Superhero Films – Superman III (1983)

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A review of the 1983 superhero sequel Superman III starring Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Annette O’Toole and Robert Vaughn

Superman 3 Christopher Reeve Richard Pryor

Look up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s….Richard Pryor???

Christopher Reeve returns as the Man of Steel in his third big screen adventure!

Having saved the world from General Zod, sending Lex Luthor to prison and making Lois Lane forget all about he wears a red cape when he leaves the Daily Planet, things seem to have settled down in Metropolis. That is until a new threat emerges.

Gus Gorman, an out of work citizen discovers he’s actually a computer genius. This is actually a very lucrative skill, considering everything from coffee machines to traffic lights to the world’s defense systems are controlled by computers. Gus teams up with powerful CEO Ross Webster who has his sights at ruling the world. There’s plenty of cash to made by doing that!

Meanwhile Clark heads back to Smallville, makes a little time with his high school crush Lana Lang, meets her son Ricky and encounters the old school bully and Lana’s former flame Brad. However Supes, still manages to foil every scheme Webster and Gus come up with.

Superman 3 drunk drinking Christopher ReeveAngered over Superman spoiling his plans, Webster ups the stakes and decides Supes has to be gotten rid of. Now Superman will be facing some man-made kryptonite and a powerful super computer that looks unbeatable.

Can Superman save the world again? Will Gus settle into his evil ways? Can Lana ever manage to drum up enough courage and leave Smallville? And where is Lois Lane during all this???

Directed by Richard Lester (with Richard Donner having absolutely no hand in any of this), Superman III takes a much lighter, comedic approach to the Superman saga. It would have to considering Superman stars alongside one of the funniest comedians of all time. But the real question is – does it work?

Starring Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Robert Vaughn, Annette O’Toole, Pamela Stephenson, Annie Ross, Gavan O’Herilhy, along with returning cast members Jackie Cooper, Marc McClure and Margot Kidder, I take a look at 1983’s Superman III.

Superhero Films – Chap. 23: Superman III from HaphazardStuff on Vimeo.

5 thoughts on “Superhero Films – Superman III (1983)

    1. Not exactly new just a re-posted one. I've begun re-posting some of my older videos that I had on BlipTV on Vimeo since my Blip account is set to be deleted. Thought while I was at it to make an entry of it on my blog.

  1. Are You Ever Going To Review 'Superman-4'? A Few Years After It Came Out 'WB' Annonced There Was Going To Be A 'Superman'-5! I Think Christopher Reeve Was Actually Interested At 1st But It Fell Through. I Remember That He Was On 'Latenight-Talk-Shows' Being Interviewed If The Question About 'Superman-5' Came Up And Was Going Play 'Superman' Again He Would Say 'No Way'! I Even Saw A 'Newspaper-Article' About It Once.

    1. Hap's getting to it, but I don't think it's the next one. The whole "Superman 5" thing was really the producers at GolanGlobus actually believing that the excised footage from "Superman IV" would be utilized and make a whole new movie. According to screenwriter Mark Rosenthal, whose honestly makes the "Superman IV" commentary worth listening to, this idea clearly showed how far from reality the producers really were. "Superman IV" may be one of the worst of the Superhero Movies, certainly the worst of "Superman" movies….but the truth is I would rather watch it than MAN OF STEEL. At least it's short! 🙂

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