History Film / Superman

--> (standing sideways on a building as a burglar climbs up it with suctions cups) Hi there! Something wrong with the elevator?

* BaldOfEvil: Played for laughs by Gene Hackman, who wears a series of unconvincing wigs until whipping off the last one to reveal his baldness during his final rant after Superman dumps him in prison.

* KickTheDog: Luthor shoving a detective in front of a subway train.

%%We really don't need a page quote of what's clearly visible on the poster.

Produced (concurrently with its first sequel) in the late 1970s and released in 1978, ''Superman'' almost wasn't even made, since the studio feared it would be two hours of campiness in the vein of the 1960s ''{{Franchise/Batman}}'' [[{{Series/Batman}} TV series]]. Once a screenplay written by Mario Puzo (''Film/TheGodfather'') was approved, Richard Donner was hired to direct and history was made. Part of what Donner did to make it so good was his commitment to verisimilitude, an artistic ambience to the story that makes the whole SuperHero concept feel real on a gut level. The fact that it employed innovative visual effects to make Superman's flying look convincing helped further that goal as well.

* DeadpanSnarker
** Miss Teschmacher

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Given to Superman by Lex Luther right after the Kryptonite is revealed.
-->'''Lex:''' You were great in your day, Superman. But it just stands to reason. When it came time to cash in your chips, this old "diseased maniac" would be your banker. [[SmugSnake Mind over muscle?]]

-->'''Superman:''' You diseased maniac! You think you can hide it from me by encasing it in lead? ''Throws Luthor across the room.'' I'l mold this box into your prison bars.

-->''Superman opens the box to find Kryptonite in a chain.''

* HumansAreSpecial: "They're a great people, Kal-El, they can be. They only need the light to show the way."

The film was followed by 1980's ''SupermanII'', 1983's ''SupermanIII'', and 1987's ''SupermanIV'', as well as the related (and unsuccessful) 1984 spinoff ''{{Film/Supergirl}}''. The last two films did poorly with critics and the box office, which caused a planned fifth film to sit in DevelopmentHell for nearly two decades. Writers and directors such as TimBurton and KevinSmith attempted to reboot the franchise with their own unique takes, but had no success in convincing Warner Bros. to greenlight the project. In 2006, the fabled fifth film was finally released: ''SupermanReturns'', both a sequel and a SpiritualSuccessor to the first two films, was released, directed by BryanSinger of the ''Film/XMen'' film series fame. Unfortunately, the film proved too slavish a retread of the Donner film's plotting and BrandonRouth just could not emerge out of Reeve's shadow; it became a disappointment that finally killed the series.

-->'''Luthor:''' Don't touch that!

* Facepalm: After Lex describes what Kryptonite can do and how to find it, Eve and Otis go off on a tangent about what to wear to Addis Abbaba. Lex's expression says it all.

* AscendedExtra: This adaptation gave Jor-El unprecedented importance in Superman's origin story beyond just blasting him off to Earth by making Superman's superhero career [[MessianicArchetype a messianic mission]] bestowed by Jor-El as God-figure. Jor-El sends Kal-El forth to use his powers as TheParagon for humans, "the light to show them the way to greatness". His VirtualGhost charges Clark to become Superman and trains him for 12 years. In the comics and most other adaptations since, Jor-El had nothing to do with Clark becoming Superman. Jor-El sent his son to Earth simply to save his life, with no lofty intentions for humanity. Earth was chosen simply because it was habitable and Kal-El would [[HumanAliens fit right alongside humans.]] The awesome powers were a bonus, and Clark becoming Superman was all due to him being a morally upright, [[ComesGreatResponsibility responsible man]] as raised by the Kents.

* RetCanon

A DarkerAndEdgier reboot of the film franchise, ''Film/ManOfSteel'', was released in 2013, to generally decent box office success and reviews. A second planned film, a CrossOver co-starring the {{Batman}}, was announced at Comic-Con in July 2013.

A DarkerAndEdgier reboot of the film franchise, ''Film/ManOfSteel'', was released in 2013.

* HoldingOutForAhero: According to Jor-El, Superman needs a SecretIdentity to both protect his loved ones and to prevent humans from becoming overly dependent on him, expecting him to solve all their problems.

A DarkerAndEdgier reboot of the film franchise, ''Film/ManOfSteel'', is set for release in 2013.

** Or the Earth was spinning backwards from Superman's perspective as he traveled faster than the speed of light in order to travel back in time. Thus he can stop both rockets in time because there are now two of him present until the one who didn't go to save Lois [[TimeyWimeyBall goes back in time to complete the loop and save her life again (off-screen of course).

* CrystalSpiresAndTogas: Planet Krypton is portrayed this way, as [[ShoutOut a homage]] to pulp science fiction.

-->'''Lex:''' Miss Teschmacher, when I was five years old my father said to me-

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Superman spins like a top while drilling into Lex Luthor's underground lair and flies around the Earth to make it spin backwards and turn back time.

* IronicEcho: Luthor throws the phrase "diseased maniac" back in Superman's face as he's suffering from exposure to kryptonite.

* ExpositionBeam: Jor-El's essence subjects an 18-year-old Clark to 12 years of training by [[NeuralImplanting beaming the sum of his knowledge into his brain]]. At the end of which Christopher Reeve debuts wearing the costume.

''Superman'' had a star-studded cast -- ''except'' for the two main characters. Casting the titular hero was a real hunt, but the studio hit the jackpot with Creator/ChristopherReeve, who is likely the best actor ever to play the role. ([[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIaF0QKtY0c Watch the scene where he transitions between the character's identities on camera in Lois' apartment if you need convincing.]]) Finally, composer JohnWilliams supplied a grand score that gave the story a powerfully majestic heroic tone to the story, even while it didn't take itself too seriously.