4l]

What makes a Superman story so special is his desire and struggle to be truly loved. This debacle doesn’t even approach such dramatic twists, instead it tries to be a Richard Pryor laugh fest (at which it also totally fails). It makes on wonder when the musical/dance scene is going to occur. This film is a complete mess and, if you should never see it, you haven’t missed a thing related to the Superman character. Whoof! 👎✌️

[@spikeep6141]

They’re wrong about absolutely everything.

[@daredevil6145]

No good Supes movies since 1978's one for me.

[@NeoConnor1]

Worst Superman film ever! At least 4 is mercifully short.

[@tomlinson1710]

Finally someone gets it

[@Jbaxter85]

Superman 1&2 👍🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Superman 3&4 👎🌟🌟

[@kamdan2011]

2:23 That’s a good quote for the poster!

[@mikegarrens5286]

This was terrible!!!

[@Jbaxter85]

Strongly agree.

[@movieman104]

WAS MORE OF A PRYOR MOVIE THAN A SUPERMAN FILM TO MUCH COMEDY BUT STILL BETTER THAN THE DREADFUL 4 THEY DIDENT REIEW 4 DID THEY?

[@joshuaturnage5243]

I actually enjoy this movie better than Superman 4.

[@jimmiesmith5811]

4 poor special effects is what helped kill it i seen tv commercials with better special effects too bad

[@Mike-gl4wt]

The only thing that was missing in this movie was the love affair with Clark and Lois the rest of the movie was ok I enjoyed Richard Pryor in this but the only thing that was fun to watch was Clark Vs Superman.

[@christophercarrasco154]

I don't get the hate. I thought it was better than II.

[@renee3133]

Well, my husband and son are DC and Marvel fans, and I try to watch just to take one for the team, but i did not enjoy 1 or 2, but three gave it a nice twist because of Richard Pryor. It just worked!

[@Stevenirons]

I strongly disagree. Superman 1&2 ( especially the Donner cut) are the best Superman cinematic movies. Superman 3 and Richard lester is where thing's began to go sideways with too much comedy, i.e the opening title sequence. It's better than pt 4 but overall not a good movie 👎

[@Jbaxter85]

@@Stevenirons I'm with U amigo, this was my mother's comment, now she's dead 😞.

[@rosario508]

Are you bat shit crazy? 1 and 2 are fantastic and 3 is a wretched skunk turd!

[@eargasm1072]

An entertaining underrated Superman movie, different but still retains the spirit of the original films

[@scottvincent184]

Agreed! It definitely fits in It's time, but, it's really pretty good imo, watching Superman fight Clark Kent, and of course seeing Webster's sis change into a robot are some amazing and traumatizing scenes!

[@hamburgareable]

Only marginally retains the spirit of the original films. I just cant stand 3 and 4.

[@NeoConnor1]

Making everything a joke is maintaining the Spirit of the first two films? Okay..........No.

[@eargasm1072]

@@NeoConnor1 They all contain humor ...get a clue.