The Best Movie Ever | Superman

You will believe a man can fly, but would you believe that after all these years, there still doesn’t seem to be a definitive Superman movie? 

This week on The Best Movie Ever, we’ve asked our stable of critics – Crave’s William Bibbiani and Witney Seibold, and Collider’s Brian Formo – to look back on the history of Superman cinema and decide once and for all which of the hero’s movies is officially the best. Naturally, they can’t agree on a damned thing, but at least one of their selections may surprise you. (And no, none of them are Batman v Superman, in case you hadn’t guessed.)

Also: What’s the Best Batman Movie Ever…?

Check out which movies they picked, let us know your favorites, and come back next Wednesday for another all-new installment of The Best Movie Ever!

Witney Seibold’s Pick: Superman: The Movie (1978)

Warner Bros.

Is this something that even needs discussing? Richard Donner’s 1978 epic Superman: The Movie is, even in the over-saturated age of hyperactive superhero mainlining, the golden standard by which all other superhero films should be based. While the mechanics of super-beings in tights have become second-nature to many modern audiences, Superman still stands apart. He is the purest, the cleanest, the simplest. His origins have the whiff of the Biblical about them (Superman’s story is Moses retold, right down to his name, Kal-El, being Hebrew for “vessel of God”). And, culturally speaking, he is kind of a bedrock for all of our childhood fantasies. 

The word “myth” is bandied about in critical circles often, but it’s rare that it is used appropriately. Richard Donner’s 1978 film is grand and, yes, mythic. It transfers all that we have learned about Superman from a general cultural osmosis, and presents it with the grandeur and power that the character has always had in our minds. This is a glorious, exhilarating film that still has the genuine power to wow even the most cynical of viewers. 

Modern audiences seem to prefer extended interlocking multi-film super-narratives these days, so Superman may, in retrospect, feel conceptually quaint to some. But sitting to watch the film, and being swept up in the larger-than-life visuals, the purity of vision, and John Williams’ wonderful soaring score, you will feel like you are seeing something significant.

That’s not something that can be said of many other superhero movies.

Brian Formo’s Pick: Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006)

Warner Bros.

Superman is a character that I’d say hasn’t gotten the proper treatment cinematically. His world—on both Krypton and Metropolis etc.—are so well known each filmmaker feels the need to deliver all of it to fans, all tidy, like a Greatest Hits album. As such, his films are character touchstones not too dissimilar from many faith-based films: reconfirming your belief in a savior. In addition, the combination of his goodie two-shoes sensibilities and his Looney Tunes physical abilities (to hurl destructive forces into outer space, for example) it’s hard to ground him as a character—without upsetting the flock.

Perhaps the most fascinating Superman film is Superman II—because there are two versions that highlight the divergent approaches to the character within the same story. I think that Richard Donner’s version (with Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, more action) is better because—with the slapstick removed—the stakes feel higher. It’s a tighter film, the action and the plot flows better. The big acting presence is maintained (Brando and Hackman were removed for legal reasons in Richard Lester’s theatrical cut), the father-son relationship is heightened, and Lois Lane challenges Superman (by jumping out a window). Yet, Lester’s theatrical film is also kinda fun, as it punctuates the action with comical exclamation points: an ice cream cone flies into another person’s face, a man continues talking in a phone booth that’s been knocked over, etc. Lester also shows Superman’s identity struggle not playing out with his father, but with his mother (Susannah York), removing the daddy issue subtext that’s all over Donner’s film.

Superman is a perfect comic book character who hasn’t been given a perfect film (yet). But Superman II is a great peek behind the celluloid curtain at a character, a studio, and two directors torn about how to best portray him: as a Christ figure or a supreme being. With Superman II‘s two versions you get both.

William Bibbiani’s Pick: Superman: Doomsday (2007)

Warner Premiere

You could take bits and pieces of all the live-action Superman movies and probably come up with a damn near perfect film: the reverent origin of Superman: The Movie, the charismatic villain of Superman II, Christopher Reeves’ underrated and nuanced performance in Superman III, the ambitious scope of Superman IV, the luscious photography of Superman Returns, the impressive visual effects of Man of Steel, and yes, even the fights from the otherwise cruddy Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Or, you could just watch one of several excellent straight-to-video animated features that get Superman just about right. Superman vs. The Elite is a stunner, effectively confronting all of Superman’s ideals and forcing him to live up to them in new and dangerous ways. All-Star Superman is wild and inventive and aspirational. But Superman: Doomsday actually improves on the comics, transforming the lame death and return of Superman into an unexpected, emotionally overpowering story about filling a void left by loss.

When Superman (voiced by Adam Baldwin) dies in a battle with Doomsday, Lois Lane (Anne Heche) is forced to confront her own fears of dependence and independence. Her confession to Clark Kent’s mother, Martha (Swoosie Kurtz), is heartbreaking. But more unexpected is how Lex Luthor (James Marsters) deals with the death of his foe: without a nemesis to define him, he resorts to cloning a new Superman, whom he can beat with his bare hands every night.

Challenging, intriguing, impressively animated and occasionally even goofy (Kevin Smith’s cameo is based on a righteously geeky in-joke), Superman: Doomsday delivers all of the goods. Action, moral conflict, and an awful lot of heart. I think it’s the best Superman movie ever.

Previously on The Best Movie Ever:

Top Photo: Warner Bros. / Warner Premiere