5.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Gus Gorman, a computer whiz starts working for a conglomerate intent on world domination. Gorman is sent to Superman's hometown of Smallville to destroy Columbia's coffee crop by tampering with the weather satellite. In addition, Gorman unwittingly develops a hybrid of red Kryptonite, which turns Superman into a variation Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Starring: Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Jackie Cooper, Annette O'Toole, Marc McClureAction | 100% |
Adventure | 83% |
Sci-Fi | 76% |
Comic book | 70% |
Fantasy | 59% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
German: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
Italian: Dolby Digital 2.0
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
Japanese: Dolby Digital Mono
English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Norwegian, Swedish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
4K Ultra HD
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Note: This version of this film is available as part of Superman I-IV 5-Film Collection 4K.
Both the small screen and big screen adaptations of Superman have had some notable tragedies, two of them rather weirdly involving
men
with rather similar last names, as has been discussed ad infinitum by some more devoted conspiracy theorists. George Reeves, beloved
star
of television's Adventures of Superman, met a rather
ignominious and some would argue mysterious end which decades later became fodder for its own film, Hollywoodland. Christopher Reeve of course was victim of a horrifying riding
accident
which left him paralyzed, a situation that probably inarguably led to his own early demise. Part of George Reeves' problem may have been that he
was so closely identified with the character of Superman that he felt he couldn't escape (few even remember his film career, which included a
memorable bit in the very first scene of Gone with the
Wind
). Christopher Reeve was able to evade if not totally elude the formidable shadow cast by the venerable superhero, which perhaps only added
to
the feeling of melancholy after his accident and later death. But even if Reeve was able to contribute rather memorable performances in
any number of non-Superman outings ranging from
Deathtrap to Somewhere in Time, in
his own way he'll probably be as firmly tethered to the character of Superman as George Reeve is/was, and this new collection of 4K UHD
presentations
of
four or five Christopher Reeve Superman films (depending on how you want to count things) should provide fans with some memories of
happier times when
things like Kryptonite seemed to be the only threats to safety and well being. Those happy memories may nonetheless be intermittently
interrupted by some kind of odd choices Warner has made with this release, which will be discussed in the various individual reviews.
Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc included in this release.
Superman III is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Warner Brothers Home Entertainment with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in
2.40:1. This is another case where I simply am not as impressed with Warner's old 1080 presentation as Ken was, and this is another case where if I
were feeling less charitable, I might even dock it another half point from where I have it set. With that in mind, I found this 4K presentation to be a
significant upgrade in both general palette saturation as well as detail, with the latter not always redounding to the viewing experience's benefit as this
film, like its siblings in this set, has a lot of old school composited special effects which the increased resolution of this format can't help but
show the seams of. That said, I was repeatedly struck by the intense saturation of large swaths of this presentation, even if occasional sequences, like
some office material with Clark and Lois, still looks slightly anemic with a much chunkier grain field. The "villain's lair" sequences, which in the 1080
version can look almost monochromatic due to the use of so many gray tones, are quite a bit more colorful in this version, with HDR helping to give a
bit of silver highlights to some of the backgrounds. Primaries are especially impressive in this
presentation's best moments, with blues and reds looking extremely vibrant. Grain is somewhat variable, once again due at least in part to the surplus
of opticals the films offers, but I'd say by and large this has one of the more consistently tight looking grain fields in the Superman set. Our
Forum has some comments about this version's brightness fluctuations, but I have to say in revisiting the 1080 version in preparation for writing about
this version, I found that older transfer to have much more noticeable variances than this new one.
Superman III offers another Dolby Atmos track in place of the old 1080 disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, and this disc, like Superman II 4K, also offers a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 option in place of the older 5.1 track, since my assumption is someone at Warner decided the Atmos track was the "go to" track for most. This is another interesting Atmos experience, in that it at least occasionally shows some increased verticality, as in the very opening clamor of background noise at the DMV, but which may not consistently offer that much of a difference when compared to the old 5.1 track. This still has some really nicely immersive moments, many of course due to Superman's heroics and the sound effects that attend to them, and John Williams' memorable score also regularly engages the surround channels. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional subtitles in several languages are available.
4K UHD Disc
Superman III can be a lot of fun if it's simply accepted on its own kind of slapsticky, lowbrow comedy, merits. This 4K UHD presentation offers generally secure technical merits, and ports over previously available supplements.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1980
1987
1941-1943
1978
2006 Original Release
2006
The Richard Donner Cut
1980-2006
Cinematic Universe Edition
2015
2013
2011
Cinematic Universe Edition
2012
2004
2019
Cinematic Universe Edition
2019
w/ Raphael Statue
2014
2009
2017
Extended and Theatrical versions
2011
2013
2016
2005