Superman: The Movie The Official Christopher Reeve as Superman Appreciation Thread

100% on board with this! he was,and always will be, Superman in my eyes. everyone else who's followed walk/fly in his shadow...

 

I agree 100%

 

R.I.P. Mr. Reeve and happy 60th birthday. Though you've been taken from this world. Your portrayal of Superman will still live on.

 

Indeed, happy birthday to him. He truly defined what it means to be Superman in and out of the costume.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zqhm7YD6kg&feature=related



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXYj8nChItw&feature=related



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJG966L6vTc&feature=relmfu



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rvd-BojBum4&feature=relmfu



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ysKXEvr6Ow&feature=relmfu



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyXCJrLkzFk&feature=relmfu



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8wckSpNNk



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsGB-jnHZKw

 

I watched Superman: The Movie last weekend, and I was struck at how charming and elegant he seemed in the role. He owned it completely.

 

I used to have that DC special! No idea what happened to it though.

I was 14 when I saw Superman The Movie at my local cinema. I really believed a man could fly after coming out of the theatre.

Christopher Reeve is, was and always shall be Superman for me. And this is coming from someone who is looking forward to seeing Henry Cavill as the Man of Steel.

 

Well Reeve just looked like Superman so obviously there will be quite a few incarnations of the characters that he will resemble.

Anyway, nice topic, even though Reeve doesn't really need an ´´appreciation`` he's already appreciated by all! t: I hope.

But I will say this, as much as I love him as Superman, I am not a big fan of putting him on a pedestal that supposedly nobody can reach.

There are many great version of Superman in the 75 years of history, from many great artists. Many of them are equally great but different. Like I love - among others - Curt Swan's (mid-to late Silver and Bronze age Swan) Superman, Jim Lee's Superman in For Tomorrow and Alex Ross Superman. They are all different visually (aside from the basics) and they all exhume different personality traits, because that's what a great artist does, breaths life into the drawing. Swan's Superman is more jovial, Ross's is more introspective and Lee's more intense, to put it very basically.

So my point? Well, the same can apply to the movies. Christopher Reeve was awesome in HIS version of Superman, and nobody could put on THAT suit and do what he did any better. But there is room (A LOT of room) on the throne for more than just Reeve. So I just hope that Cavill and whoever succeeds won't get unfairly compared to the late, great Reeve, but be judged on their own merits.

 

It always struck me how much weight Chris had in his face when playing Superman. This made him look so much more authentic/iconic because his face was more square than before he had bulked up.

The man embodied Superman like no other actor has or ever will.

 

Hi,

I'm 46 today and I believe I may have been like 6 or 7 when I first "met" Superman on a used comic stand. So that makes me a fan for like 40 years... It's incredible - I have surpassed Superman's age (he's always 30...er...except for KC and some other imaginary stories - now called ElseWorlds).
Nothing will ever change what Superman has meant/means to me but...
In these latter years - I ABSOLUTELY love Somewhere In Time. A beautiful tale of love with a beautiful soundtrack. Driven by love - Reeve still had his kindness and in my little mind - sometimes I feel that this is a Superman imaginary story or a Superman ElseWorlds story where he is in the past with no powers and falls in love - and that superpower or no superpowers it is always love that wins in the end...just like Christopher Reeve in real life who was full of love till the end... Superman is my hero but I think that Superman's hero is Christopher Reeve...

 

I remember watching the 1978 Superman film when i was 5 and it made me want to be involved in film and cinema. Christopher Reeve was just amazing as Kal-El.

 

I think my love for comic book collecting and artistic talent came from watching Superman The Movie, man he was my favorite and still is, I had everything from the Underroos, the MEGO dolls, lunchbox, pajamas.

Christopher Reeve just literally stepped off the comic book page and looked like him.

 

I watched all the Reeve films again recently. Whilst they've started to get dated in terms of the effects, campy humour and dubious plotlines, there is absolutely no disputing how fantastic Reeve was as both Superman and Clark Kent.

Looks wise, he was pretty much perfect. Tall (6"4), muscular, broad shouldered, broad chest, thick neck. He looked intimidating to bad guys, yet still had the perfect face and mannerisms for appearing friendly to everyone else. He also wasn't that big that he couldn't slip into his Clark Kent persona convincingly.

Speaking of which, his transitions between Superman and Clark Kent were a joy to watch. He was effectively acting 2 roles in this film, not 1, - he was either playing Superman, or (arguably) playing Superman playing Clark Kent. Clark was bumbling, nervous, mild-mannered, clumsy, socially awkward ............ everything that Superman wasn't. Reeve was so convincing as Clark that at times you forget it's all an act, until you see a great scene like the one in Superman II where Lois discovers who he is. He turns his back to her and suddenly his entire posture changes - the slouch disappears, he straightens himself, and it's almost like he gains 2 inches in height and a whole new attitude.

As fantastic as Reeve was, his time - unfortunately - has passed, and I'm all for a new take on the character. We have to move on - trying to emulate Reeve's performance will never work, as he was the pinnacle of Superman casting. You can't improve on him, and any attempt to copy him will always come off as a poor imitation. They tried it in Superman Returns, and it didn't really work. It's time for a new approach now, and with that in mind I'm very interested to see what Snyder and Cavill can do.

For anyone interested, there are some really fantastic photos of Reeve as Superman over at capedwonder.com - behind the scenes, off set, etc. Many I never saw before until I looked on that site.

Screentest -


Having a rest between takes -

 

excellent post!

was actually gonna say something similar, how Reeve,so far,is the ONLY actor to ever convince me the Clark Kent disguise could work. his posture,voice,mannerisms,and hairstyle all contributed to this,being completely different from Kal-El,topped off by a huge pair of glasses that almost seemed to change the shape of his face. all these other guys just put on the glasses, and we were supposed to believe no one could see through it. hell,most talked in the same tone of voice whether being superman or Clark at the time!!