Scene of the Week: Mayhem in Metropolis
In honor of Super Bowl 50 (or do I have to say “the big game”?), I felt that this week’s Scene of the Week should be super too… or in this case, a scene from the movie Superman II.
The follow up to the granddaddy of all superhero blockbusters was not without controversy. Richard Donner, who did a masterful job directing the 1978 original and was simultaneously shooting a good portion of the sequel, was unceremoniously dumped by the producers of the Superman franchise and replaced with director Richard Lester, who had to re-shoot a percentage of the footage so he could get the directing credit. Lester’s re-shoots, would ultimately alter the original vision Donner had for the sequel.
In 2006, in conjunction with the release of Superman Returns, Donner’s vision of Superman II was released on Blu-ray as Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut. It was touted as “The Version You Have Never Seen” and featured scenes that were shot by Donner but not used. Many Superman fans began referring to the original release of Superman II from 1980 as Superman II: The Richard Lester Cut.
In this week’s Scene of the Week, I have selected one of my favorite scenes from both movies… the showdown in the streets of Metropolis between Superman and the three Kryptonian criminals he unwittingly set free… the monstrous Non, the sadistic Ursa and their leader, General Zod!
This clip is actually a fan made re-cut, featuring scenes from both versions of the film…
