Superman 2 Donner Cut: Something I Just Noticed

[GeorgeKirk]

Okay, so the Donner Cut of Superman 2 uses the "flying around the Earth to reverse time" gag at the end to undo basically every event in the movie, and it's made clear that no one but Superman remembers what happens. (And we thought Star Trek invented the Reset Button!)

And after he does this, he goes back to the diner in northern Canada and gets revenge on that trucker who beat him up. Only because of the "time reversing" stunt he just pulled, the sequence of events that initially caused him to run afoul of the trucker never happened, so Superman is basically just beating up a guy for no reason!

Has anyone else noticed this?

[Saul]

Yeah I thought that was a bit strange too. But I thought maybe the fact that the guy is still an asshole was enough of a reason to kick the shit out of him.

[DonIago]

Yes.

While the Donner cut presents some interesting differences from the theatrical version, I suspect the perfect version of the film lies somewhere between the two.

[Biffette]

Yes. It is wierd and funny-bad. Glad to see I'm not the only one!

[Kirkman1987]

Yes, the end of Donner cut is a mess. This is because Donner never filmed an ending, and refused to use Richard Lester's.

As it stands, I think the Donner cut is vastly superior, but I think Donner should've used the Lester ending. I always miss the scene at the white house.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Perhaps the ending of the Donner cut resets events such that this time, it's the Lester cut that happens. So both cuts are 'canon'.

[DonIago]

When Superman resets time he actually travels into an AU...the Lesterverse!

[RandyS]

Saul wrote:

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Yeah I thought that was a bit strange too. But I thought maybe the fact that the guy is still an asshole was enough of a reason to kick the shit out of him.

Works for me.

[Nowhere Man]

RandyS wrote:

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Works for me.

I didn't notice that, but I think it's fair to say that Supes has consistantly dis liked pure assholes and iwould that maybe he knew that some bullies just need a good ass kicking in order to be taught a lesson. While it is uncharacteristic of him, he did pay for the damages. My favorite momentis Lois shooting Clark, much better than the fire scene. I justlove the movie period.

[Admiral Shran]

DonIago wrote:

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While the Donner cut presents some interesting differences from the theatrical version, I suspect the perfect version of the film lies somewhere between the two.

This sounds about right.

[Nardpuncher]

Saul wrote:

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Yeah I thought that was a bit strange too. But I thought maybe the fact that the guy is still an asshole was enough of a reason to kick the shit out of him.

that's what i was going to say!!

[23skidoo]

GeorgeKirk wrote:

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Okay, so the Donner Cut of Superman 2 uses the "flying around the Earth to reverse time" gag at the end to undo basically every event in the movie, and it's made clear that no one but Superman remembers what happens. (And we thought Star Trek invented the Reset Button!)

And after he does this, he goes back to the diner in northern Canada and gets revenge on that trucker who beat him up. Only because of the "time reversing" stunt he just pulled, the sequence of events that initially caused him to run afoul of the trucker never happened, so Superman is basically just beating up a guy for no reason!

Has anyone else noticed this?

I noticed it the first time, and frankly it nearly wrecked the film for me. It was a very sloppy bit of editing, and I honestly can't imagine this scene was placed there in the original plan, for the reasons you just stated.

Mind you, while I find it an interesting curiosity, I still find the Donner/Lester hybrid version of Superman II to be the far superior film, and not just because, logistically, the original release was the finished movie whereas the Donner cut is cobbled together. I mean, people complain about Lester adding the Metropolis street gags. But who added a toilet joke to the Fortress of Solitude that even Lester deleted?

I agree with the above statement that the "perfect version" lies somewhere between the two. Maybe someone will create such a version at a later date, using, for example, the more visually appealing (and more logical) Niagara Falls version of Lois' "suicide" attempt, while reinstating the Marlon Brando sequences, for example. And maybe tweaking the "FREEEEEEEEEEEE!" bit at the beginning which I thought was a bit silly.

Alex

[Broccoli]

GeorgeKirk wrote:

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Has anyone else noticed this?

Yep. It is another reason why I, personally, dislike the Donner cut. Superman going for what is basically revenge, on a guy is not what Superman would do. However, it adds to a humorous scene, so it can be taken at face value, since the trucker guy was clearly going to start shit again.

However, if you add the fact that the events with the trucker never took place, it just makes Superman out to be a total dick for no apparent reason.

The whole scene makes no sense in the Donner Cut.

But then again, Superman does have a legacy of being a dick, so maybe it does make sense.

[Steve Mollmann]

I think the "rewind time" ending works much better on the first film than the second. In the first, it's the whole crux of the story-- Superman needs to be in two places at once, but he can't. Ah, but he can, but only if he violates Kryptonian law. So he does, and chooses the American way over the Kryptonian one. It's the climax of his emotional journey and it's the only way out of the dilemma Lex has constructed.

In the second film, it's totally random. Superman's won-- why does he need to rewind time then? And if he is going to do it, why doesn't he just do it beforehand? Why does he need to beat Zod and company first?

[Ethros]

Yeah I thought exactly this when I first saw the Donner cut.

As others say, a perfect balance lies between the two. And which unrelated, is also my opinion on the Donnie Darko Directors Cut