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 Release Date: 1987 Tagline: Nuclear Power. In the best hands, it is dangerous. In the hands of Lex Luthor, it is pure evil. This is Superman's greatest battle. And it is for all of us. Director: Sidney J. Furie Writer: Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal
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 Plot Synopsis by Dave: The world is in trouble again and only one person can save it... Superman. Of course this time, it must be saved from the threat of nuclear destruction.After an international summit for world peace fails, a child writes a letter to Superman (Reeve) asking for help. The new owner of the Daily Planet, David Warfield (Wanamaker) publishes the letter and gives Superman a bad name for not responding. Superman doesn’t know what to do and reveals his secret identity to Lois Lane (Kidder) again to seek her advice. Afterwards he wipes her memory of the whole incident... Hey, it worked before, but imagine the brain damage she must be suffering from this. Anyways, Superman makes his decision and addresses the United Nations. He vows to get rid of all the nuclear weapons in the world to make it a safer place and save us from ourselves. During all this, Lex Luther (Hackman) escapes from a prison rock quarry, with the help of his nephew Lenny (Cryer), to put his new plan for destroying Superman into action. Lex steals a sample of Superman’s hair from a museum in order to clone the hero and make his own superpowered henchman. He takes the materials needed for the cloning and attaches it to a missile, which Superman in his zeal to destroy nuclear weapons throws it into the sun which was the final step in Lex’s creation. Enter Nuclear Man (Mark Pillow, with the voice of Gene Hackman), a nuclear powered clone of Superman whose one weakness is darkness. Of course, no movie is complete with out some sort of pseudo-romance. Warfield’s daughter and new publisher of the Daily Planet (Hemingway) develops an interest in Clark and arranges a double date between her and Clark, and Lois and Superman... hilarity ensues. But the date comes to a quick end by Lex issuing a challenge to Superman. Superman comes face to face with Nuclear Man and round one begins. The battle spreads across the globe causing damage everywhere, even the Great Wall of China gets destroyed (which Superman repairs with his masonry vision). The first round comes to a close with Superman being scratched by Nuclear Man's radioactive Lee Press-ons and becomes sick. He regains his health using the power of the crystal from his ship, and flies off to seek Nuclear Man for round two. Nuclear Man, who has now developed an infatuation for Lacy Warfield after seeing a picture of her, goes to make her his own only to have Superman get in his way. Nuclear Man is tricked into entering an elevator and is cut off from the sunlight allowing Superman to take the elevator and deposit it on the moon. But the sun turns against Superman and Nuclear Man becomes free where the battle continues on the moon and Superman is pounded into its surface. Nuclear Man returns to Earth to kidnap Lacy and flies her into space... How she survives is unknown but she does, just accept it. But the slow-witted Nuclear Man defeats himself by flying to the night side of the Earth and his power shuts down. Superman returns Lacy back to Earth and takes the now unconscious Nuclear Man to a nuclear reactor and shoves him in to power the city. To create an even further lackluster ending, Perry White (Cooper) buys a controlling interest in the Daily Planet and everyone lives happily ever after. |
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