Movies
Superman II - Restored International Cut Reviewed
By Jeffrey Bridges
Part 1: In Prison
The first thing I noticed is that the RIC runs faster than the theatrical release. It's not noticeable at first, but over a five minute period of the exact same footage the RIC will be several seconds ahead of where the theatrical version is. It doesn't detract from the experience or anything, and I wouldn't have noticed if I wasn't watching the two versions side-by-side, but I thought it was at least worth mentioning.Before the movie even starts, there's a short dedication to Richard Donner.
Everything goes along exactly the same as the theatrical version until you get to the scene where Lois is on the bottom of the elevator on the Eiffel Tower. As soon as the first cop places his plastic explosives that will cause the elevator to fall, the movie cuts to a shot of the Concorde (which is an outtake from "Superman: The Movie"). We get a few shots of the plane flying by, and then we're in the cockpit with the pilots. Superman flies by the window for a second and one of the pilots turns to the other and says "Hey, look!" in a French accent.
Superman looks at them, and then zooms off, doing a horizontal spin through the sky. The pilot sighs in amazement, and now we're back to the second cop placing his plastic explosives.
The next difference comes when we get to the prison and the conversation between Lex Luthor and Otis in the prison laundry room. Here's how it goes in the theatrical release:
OTIS: He flies off.
LEX: Where?
OTIS: North.
LEX: Why?
OTIS: To ski?
LEX: Otis... every man has his vulnerable point. Some, like you, Otis, have more than one.
Well, here's what you get in the RIC:
OTIS: He flies off.
LEX: Where?
OTIS: North.
LEX: Why?
OTIS: To ski?
LEX: Otis... your brain defies any known scientific laws in its infinite capacity to deteriorate.
[Otis nods.]
LEX: Every man has his vulnerable point. Some, like you, Otis, have more than one.
We get more omitted lines right after Lex explains his "little black box" to Otis. Theatrical:
LEX: It tracks alpha waves.
OTIS: Ohh... alpha waves.
[Lex walks off a few steps.]
LEX: Those alpha waves will take me north... to his secret. And his secret... will give me Superman.
And in the RIC:
LEX: It tracks alpha waves.
OTIS: Ohh... alpha waves. Hm.
LEX: I could have said it tracked pasta fazoli, couldn't I?
OTIS: Oh, with garlic, Mr. Luthor... and that butter! Oh, it's so good.
[Lex walks off a few steps.]
LEX: Those alpha waves will take me north... to his secret. And his secret... will give me Superman.
[Lex looks down at the sheet he's holding and scowls.]
LEX: Slasher Fogelstein's a bed-wetter.
[He flings the sheet at Otis and walks off]
[Otis looks disgusted by the sheet and walks over to where the laundry is hanging. He leans in.]
OTIS: Slasher Fogelstein's a bed-wetter. Pass it!
[A burly looking man with a big moustache pushes the clothes out of the way and glares at Otis, who looks quite perturbed.]
OTIS: Hi Mr. Fogelstein!
The next difference comes during the second scene in Mission Control, right after the three Kryptonian criminals have killed all the astronauts on the moon. Let's call these two guys Cliff and Scientist. Their dialogue in the theatrical:
CLIFF: What's a "curl"?
SCIENTIST: Isn't that what the old Canaveral guys used to call a comet with an East-West trajectory?
CLIFF: How should I know? I was back in high school in those days.
[The scientist smirks.]
And the RIC:
CLIFF: What's a "curl"?
SCIENTIST: Isn't that what the old Canaveral guys used to call a comet with an East-West trajectory?
CLIFF: How should I know? I was back in high school in those days.
SCIENTIST: You're looking old for your age.
[Cliff gives him an annoyed look.]
SCIENTIST: Well it looks like, uh, normal electrical interference.
CLIFF: All right, which one of you guys is using a hair dryer?
[The scientist smirks.]
And our next difference comes as Lex and Otis are making their prison break. Just after the spotlight passes over them, the theatrical goes like this:
LEX: Go out there and find it.
OTIS: What am I looking for?
LEX: You'll know when you see it.
OTIS: Psht.
[Lex scowls, and Otis goes off in search of the ladder.]
And the RIC, just after the spotlight passes over them:
[Lex elbows Otis, and they continue moving along the wall.]
[Otis lags behind, and is suddenly alone. He steps out into the open as a spotlight crosses him.]
OTIS: Mr. Luthor?
[Lex's hand comes from behind a corner and yanks Otis behind cover. Otis yelps.]
OTIS: How're we gonna get over that wall?
LEX: How'd we get in here?
OTIS: We flew in here, don't you remember?
LEX: That's how we're gonna get out.
OTIS: On no! Not that guy again.
[Lex mumbles something at him. Ms. Tessmacher calls from off-screen.]
MS. TESSMACHER: Psht.
LEX: Did you just go "psht"?
OTIS: I wish I had, Mr. Luthor, before we left.
MS. TESSMACHER: Psht.
LEX: Not that "psht", *that* "psht".
OTIS: Oh.
MS. TESSMACHER: Psht.
LEX: Psht?
OTIS: Psht!
LEX: Don't go "psht" when I go "psht"!
[Otis nods and mumbles.]
MS. TESSMACHER: Psht.
LEX: Psht?
[We see Ms. Tessmacher leaning over the edge of the balloon basket.]
MS. TESSMACHER: Psht.
[Cut back to Lex and Otis.]
LEX: Go out there and find it.
OTIS: What am I looking for?
LEX: You'll know when you see it.
OTIS: Psht.
[Lex scowls, and Otis goes off in search of the ladder. Once he finds it and Lex climbs aboard, he takes about twice as long pulling the balloon down here as he does in the theatrical version. There's also extra time spent with Otis getting harassed by the police and their guard dogs as Lex and Ms. Tessmacher fly over the prison wall unnoticed.]
Thus concludes the first portion of the review.