Rating: Summary: Not for Everyone Review: If you enjoyed all 4 movies of Superman than this is the set for you (cheaper than buying each movie individually). However, if you only like 1 or 2 movies; you are better off buying the ones you love only.The only real star in this set is the first DVD; which is packed with alot of extra features (added/deleted scenes, movie score, screen tests, behind-the-scene documentaries, etc.) However, I wonder why they were unable to incorporate the deleted scenes back into the movie as they did with the added scenes (ran out of space on the DVD?). Even the short intro to the DVD menu of Superman the Movie was very nice to view. The other 3 DVD's to follow were VERY disappointing, especially after viewing the first DVD. All of them only offered a theatrical trailer to the movie and nothing else. Overall, this set is more for the hardcore Superman fan. P.S. If you loved the musical score to Superman; consider buying the 2 CD special edition set that is now available (comes with a small booklet). Also does anyone else remember a scene in one of the Superman movies where Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve) types very fast on the typewriter? A few my friends and I remember seeing this scene when we were kids, however, were unable to find out. :)
Rating: Summary: Only for die hard Superman fans Review: I bought this four pack DVD box set since I'm a die hard Superman fan. Yes, it saddens me that the last two films in the series aren't as good as the first two movies. The original film, though, was of course the one given the DVD Special Edition treatment. There's a lot of extra stuff on the Superman: The Movie Expanded Edition. Here they are: audio commentary by director Richard Donner and creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz, soundtrack remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1, music-only audio track, three behind-the-scenes documentaries with the cast & crew, deleted scenes, screen tests for Lois Lane, Ursa, and Superman, audio outtakes, two theatrical trailers, TV spot This is really one of the best DVDs that I have ever seen released. Truly stuff that movie fans want to see. I'm truly thrilled that one of the best films ever made got the DVD magic. For that alone, given the extra treatment that Superman: The Movie got, I rate this box set 5 stars! Also, get a copy of the 2 disc Superman: The Movie remastered soundtrack released by Rhino Records. This soundtrack includes previously unreleased material by composer John Williams, and who can't say that Williams' Superman theme is one of the best themes ever composed? As for the three Superman sequels, they all got their trailers as the bonus, and widescreen treatment. Sure, it's great to see them all in widescreen to see the maximum view of footage, but still I wish they got some extra bonuses of some kind. Superman II is a great sequel, but I wish something was done to see more of Richard Donner's footage as an extra bonus. Superman III is an awful film to watch (too much Richard Pryor and the silly campiness). Superman IV is actually more watchable in my opinion than part III, although it too is not great of a film, but I did like the nuclear disarmament theme used as the film's story plot (and it was great to see it in widescreen since I saw this film in the theaters back then). Of all the sequels I wished got some extra DVD treatment, I think the last film in the series, Superman IV: The Quest For Peace should have gotten it. The film has been available for all its existence as a 90 minute confusion, when actually there was an original 134 minute cut of the film shown in a test screening in early 1987. This version would have revealed there was an earlier Nuclear Man that Lex Luthor created, and more would have been revealed with Mariel Hemingway's character, and other loose plots that the 90 minute version failed to hide away. Superman IV may be the shortest film in the series, but I think Warner Bros. should have given it the Special Edition treatment on DVD as a true bonus for the general public to know, and for Superman fans to finally see. Rumors are that Superman IV's 134 minute cut has been destroyed, but I hope that isn't true. Maybe one day we will get to see it.
Rating: Summary: A SUPER-SET OF FILMS THAT BRING SUPERMAN TO LIFE. Review: Here you have the collection of the four Superman films in one neat package. The first two Superman films were the best with Superman 3 being ok and the fourth a bit of a flop. Superman The Movie comes fully packed with features with the other 3 only containing trailer and Cast and Crew biographys. SUPERMAN THE MOVIE focuses on the beginning of Superman how he came to Earth, his powers delevoped and how he grew up facing his arch enemy Lex Luther. SUPERMAN 2 the best Superman film in the series, focuses on the battle over the Super-villians of Krypton, General Zod, Ursa and Non and the love romance between Lois and Superman. SUPERMAN 3 focuses on Comedy and the battle between Superman and Super-computer. SUPERMAN 4 focuses on the polictal side of Superman with Superman ridding the world of nuclear war.
Rating: Summary: Superman Fans, Look Here!!! Review: For those of you who are crazy for Superman, this is where you should look for! Have seen many Superman casts over the years but Chris Reeve is definitely the best Superman ever!!! Not much comment over the settings, but Superman I & II are obviously the better movie than III & IV.
Rating: Summary: Superman Box Set Review: Wow. This series starts out great. Superman: The Movie. I remember watching this as a kid and just being floored. Superman brought to life, right out of the comics page. And the best part is this movie really works! And not just for kids! As presented on this DVD, Superman: The Movie includes 8 minutes of footage that was cut from the original film to present a flick that is even better than the original! In terms of quality all I can say is STUNNING! The film underwent restoration that has made it simply beautiful. The audio is equally great with great fidelity and just wonderful 5.1 surround. If that isn't enough, the DVD also includes commentary from director Richard Donner which is extremely informative and worthwhile. There is also an isolated music track so you can listen to John Williams beautiful score. Next is Superman: The Legacy, 11 pages of text discussing the superhero. Wait, there's more. Cast & crew info and an index of the additional scenes restored to the film where you can view the new material outside of the film itself. Then there's a list of awards the movie received and finally the theatrical trailer. Oh, but that was only side 1. Flip the disc over and you'll find even more! There's tons of great documentary material including Taking Flight: The Development of Superman, Making Superman: Film the Legend & The Magic Behind the Cape. Then there's a bunch of fun screen tests, two more deleted scenes, additional music cues, an interesting teaser trailer & a TV spot. Like I said, Wow. I can go on, but if you are a completist, there's no reason not to have this set. Obviously the sequels don't hold up as well but the set is well worth it.
