Rating:  -
Shot in England (as I'm english I recognised the London trains straight away from when Superman stops the train) Superman IV shot by Cannon Group Lt with a seriously low low budget of 32 million which was then even more hilariously cut in half (This was 1987, even the first Superman film cost over 50 million & that was 1977)so to say if there was such a thing as a film doomed from the start well Superman IV fits that title!!!!
So without the necessary budget meaning a drop in production value & then add a lousy script & you have Superman IV aka A real smelly fish!!!
I could go on about the effects issues or how poor the script, directing or basically everything is but basically all the bad things you've heard are true so just don't touch this film!!!!!
Oh & did I mention the poor dialogue???
Here's some from this movie, how the actors could keep a straight face I don't know???
SUPERMAN- Madame Secretary, honorable delegates, ladies and gentleman. For many years now, I've lived among you as a.. a visitor. I've seen the beauty of your many cultures. I've felt great joy in your magnificent accomplishments. I've also seen the folly of your wars. As of today, I'm not a visitor anymore, because the earth is my home, too! We can't live in fear. And I can't stand idly by and watch us stumble into the madness of possible nuclear destruction! And so, I've come to a decision. I'm going to do what our governments have been unwilling or unable to do. Effective immediately, I'm going to rid our planet of all nuclear weapons! - JUST THINK WOULD THE US & RUSSIA BACK THEN WOULD REALLY HAVE CLAPPED TO THIS??? EXACTLY!!!
SUPERMAN- You've already changed the laws of man Luthor, now it looks like you've broken the laws of nature too!- HOW DID CHRISTOPHER REEVE'S KEEP A STRAIGHT FACE WHEN SAYING THIS I DON'T KNOW!!!!
Below is the scene after they found Superman's cape!!!
MR WARFIELD- Yeah someone sold it to us cheap!!!!
More ??????
NEWSPAPER- NEW PUBLISHER FOR YOUR FAVOURITE PAPER
Isn't it supposed to be set in America???
Isn't favourite spelt favorite in American English???
Maybe they moved the paper to England!!!!
Oh & England is a member of the United Nations too not Great Britain & Northern Ireland!!!
SUPERMAN- Well, once more, we survived the threat of war [??] and found a fragile peace! I thought I could give you all the gifts of the freedom from war, but.. I was wrong. It's not mine to give. We're still a young planet. There are galaxies... out there. Other civilizations for us to meet, to learn from. What a brilliant future we could have. And there will be peace; there will be peace when the people of the world.. want it so badly, that their governments will have no choice but to give it to them. [standard "heavy heart" sigh] I just wish you could all see the earth the way that I see it... 'Cause when you really look at it, it's just one world.
Yes it's that bad!!!!!
Rating:  -
I really like Superman IV. Even though it isn't as good as the first two, Superman IV is the only one I cared enough about to buy. It certainly has heart. It suffers from a low budget and incompetent editing. It's so obvious that the flying scenes are separate from the background environment. It's really sad when you realize that with an appropriate budget, the movie would have been a classy affair. It still is to some degree. I don't know too many who can fault a film for addressing something as pressing as Nuclear War. This is what I mean by heart. The actors and writers do their part even if the producers and movie company decided they didn't give a d-a-m-n.
I'm not familiar with Superman III, so I won't even delve into comparisons about which is worse, but I resent Bryan Singer and his crew for bastardizing the last two Superman films by pretending they don't even exist when making the story for the new Superman Returns film.
I love Superman IV's villian, I love the doom music that plays whenever he's in a scene, and I love the fact the core group are back after being mainly absent in Part 3.
What I don't love is the poor editing. The bad special effects have been explained: no money. But the editing was just choppily done. I understand nobody wanted to see a 2 1/2 hour film, but to edit it to where some of the scenes don't even make sense is ludicrous.
For instance: The villian, Nuclear Man, sees a picture of Lacy Warfield (Mariel Hemingway) and is attracted to her. He then flies away, lands in a busy street, roars, and there is Superman telling him he'll never find the woman. Now to anybody paying attention, you'll wonder, "well, how did Superman know Nuclear Man was looking for anybody?" What the audience doesn't know is that there were a bunch of scenes cut out that made continuity of storyline a problem.
Bottom Line: the movie is poorly made, but it has heart and I like it. It has a nice beat and you can dance to it.
Rating: -
What do you get when you combine apathy with piss-poor special effects? "Superman IV: The Quest For Peace." "Superman IV" comes in as the least spirited and most uninteresting installment of the series, hands down. Somehow, I doubt anyone had any fun making this movie, which could be why there isn't even enough movie to fill an hour and a half. Christopher Reeve, turning in his final role as Superman, looks downright tired and unhappy. His demeanor in this film is much like the demeanor of his character in the previous movie: Reeve looks like he's drunk and angry at life in general. Gene Hackman returns as Lex Luthor, but judging from his performance, it was only inspired by money.
Now, I rarely give anything just one-star, but this movie really deserves it! The plot, which could have been remotely interesting (and fitting for our times) turns out to be just a throwaway. As the world is on the brink of nuclear disaster, Superman is called upon to destroy any and all nuclear weapons across the globe. He succeeds, but in turn, inspires Luthor to create his own Superman in Nuclear Man, whose conception is stupider than anyone could have imagined. Basically, the movie degrades to Nuclear Man (who, for no reason, shares the same voice as Lex Luthor) running around in a really tacky yellow leotard trying to show Superman up. Meanwhile, Clark is too busy trying to get with the bosses daughter (maybe this movie should have been called "Quest For A Piece"), while Superman tries desperately to keep ahold of Lois, and to roast a duck. Really, folks, this movie is just awful. It's no wonder the series never went further than this (until this year's revival). This film is, quite simply, a stinky turd that flushed a franchise. I honestly can find no redeeming features in it, whatsoever.
