http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=23943
This was the real surprise of the panel. Singer introduced Richard Donner, who sat with him on some questions and then segued into a nice long clip from SUPERMAN 2, that Donner cut everybody's been talking about. He said that the internet fans are what convinced Warner Bros to put the money into compiling and cleaning up all the footage and cutting it together. The scene he brought is what he called a pivotal scene in the second film where Lois figures out Clark's secret in the Daily Planet. He used this scene to audition and it was Christopher Reeve's reading of this scene that got him the role.
There was some talk of portions of this sequence not existing and that some of the footage in the edit is from the filmed screen test, which had a mousey-haired Christopher Reeve with black shoe polish in his hair and missing about 25 pounds of muscle. I think that's what he said, but I didn't see it in the cut, so maybe I got that mixed up somehow.
It starts with Perry White walking through the Daily Planet reading a story about the capture of Lex Luthor by Superman and how his bomb plan had been foiled by Supes... "story by Lois Lane, picture by Jimmy Olsen... Ah, Luthor. You never looked lovelier," referring to a mug shot of the bald Hackman in prison stripes. Jimmy and Lois are talking, she's sitting at her desk. Jimmy looks up and says, "Oh, there's Mr. Kent! Bet you he wishes he had been around when it all happened." Lois: "Clark's never around when Superman's here..." Realization hits her. Clark is standing across the room, shooting a few worried glances towards Lois and Jimmy. He's being cornered by some Chatty Kathy.
Lois looks down at her paper, a photo of Superman is in it. She takes out a marker and draws glasses on him, a business suit around his super suit and hat on his head. She looks up and smiles. The whole time Clark has been trying to get away from this conversation and is looking worried. Lois whistles, she's got it! At that moment, Perry White calls, "Lane! Kent! Get in here!"
Clark says (to the chatty kathy) "Oh, dear me. Now I'm in trouble. Next time don't do that to me!" Lois throws some "super" remark at Clark as they enter Perry's office. White says Clark was late. "Sorry, Mr. White. I, uh... got stuck in traffic." Lois smirks. "Oh, that's a new one." "Excuse me?" "I mean as opposed to 'I was stuck in a phone booth' or 'I was locked in a bathroom'" Clark, "What are you talking about?" Perry interrupts. "If you two want to bicker, that's great. I have just the assignment for you. You're going to pose as a honeymoon couple in Niagra Falls to get an expose on the newlywed racket. Some of those motels are bilking those poor kids for every cent they can get! Real human interest stuff. Makes your Aunt Hattie cry her eyes out. Clark, "Um..." Lois, "That is a great idea, Mr. White!"
Clark, "Um, I'm doing a series on the city counsil..." Lois, "Oh, it wouldn't take long. We could fly right up there... you know... Superman..." Perry, "Good! See if he can give you a ride, it'll save a couple of bucks. 6 good photographs and that kid's hitting me up for a raise already!" Perry leaves the two alone. Clark, to Lois, "My goodness, you look like the cat who has swallowed the canary this morning." Lois, "Canary? No, I was thinking of something bigger. Something that flies..." Clark fumbles some more and Lois shows him her artful rendition of Superman in Clark get-up.
Lois, "You know I didn't start putting this together until this morning, which is really strange because a good reporter isn't supposed to let anything slip by them." Clark tries to laugh it off. She describes Superman. "Let's see... Tall... broad shoulders," Clark slumps down. "I have to give you credit. You had me fooled and I am nobody's fool, Superman." "You mean... you think I'm Superman?" Again he tries to laugh it off. Lois, "I'm willing to bet my life on it," she says as she opens Perry's window. "Lois! What're you doing!?!"
"You wouldn't let me die, Superman!" and she jumps out of the window. Clark speed runs through the Planet's office, whooshing up papers and blowing past all the reporters, but he's moving so fast they don't see him. He's in front of the building in a second. Lois is still falling. He uses his super breath and slows her fall. At the same time he uses his heat vision to burn through a lock that's holding a nice cloth sidewalk cover in place. It pops out and he super blows again, slowing her fall one more time just before she hits the cover and bounces off, right onto a fruit stand. Like breaking through the wooden thing. He super runs back up and when Lois looks up, covered in watermelon, Clark's looking out the window worried.
That was the scene. Looked great, seeing an alternate reality from the one I know. It was good seeing new Christopher Reeve Clark/Superman scenes. Anyway, there you have it. One more super large day in the works. Be back early tomorrow!
-Quint
