Superman: The Epic Cut

Made two of my favorite movies into the epic I always wanted.

One perfect edit. The cuts are unnoticeable and despite 4 hours length, the pacing is great. Well done.

I saw Superman (1978) as a young man and I loved it. Superman II (1980) was a worthy sequel. It wasn't perfect but through a 3rd grader's eyes it hit all the bases. As I grew older I heard about a version that was never released, the Donner cut. I eventually was able to view this version and I questioned why the studio didn't use this version theatrically. A few days ago while browsing this site my eyes fell on Superman: The Epic Cut. I love fanedits, I really do, but you can't watch them all. You browse through the ratings, the editor's description, and the reviews (careful to avoid spoilers) to try to determine where I am going to spend my time. When I read the tagline "The nearest thing to the intended single movie epic per the shooting script." I was so intrigued, in all honestly, my decision had already made.

For a shade under 4 hours I couldn't look away. I was constantly making mental notes of what was removed, what scenes were from which movie, what scenes I didn't recall seeing before, and how much more sense some scenes made when being integrated in to a single sprawling epic. Before I ever pressed play I questioned how the editor was going to weave together Luthor's grand scheme and the arrival of the newly freed Kryptonian criminals. Mind you both original movies started with flashbacks to Krypton prior to its destruction and I was wondering how those scenes were going to be sequenced in to the edit. In a word, he did it perfectly.

I am amazed how he wove the two (2) movies in to one narrative, and how, in hind site, it is so obvious that this is how they were meant to be viewed. The editing is flawless both visually and auditorily. Not to quote Todd Howard but, "It just works." Considering the movies are 40 years old it is incredible the level of fidelity in the final product. As I said, I saw the original movies as a young man, but even if I didn't, I can undoubtedly say that I still would have absolutely loved this movie. It is a great Superman movie.

In the future this will be the only way I will watch the original Superman movies. If you like any of the Superman movies (70's, 80's, 00's, 10's or 20's) you need to see this movie. If you enjoy superhero movies (Marvel or DC) you need to watch this. Finally, if you appreciate what editors technically do and want to watch the resurrection of a movie as it should have been released in 1978, then you need to watch this movie. Thank you Wraith for the time and effort you took to create this version and thank you for sharing it with me.

I was really looking forward to this triple edit, because even though I'm not a fan of the original I am always looking for new ways to experience this double-feature in new ways since I think there are so many great things to be done with it.
That being said, all three versions are good, and apart from some cuts, which could have been smoother, my main gripe is that I didn't find correspondance between the description the faneditor listed on the database, and the actual edits - especially, I did not find the Epic Cut to have no Superman Returns footage as promised...
Another cut I was curious about was the Kents finding the spaceship in the Epic Cut which was mysteriously cut, making the cut from the aftermath of the explosion to the modern-day setting quite abrupt.

In short, I do recommend this edit to the fans of the original looking for three new ways to watch the movies, but strongly wish Wraith had been a little more precise in his description of the three edits.

Wraith made Superman The Motion Picture magical once again. As a child I was never bothered by the inconsistency in quality between Superman 1 and 2. As I grew older that changed, an The Donner Cut failed to redeem the film's tarnished presence in my eyes. Wraith has constructed Donner's vision to its greatest extent, providing a seamless experience that details Superman's origin and challenges as a hero. With masterful attention to editing and tone, Wraith has provided a viewing experience that has recaptured my wonder for The Man of Steel.