Rating: Summary: A new set should be released with aspect ratios of 1.85:1 Review: This collection of the four Superman movies is pretty good overall. Some people though are complaining that the DVDs do not offer full screen formats. Although it is true that you do see more of the film when watching a widescreen version, I can sort of understand why some people prefer full screen. Those who just own a portable DVD player have more have a problem with this widescreen and full screen issue because the screen is usually very small. I've noticed that many widescreen movies that come with aspect ratios of 1:85:1 usually give the viewer the choice between widescreen and full screen. DVDs with aspect ratios of 2:35:1 don't seem to if your watching them on a fairly small portable DVD player. The movie is stretched, but not so far that the black bars are completely gone. Since most movies on DVD are now being shown with the 1:85:1 aspect ratio, you'd think the Superman films would be included. Maybe there are future plans for this.
Rating: Summary: Two fantastic movies, one enjoyable/dumb movie... and 4. Review: I cannot believe that there are people writing reviews about this product complaining that it's in widescreen format. If you care enough about a movie series to purchase a set like this, you should care enough about it to want to see the directors' entire vision, and fullscreen will never give that to you. Okay, enough about that tirade. This is a box set of the four Christopher Reeve Superman films, and if you've seen the movies you know what they are. The first one is the greatest superhero movie ever made (keep your Spiders and your X-folks), with the sole misstep coming in the painful "Can You Read My Mind?" sequence. Superman II was another great movie right up until a closing sequence that got kind of silly and signalled the downfall of the franchise. Superman III was really goofy, but enjoyable in the same way that a cheesy 50s-era sci-fi movie is enjoyable, and Superman IV is the antithesis of the first one -- a terrible movie with only a few good scenes (Clark on the farm at the beginning, Perry White at the end). The set, unfortunately, doesn't give you all the extras one could hope for. There's a ton of great stuff for Superman I -- screen tests, making-of features, alternate soundtracks (including a mode that allows you to watch the film with only John Williams' beautiful score playing). The other three movies? Zippo. Nada. No features at all. If you love Superman and you love these films (at least the first two), then get this set. If you don't love all of the films enough to dish out for the moderately-entertaining III and the abysmal IV, you'd do better picking up the individual disks of I and II.
Rating: Summary: Full screen versions should be offered! Review: The DVD releases of the Superman movies do not seem to offer full screen versions of each film. As a Superman fan, I find it upseting that standard versions haven't been added to the DVDs. The four Batman movies offer full screen and widescreen, so why is Superman being excluded from this? Like many other people, I do not like watching widescreen movies. Since Warner Bros has been able to release DVDs that offer standard and widescreen versions to fit people's tastes, why can't it do the same with Superman? I also feel that the price of the Superman collection set should be lowered since it lacks this feature. People who enjoy the widescreen version probably feel that they're getting their money's worth. Those who prefer the full screen may not be.
Rating: Summary: Movies are classic, DVD treatment a let down Review: Let me emphasize that the movies are still classics, and after more than 20 years, I still enjoy popping these in the DVD drive to get that superhero jolt going. Especially John Williams' soundtrack. He really made Superman the uplifting character in the movie that he is. Many times did I tie a blanket around my neck because of this movie when I was a kid! That being said, I bought this collection because it was at 36.00 (pretty cheap for 4 DVDs) and because I thought that, with such a shiny cover and with the words DVD on it, i'd be treated to a THX, remastered and digitally enhanced version of the old classic. I was wrong. As others have written, only the first movie is given a semi-treatment (it looks BARELY above VHS) and the other three look like a VHS that you've owned for a LONG TIME (even with popping black dots and hairs, like in the old movies!). For a DVD, that's not acceptable. I'm disappointed Warner Brothers! The music on the first is nicely done (if not the best ever digital treatment), but the other three are VHS quality (although that's harder to tell). But most importantly, I couldn't watch the movies without thinking to myself, "Wow, this DVD is not what I thought it would be". A customer shouldn't feel this way. He should feel happy with the product, and with other classics like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and new classics like the Lord of the Rings out there in amazing THX sound and digital enhancement, this DVD collection falls short of the standard for the DVD medium. If you don't have the movies and love them, get the collection. The movies are still worth it. But if you got VHS copies, skip this. Wait until Warner Brothers does the job RIGHT.
Rating: Summary: the complete superman collection Review: I bought this DVD set locally and immediately returned it. I will keep my VHS versions. I admit I should have checked "on-line" before buying it. It is widescreen. It does not say that on the the outside of the box. I only discovered that when I got it home. Even on my 27" TV, I found it very annoying that half of the screen was black. I had a LONG list of movies to buy on DVD, but this has certainly curtailed my enthusiasm. There should be full-screen options available too, and each DVD should state clearly which format it is in. Personally, I will not buy ANY widescreen movies on DVD. I DID buy "Spiderman", and it was full-screen, thankfully. I will perhaps confine my DVD buying to old TV shows like the Dick Van Dyke series (purchased here at amazon.com) which is, of course, full-screen, since it was originally on the tube anyway.
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