Superman II Which Superman II is Best?

[Frontier]

Theatrical or Donner Cut?

If you've not seen both, don't vote!

(If you've not seen both, you shouldn't be on these forums, frankly!) t:

 

[BH/HHH]

Donner Cut for me, I mean its not a finished ilm unfortunately but for the Marlon Brando scenes alone it is better than the lester cut which I find very goofy.

 

[Fudgie]

Donner cut is way better.

 

[El Payaso]

I'd love to see tghe actual Donner SII. But the one that was released, while absolutely interesting, is a half-done job. It takes forever to have Superman in it, and it's just for the quick Niagara falls. I think Lester's SII with the Paris scene was a better way to start.

 

[Ponyboy]

I was blown away by the Donner cut. The only thing that takes me out of the movie is the scene with Lois and Clark where they used the early footage from Superman 1. They look so much different physically that it kinda throws you for a loop. Otherwise, it was fab!

 

[Dark Raven]

There should be a 3rd option in this poll if you think they're about the same, or you like some parts of one better than the other, and vice versa.

I think the Paris bomb (not referring to any of Hilton's movies ) brings Superman into the story earlier and we get to see him in action.

I'm not too keen on the ending of the Donner cut where Superman spins the world on its axis. Although it was originally meant to be here and not in Superman 1, I didn't even like it in that film. It feels like a deus ex machina.

However, I don't like the Super kiss at the end of the Lester cut either. I'm not too sure how they would get round Lois knowing though. I would personally say let Lois in on the secret. That would get round the need for any roundabout ways to solve that. Also, let the world still suffer the devastation of the Kryptonians without Superman needing to repair it.

 

[Godman]

donner's was good, but the spinning the world again is horrible business.

 

[El Payaso]

The SII time-reversing is even awfuler than ion STM. In STM it meant to save Lois, in SII just means that the WHOLE movie never happened.

 

[Indy Flash]

Donner cut hands down.

 

[Austin372]

When comparing the two films, I feel that the Richard Donner version told the story in a more cohesive manner. Richard Lester attempted to, but created a movie that had elements of slapstick comedy during key scenes.

 

[Dark Raven]

The SII time-reversing is even awfuler than ion STM. In STM it meant to save Lois, in SII just means that the WHOLE movie never happened.

Exactly. Knowing the destruction already caused by the Kryptonians at the time when Clark chose to become Superman again, he could've just spun the earth on its axis and not even bothered to fight them. It would've reversed the damage, sent the Kryptonians back to the Phantom Zone and recreated the Fortress of Solitude so that Jor-El wouldn't have died to save his son. In fact, he could use that method each time instead of actually fighting anyone.

 

[El Payaso]

Exactly. Knowing the destruction already caused by the Kryptonians at the time when Clark chose to become Superman again, he could've just spun the earth on its axis and not even bothered to fight them. It would've reversed the damage, sent the Kryptonians back to the Phantom Zone and recreated the Fortress of Solitude so that Jor-El wouldn't have died to save his son. In fact, he could use that method each time instead of actually fighting anyone.

Basically, yeah. Donner opened that door.

 

[Dark Raven]

In the Donner cut, Superman seems to be having sex with Lois before he is stripped of his powers. What's that about? If he could do that, then there was no need to relinquish them. He even flies about as Clark in one scene doesn't he?

I think the Donner cut is good for overall tone, but it does raise many more problems that weren't even there in the first place. Another one I thought of is that, since Superman has spun the world round, the bully in the diner scene becomes redundant. So Clark is just beating up on a random customer in the altered reality.

I think I would prefer a combination of the two films, but cutting out BOTH the spinning the earth ending from Donner and the super kiss from Lester.

 

[bullets]

It's kind of a paradox because Donner never got to make his film. I didn't like the Donner Cut aside from the beginning.

 

[cronosred]

I really can't pick between the two there are things I liked and disliked about both.

 

[KingKane88]

Omg oops!!! I accidentally voted for the Lester version, I meant to vote for the Donner Cut.

