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Superman III

Play trailer 3:13 Poster for Superman III PG 1983 2h 5m Adventure Sci-Fi Action Fantasy Play Trailer Watchlist
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29% Tomatometer 58 Reviews 23% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
Computer programmer Gus Gorman (Richard Pryor) is hired by financial tycoon Ross Webster (Robert Vaughn) to seize control of a weather satellite and annihilate Colombia's coffee crop. When Superman (Christopher Reeve) manages to thwart the plan, Webster commands Gorman to use the satellite to locate kryptonite, the Man of Steel's mortal weakness. But a missing unknown element in the kryptonite -- replaced by Gorman with tar -- causes an unintended side effect when presented to Superman.
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Superman III

Superman III

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Critics Consensus

When not overusing sight gags, slapstick, and Richard Pryor, Superman III resorts to plot points rehashed from the previous Superman flicks.

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Critics Reviews

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William Thomas Empire Magazine The action is good but this doesn't move the audience in the same way as the first two. Rated: 3/5 Aug 13, 2020 Full Review Linda Deutsch Associated Press Superman III may be the saddest dissappointment of the summer movie season. Mar 4, 2019 Full Review Gary Arnold Washington Post Reeve, the ongoing justification for the series, is no longer contractually obligated after this episode, and his liberation comes not an installment too soon. Apr 23, 2018 Full Review Don Shanahan Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast Somehow, through all the Lester muck, the compelling Christopher Reeve sells the melodrama. Jun 21, 2023 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy While hardly a disaster, it still qualifies as a massive disappointment. Rated: 2/4 May 13, 2023 Full Review Danielle Solzman Solzy at the Movies Neither Christopher Reeve's performance nor the VFX are enough to make up for Superman III being a very unwatchable film. Rated: 1/5 May 9, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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John S Absolutely terrible from start to finish. It's a wonder that Superman "survived" as a franchise. I was loath to finish the whole film. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 05/30/25 Full Review Stephen C Tasteless in 2 hours and 5 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 05/29/25 Full Review This Old G This is one of those movies I like to pretend doesn't exist Rated 1 out of 5 stars 05/24/25 Full Review Faiz D I spent the better part of yesterday watching the Superman movies. It was an interesting experience watching these movies in a series back to back. Although I'm not that big on Superman, as I'm more a fan of Batman, these movies were very much entertaining, and delivered good actions, some good comedic elements and plenty of thrills. Christopher Reeve was very effective as Clark Kent/Superman and will always be that character. No other reboot will ever fill his shoes. EVER. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/13/25 Full Review Daniel B “Superman III” tiene un tono por lo menos extraño. Es súper frenética y contrasta con un humor más absurdo que las 2 películas anteriores. Es tan dinámica que no deja al espectador descansar, es cómo una montaña rusa que solo va hacia arriba, no hay un contraste dramático en la historia, la película siempre se mantiene en el mismo punto, haciendo que los momentos climáticos no tengan ese toque sentimental que la trama fue construyendo para el espectador. Siendo un gran ejemplo cuando Superman se vuelve malo, estructuralmente no tiene sentido, solo pasa porque el guion lo dice, no crea impotencia en el espectador poque la película no construyó orgánicamente ese momento a lo largo de la cinta, solo es un suceso más. Pero aún así siento que hay cosas interesantes en esta película, tecnológicamente esta entrega es la más superior, la escena de la fábrica es realmente buena, se nota que esta película ya no está tan limitada en ese aspecto. La relación de Clark con Lana me pareció lo mejor de la película, la parte en Smallville, que curiosamente es la única parte dónde la película baja su ritmo es la más propositiva en el arco interno de nuestro protagonista, ya que se plantea el romance entre ellos de muy buena forma. Esta película, al menos en mi percepción si me llegó a aturdir, está muy lejos del lado humano que desarrolló brillantemente la primera parte, al igual que el dilema interno que la segunda tuvo con Clark Kent en su construcción cómo individuo, esta está lejos de esa profundidad, pero si siento que aún mantiene esa vibra que nos hace amar a este personaje. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 04/03/25 Full Review Mike P The Salkinds trash the Superman legend by turning it into a slapstick comedy!! And they do this by casting Richard Pryor, who was a great comic, but had NO credibility as a serious actor! You should have stuck with serious actors, guys!! The result: A catastrophe that wound up ruining the movie; knocking Superman off the Top of the DC lineup for good...to be replaced by Batman! You sold out a legend, Salkinds! Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Superman III

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Movie Info

Synopsis Computer programmer Gus Gorman (Richard Pryor) is hired by financial tycoon Ross Webster (Robert Vaughn) to seize control of a weather satellite and annihilate Colombia's coffee crop. When Superman (Christopher Reeve) manages to thwart the plan, Webster commands Gorman to use the satellite to locate kryptonite, the Man of Steel's mortal weakness. But a missing unknown element in the kryptonite -- replaced by Gorman with tar -- causes an unintended side effect when presented to Superman.
Director
Richard Lester
Producer
Pierre Spengler
Screenwriter
David Newman, Leslie Newman
Production Co
Cantharus Productions, Major Studio Partners, Dovemead Films
Rating
PG
Genre
Adventure, Sci-Fi, Action, Fantasy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 15, 2008
Runtime
2h 5m
Sound Mix
Surround
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