Movie Review: Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)

Synopsis: With the nuclear arms race in full swing and the world on the brink of World War III, Superman is inspired by a boy's letter to rid the world of all nuclear weapons by throwing them into the sun. His arch nemesis, Lex Luthor, decides to take advantage of the situation by attaching Superman's DNA to one of the missiles and using the sun's power to create another superhuman, Nuclear Man, to kill his heroic rival.

Who's in it? The movie stars Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Jon Cryer and Mark Pillow.

Review: I was a teenager the first/last time I watched Superman IV and while it isn't a movie that has often been panned by critics, I honestly didn't remember it being that bad. So, when I finally had an opportunity to re-watch it, I wondered if it would end up being disappointing the second time around.

As it turns out, I still don't know why people hate it.

Look, I'm not saying this movie is as good as the original. In fact, there are quite a few things that did leave me scratching my head a bit, such as how Luthor (Hackman) was able to easily cut a piece of Superman's (Reeve) hair and whether it was necessary to have a potential love triangle between Superman/Clark, Lois Lane (Kidder) and their new boss, Lacy Warfield (Mariel Hemingway). And as far as the latter is concerned, the whole trying to keep two dates at once thing was a bit too sitcom-like.

Oh, and what was up with that new superpower of his? The one where he was able to rebuild the Great Wall of China and ring a doorbell just by looking at them.

That said, I don't really expect superhero movies, especially those made in the 1980s with limits on the special effects, to be perfect. As far as I'm concerned, they can be campy as long as they are entertaining. This movie fits that category.

The big battle between Superman and Nuclear Man (Pillow) was a bit over the top but also exciting. Nuclear Man wasn't just Superman's equal, he had abilities Superman didn't have, such as the ability poison the superhero with just one scratch, while appearing to be completely indestructible, even after his one weakness was discovered. Giving him Gene Hackman's voice was a nice touch as well because it made him even more villain-like. The only thing I didn't like about him was his sudden lust for Lacy, which just didn't seem to fit his character.

Also, it was kind of refreshing to see the fourth installment of a movie series to both bring back the original cast and to have that cast not phone it in. I'm not so certain the movie needed the new faces as a result of that.

Final Opinion: Is it as good as the original film? No. Does it deserve the criticism it receives? Maybe to some extent. However, if you're looking for a film that offers some action, some camp and a well-paced story, this isn't as bad of a choice as people say it is as long as you don't try to overthink it.

My Grade: B-