It's a little off topic, but since I started this, I know it's okay. That whole movie was so sad, since it seems to me that all of the actors were really trying hard to make a good movie. Their performances were fine, and they tried to put heart into it. It could have been one of the best Superman movies, but TPTB just screwed it up something awful.
You're right, it wouldn't have taken much to make it a serious movie. Maybe then we might have had a few more movies out of the franchise.
That airplane rescue from Superman Returns. The bullet stop was nice as well, but it was also way too super. There's only that much of disbelief I can suspend.
My favorite moment involving Kryptonian powers in Superman Returns... Spoiler: Superman Returns ...doesn't involve Clark at all. "Brutus is dead. He got hit with...the piano."
I've always figured it was some type of self-induced telekinesis that allowed him to hover like that, but he's never really demonstrated psychic powers in his long history, as far as I can recall.
It must be widespread, then, because pretty much every other superhero (and villain) who can fly, also hovers!
I'll have to re-watch that scene, it's been so long since I've sat down to watch Superman: The Movie. It's one of the movies that is on Netflix Instant Viewing for a while, then off, then on again. Currently, it's not available, but the next time it's back, I might sit down to watch it again.
Actually, as I remember, when the movie was first released, it didn't feature the sequence of Superman walking through "Luthor's gauntlet" with the fire, bullets, and ice. The first time I saw that was when the movie aired on ABC TV way back in the ancient days before video and DVD. I don't remember if it was included in the DVD release, or even in every release.
Yeah, I think the "testing Superman's powers" part is only in the expanded/special edition of the movie available on DVD/BD's Ultimate Superman Collection.
Some worthy feats mentioned. I'll throw out some that haven't been used yet: "Bad vibrations?" and the cat-burgler scenes in Superman 1 I also like scenes with Superman as Super-Citizen, such as the end of Superman II and lifting the final part of Prometheus into orbit in the Lois and Clark pilot.
My two favorite feats are: Superman: The Movie — The big rescue where Superman saves Lois and catches the helicopter. "Superman" (The first Flesicher short) — Where Superman keeps the Daily Planet building from bending to the ground.
From Superman: Supes rebuilds the San Andreas Fault. Literally my favorite sequence of the first movie. Supes, highlighted by a glowing red background, lifting rocks back into the fault line! Bad-ass!