For me, the Donner cut answers questions I've always had with the theatrical version. There were also scenes in the Lester version which I do not understand why they took out, such as fight scenes, whitehouse footage, the cars flying into buildings when the villians are blowing the crowd of people away, etc. Donner cut is just a much more complete version of Sups 2.

Wish there was a way to fix my vote. Just add 1 to Donner and take 1 away from Theatrical. My bad.

 

[Dark Raven]

Omg oops!!! I accidentally voted for the Lester version, I meant to vote for the Donner Cut.

For me, the Donner cut answers questions I've always had with the theatrical version. There were also scenes in the Lester version which I do not understand why they took out, such as fight scenes, whitehouse footage, the cars flying into buildings when the villians are blowing the crowd of people away, etc. Donner cut is just a much more complete version of Sups 2.

Wish there was a way to fix my vote. Just add 1 to Donner and take 1 away from Theatrical. My bad.

They took out all those scenes because, in order for Lester to get directorial credit, he had to have at least 51% of his footage in the movie. So some of it was taken out or refilmed simply for that sake.

 

[Man of Steel]

Donner version sans time reversal.

 

[Comics N' Toons]

Donner version sans time reversal.

My thoughts exactly

 

[Lead Cenobite]

The Lester cut is a more complete movie, so I have to go with that. If I had a chance to see a completely finished Donner cut, with the full Niagra Falls sequence, villains destroying world monuments, and Mankiewicz-scripted Metropolis battle, it would probably win out. STM is just an overall more well made and timeless movie, and Donner's SII would have been more of the same. Lester's movies just feel old and depressing.

 

[Dark Raven]

The Lester cut is a more complete movie, so I have to go with that. If I had a chance to see a completely finished Donner cut, with the full Niagra Falls sequence, villains destroying world monuments, and Mankiewicz-scripted Metropolis battle, it would probably win out. STM is just an overall more well made and timeless movie, and Donner's SII would have been more of the same. Lester's movies just feel old and depressing.

What do you mean by the full Niagara Falls sequence? Are you talking about the Lois shooting Clark with blanks scene, or an extra scene actually at the Falls? Donner took out the bit with Lois throwing herself over the Falls for Superman to catch her, because that kind of scene had already happened at the beginning of the movie when she threw herself out of the Daily Planet.

 

[hopefuldreamer]

Personally I'd rather they left in her throwing herself over the falls and took out her throwing herself out the Daily Planet. That whole scene of her putting two and two together, confronting him and then testing her theory just seemed to fit better in that scene than her drawing the glasses and hat on him and launching herself out the office window.

And personally I hated the blanks thing. Prefer the hand in the fire.

Both are a bit silly, but I can more accept him panicking about picking up his glasses than not realising no bullet had actually come out of the gun.

Of course, there are things I wished they'd left out of the Lester version (plastic 's' thingy) and things I love about the Donner version (kiss at the end).

 

[Dark Raven]

Personally I'd rather they left in her throwing herself over the falls and took out her throwing herself out the Daily Planet. That whole scene of her putting two and two together, confronting him and then testing her theory just seemed to fit better in that scene than her drawing the glasses and hat on him and launching herself out the office window.

And personally I hated the blanks thing. Prefer the hand in the fire.

Both are a bit silly, but I can more accept him panicking about picking up his glasses than not realising no bullet had actually come out of the gun.

Of course, there are things I wished they'd left out of the Lester version (plastic 's' thingy) and things I love about the Donner version (kiss at the end).

This. Did he not realise that no bullet had bounced off his chest or ricocheted onto something else?

And which kiss at the end of the Donner version? You don't mean the memory wiping kiss from the Lester version?

Overall the tone of the Donner cut is better, especially eliminating some slapstick, but there are certain things which are definitely better about the Lester version. As much as I don't like the memory wiping kiss, it doesn't also wipe out the entire movie like the spinning the world on its axis scene.

 

[Vagosnati]

both was awfull movies

 

[hopefuldreamer]

And which kiss at the end of the Donner version? You don't mean the memory wiping kiss from the Lester version?

No, this one...

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