Rating:  -
"Superman, The quest for Peace" causes one too ponder important and intense moral dilemma proposed by Mutual Assured Destruction and Nuclear energy paranoia reigns. MAD missiles exist with the purpose of generating Armageddon potency against all life, the ability too decimate cities; whose, radioactive toxicity endangers (ground, lake, and sky) water for centuries; it shock waves crack at the earths crust and shake the tectonic plates causing them to snap and trigger earthquakes, tidal waves and released plasma erupts volcanoes; the bringer of nuclear winter, starvation, and economic destruction. Even if one of these weapons went rogue, supercomputers in the ocean and on land would automatic calculate immediate response retaliation, of a magnitude that could destroy a 1/3 of all the land and oceans. Man's fascination with death baffles the mind. 3 mile island, Chernobyl, and the 1950 nuclear China syndrome mishap breed fear that nuclear energy will mutate cancerous growths, breed birth defects, and aggrandize our enemies. Interestingly that very few nuclear power plants were created but four times the energy has been produce over the last 20 years. Superman, himself has become a prisoner of cold war logic and contemplates deliriously, "what are we to do?" Superman is a friend to all humanity, who, in the open scene rescues a soviet spacecraft out of orbit and returning it back into orbit. Superman does not hate the Russians, Italians, or any race; he considers all humanity his family.
America has become 2nd in the Nuclear arms race; citizens seem despaired; a old Ronald Reagan like President Televises the dismal news to a gloomy audience, in a hunched over manner. In one classroom, in America, a teacher asks the rhetorical questions, "what can we do?" A young boy, enthusiastically replies, "We can ask superman, to get rid of all the nuclear weapons". The new mega media corporate tycoon runs an Ad, "Superman tells kid to drop dead". Clark Kent watches covertly as the story materializes. The paper wants to use the kid and story to make money.
Superman believes he can make difference. Superman tells a group of International delegates, he will do what their governments fail to do and get rid of all the nuclear weapons in the world. Superman tells the delegates, "the earth is now my home" and since the earth is superman's permanent residence and he feels moral compelled to act and believes he cannot stand by while the world threatens to destroy itself.
Superman builds a net and places all nuclear weapons in the net and using super strength, hurls the weapons towards the sun. The sun destroys all the world's nuclear weapons. The earth seems to be in the best situation where no existing weapon can be used against another nation with any fatal prosperity.
Lex Luther, the evil master minded genius plots to destroy superman. Using Lenny, his dim witted Nephew, Lexus breakout of his hard labor prison camp. Lex devises a plot to destroy superman. First, Lex steals a strand of Superman's hair; next, he puts the hair into a cloning devise that uses a super computer too organize the organic material and piece of cloth designed too manufacture a super villain; and he next approaches a secret/sinister control group too put his cloning devise in a US missile. Lex plans to become wealthy by rearming the world with nuclear weapons, once Superman, the last great boy scout is dead. Disquist as a four star general, Lex enters the missile silo and pushes the launch button of the missile. Superman spots the launch and intercepts the missile, throwing it at the sun. The mutations occur and cloning process initiated and "Nuclear Man" is born.
Nuclear Man has both powers from the red sun and yellow sun. Lex knows that Nuclear man can make superman bleed, become sick, and die. Nuclear man has superhuman strength, has Lex voice imprint, he can generate internal heat; he ha unlimited energy; his displays no regard for human life; and he desires to destroy superman. Nuclear man myth personifies a Roman Legend in power, beauty, and ruthfuliness.
Nuclear man asks Lex, "What are you afraid of?" Lex tells him, "With you on my team. Your like the greatest power forward and I'm the smartest coach." Its obvious Nuclear Man has ambitions exceed the constraints imposed by Lex. Nuclear man is a strong villain but a stupid villain. Superman is a brain and Lex tells him, "I'm going to miss these conversations. You always understood what I was saying, immediately."
Nuclear man uses superman's compassion for humanity against him. Using the Statute of Liberty, Nuclear man sends the emblem of liberty towards innocent civilians scurry around at ground level. Nuclear man tactics are designed to destroy superman and he views humans as parasitic pawns for manipulation machinations designed too accomplish to devious and diabolical task of annihilating superman. Superman rescues the people and returns the Statute of Liberty; however, he is injury by Nuclear man and Nuclear man has poisoned superman. Superman begins to die, but using the last power fragment from Krypton survives. Superman moves the moon and disables Nuclear man in its shadow. Superman then puts Nuclear man inside a nuclear core, at a Nuclear power plant. It seems like Nuclear man recklessness disregard for human life parrellels the reckless experimentation that led to the Chernobyl disaster and that the monster must be managed prudential and responsible to contain the dangers of nuclear energy and Nuclear energy will provide power to light the cities of the future.
Superman tells the world, he realizes that he cannot save the world for themselves and that the same dangers surrounding the world still exist and the world stands on the brink of destruction and hopefully the people will persuade their governments towards responsibility and peace.
Rating:  -
Well, I happen to own all four Superman films on DVD. I must say that it would appear that with each following film the production became weaker and weaker... Although I do have an imagination, and I like all four films, the last installment was done by 'Cannon' films, which in large was the king of the "B" rated trash of the 1980s... Why on earth Christopher Reeve would allow this to happen is beyond me. Anyway, part 4 is barely 90 minutes long and its overall budget had to be fairly cheap... As for the cast, well, Gene Hackman is a great actor, but in this movie his acting talents are truly wasted. As for Jon Cryer, he was terrible... Personally, the script had potential, but it really needed to be worked out better....
MR.BILL
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