Superman: The Movie

 Directed by: Richard Donner

Starring: Christopher Reeve,

Margot Kidder

and Gene Hackman

Rating: 6 of 8

Superman: The Movie

''You'll believe a man can fly''. That was the promise of 1978's Superman: The Movie and even though later iterations were much better at that, one thing this absolutely aces is it's hero's humanity. It's one of the most imporant parts of any Man of Steel and it's something both Jeff East (the teenage Clark Kent) and Christopher Reeve easily realize.

Though even before that, the young Clark's already showing a remarkable degree of it, by saving his adoptive father, Jonathan Kent (filled with warmth and faith by Glenn Ford). It's here I can't help but wonder if being heroic isn't less down to how he was raised and more just who he is. 

But, despite all his incredible feats of strength, he couldn't save his father. Not from a tornado, or a bullet, but a heart attack. It perfectly illustrates just how fallible he really is. But for every hero, there must come a villain to match him. Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) proves to be that foe and what he lacks in brawn, he certainly makes up for in brains.

But instead of using it to help humanity, he only uses it to his own twisted ends. Despite having such a talented actor playing him, though, Luthor's lacking a few of his most defining characteristics. Instead of being fueled by a desire to prove himself Superman's better, he's fueled simply by greed - and though that's often one of his motivations, it's not the only one. 

Besides that, he's not bald for most of the film, which is disappointing, as that, too, is one of his most memorable characteristics. He's also surrounded by too many comic sidekicks for me to find believable of someone like him. 

Other than Reeve, Margot Kidder is easily one of the best parts of the film. She fills Lois Lane with the exact amount of vim and vigour that you'd expect, while also instilling her with some touching vulnerability. Around Superman, she brims with an awkwardness that you rarely get to see and she fills the Can You Read My Mind? scene with the right amount of sweetness and sincerity.

In other hands, it could've come off as saccharine, but thanks to her, Donner and a few others, it was just right. It's around here that we get to see just how Clark really feels about her, which is shown both through their flight and it's playfullness and when he considers telling her who he really is.

Though there are a multitude of memorable characters, there's few quite as memorable as the ones Superman encounters on his first night out. Between a wall climbing thief that he mischievously trounces, a man who praises his ''bad outfit!'' and a pilot who urges his partner to ''just fly'', there's no shortage of colourful characters to make the film all the better for having them.

Overall, this is just a fantastic film that, despite it's flaws, delivers one of the greatest renditions of the Man of Steel. Filled with pathos and emotional sincerity, this a film that will last forever.