DVD Supergirl
Supergirl qualifies as one of the most bizarre comic book adaptations ever to hit the silver screen. Bereft of logic or sensible plotting, but featuring a strong cast and slick special effects, the film follows Superman's cousin Kara (played by Helen Slater in her film debut) as she leaves Krypton to venture to Earth to retrieve the "Omegahedron," a life-force globe vital to her people's survival. She tracks down the device, unaware that it's fallen into the hands of aspiring black magician Selena (Faye Dunaway), which leads to an inevitable showdown. All of the strong characters in Supergirl are women, making for a nice change of pace from traditional superhero machismo. However, none of the players seem to notice that many things are left unexplained, including how the naive Kara knows so much about Earth while having never been there, how a novice sorceress can attain power so quickly from something she does not understand, and how hardly anyone notices Supergirl flying around their city! (And hey, where's Superman?) Taken as a campy 1980s comic book relic rather than a serious adaptation, Supergirl is fun because of its engaging special effects and sets, tongue-in-cheek humor, and Dunaway's truly inspired performance. Look for Marc McClure reprising his Superman role of Jimmy Olsen, while Mia Farrow and Peter O'Toole have small supporting roles as Kara's mother and mentor, respectively. The director's cut DVD features 24 minutes of newly restored footage that has never been seen before, which should enthrall Supergirl aficionados, although the additional material doesn't make the story any more logical. --Bryan Reesman |
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Review(s): DVD Supergirl | |
| You'll Believe She Can Fly |
I know, most critics did not like this movie. But that did not stop me from buying this special edition, which is limited to 50,000 copies. I truly believe Anchor Bay has outdone itself in presenting Supergirl in both the International and Director's version. The DVD also contains great stills from promotions and from the movie. My only complaint about this DVD is that the Director's version, which is on a separate disc, is not encoded in DD 5.1. (Of course, the International version is.)Obviously, I did not buy this DVD for special features. I truly do like this movie. For one, the special effects were well ahead of its time and still quite fun to watch. The so- called "flying ballet" sequence is one of the most beautiful and convincing flying scenes I have ever seen. You will believe Supergirl is actually flying. The movie also offers some platonic romance between Supergirl and Ethan (Hart Bochner) which is surprisingly welcome. The scene where Supergirl rescues Ethan and flies him to safety is reminiscent of the "Can you read my mind" sequence from Superman I. When discussing the virtues of this film, it is impossible to omit Ms. Faye Dunaway. Faye, like all great actors, has the ability of turning a potentially ridiculous and embarrassing role into an acting lesson. Before Glenn Close's Cruella DeVille, we have Faye as Selena, the has-been witch turned supervillain by the power of the Omegahedron. It is Faye's intense and campy performance that stands out above everything in this movie, including Helen Slater's Supergirl looks. So, what went wrong with this film that made Supergirl a box-office bomb? I have to blame the scriptwriter. The first half of the movie truly does not make much sense, nor does it serve to help the viewer understand the logic of the remainder of the film. For example, when Supergirl arrives on earth and emerges from her spaceship, she is fully clothed in her Supergirl outfit. How? Nobody knows. Later, when Supergirl decides to become Linda Lee, she changes hair color and uniform in the twinkling of an eye. I'm sorry, but magical uniform changes were not one of the original Supergirl's powers. Whatever enabled her to do this should have been explained in the beginning of the movie. This also would have been a time to explain why she had such an understanding of her new powers and the culture on earth. If you can get passed these deficiencies (chalk them up to details left out in script rewrites), then you will truly enjoy this film, especially the second half. Otherwise, you're better off passing on it.
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| Fantastic DVD, under-rated comic book movie adaptation.. |  |
Strangely, SUPERGIRL has obtained the reputation of being one of the worst blockbusters of all time - the question remains though, WHY? Criticisms that it lacks the "maturity" or flair of the first two SUPERMAN films just aren't really fair. I mean, surely the director didn't want the film to just be a SUPERMAN film with the only difference being the lead character? Indeed, SUPERGIRL certainly has it's own identity and rarely feels like a SUPERMAN clone, so hats off to the filmmakers on that one.Helen Slater is actually perfect for the part, and it's a shame that she seems to have disappeared these days, whilst the supporting cast are hugely impressive, particularly the always reliable Peter O'Toole, whose scene with Slater in the Phantam Zone remains the most effective of the movie. Faye Dunaway makes a splendidly over the top villain, even if her humorous portrayal means she lacks the danger that Hackman's Lex Luthor displayed in SUPERMAN, and Peter Cook is wonderfully sarcastic as the school teacher who likes to dabble in sorcery. The real star of the film though is Jerry Goldsmith's amazing score, which lends the film a power it just wouldn't have otherwise. A genuine classic score, it's testament to Goldsmith's talent, that he's able to bring so much to the quality and atmosphere of a movie like this. Special effects wise, SUPERGIRL also impresses hugely, outclassing the SUPERMAN movies at evry turn. Not only are the flying sequences absolutely stunning (helped by Slater's graceful presence), but the big-scale street sequence is still, for my money, one of the best "live" special effects sequences I've ever seen. Superb. Congratulations to Anchor Bay too, for presenting such a great DVD of an overlooked movie. From the THX sound to the excellent, vibrant picture, it's a top class job that many other companies would do well to learn from. The animated menus also add a nice finishing touch, and the extras are also brilliantly researched, with a very interesting commentary, an impressive gallery of pictures, photos etc, and best of all, the original making of documentary (over 50 minutes long) which is one of the best makings of I've seen on a blockbuster movie. I can not recommend this Limited 2 disc DVD enough!! Shame however, that the Directors Cut is only in mono. Go Supergirl!
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| The Cheesiest Superhero Movie Ever Made! | |
"Supergirl" is produced by the same Salkind folks who made the four Superman movies. But they must have run out of budget for this one. The end product is a really cheesy take on the Maid of Might, Kara Zor-El, the original Supergirl. In fact, it's so cheesy that watching this DVD is pure nostalgic fun. I'm a child of the cheesy 1980s anyway!The flying effects here are not as good as those in the Superman movies but then who needs effects. Helen Slater as Supergirl/Linda Lee is the best special effect in this movie. Additional points should be given in that this movie is set in the Superman movie continuity - we get to meet Lucy Lane (Lois' sister) and Jimmy Olsen. A newsreader on a car radio informs us that Superman is off-planet at this time, thus explaning his rather glaring absence in this movie. The story centers on Kara's childish mistake in Argo City that supposedly doomed the city unless she can make amends by coming to earth to retrieve something called the Omegahedron (or something like that!). Unfortunately this Omega-thingy is now in the hands of two ugly aunties (Faye Dunaway is one of them) who lusts after this young man (can't even remember his name). This young man is also in love with Supergirl. Then the auntie (Faye) decides to bring about the end of the world. And yes, Peter O'Toole also appears (although I still can't see the purpose of his character in the film). In short, a really beautiful Supergirl fights two aunties over a young man and Peter O'Toole makes an appearance. That's it. Get it today and have a cheesy good time!
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