On November 21, 1984, Tristar released a $35 million adaptation of Supergirl to U.S. theaters as a spin-off of the Superman franchise, directed by Christopher Reeve. The film, starring Helen Slater and Faye Dunaway, grossed $14 million domestically. The Hollywood Reporterโs original review of the feature is below:
The main problem with Alexander and Ilya Salkindโs elaborate production Supergirl is that it doesnโt actually fly. Despite the expense and hard-working cast, the extensive, expensive and spectacular special effects, and Jerry Goldsmithโs effective but deafening score, the film remains surprisingly small thanks to David Odellโs unimaginative and mundane script. Even his occasional attempts at humor rarely elicit more than a chuckle.
You constantly want Supergirl to do something impressive, like stop a tall skyscraper or stop a runaway train. Instead, she manages to put out a two-alarm fire and save Hart Bochner from being crushed to death by multiple cars at an amusement park. The Salkinds have repeatedly stated that they do not want Supergirl become Superman IV, and the sad fact is that they succeeded too well.
Perhaps this filmโs biggest problem is that Supergirl (Helen Slater) seems terribly slow in carrying out her life-altering mission. Catapulting to Earth to retrieve the life-sustaining Omegahedron that slipped through her fingers in Argo City (which broke away from Krypton when that planet was destroyed), she assumes the identity of teenage Linda Lee and enrolls in Midvale High. It just so happens that her arrogant math teacher (Peter Cook) is in love with a carnival fortune teller (Faye Dunaway) whose humble ambition is to rule the world. When Omegahedron lands on her picnic, she quickly takes advantage of the opportunity.
Meanwhile, our Supergirl makes school friends and enemies and falls in love with the muscular Bochner. But so does Dunaway, and too much of Supergirlโs attention is diverted to rescuing her boyfriend from Dunawayโs evil clutches. Since the girl doesnโt even know that Dunaway has a precious source of energy until the very end of the story, one wonders why she keeps hanging around Midvale High โ unless itโs to save Bochner from the many scrapes Dunaway keeps inventing for him.
This is a movie where the villains not only have all the fun, but provide most of it. Helen Slater as Supergirl, chosen by the Salkinds after an international search, is as rewarding and exciting as vanilla malt. As she flies through the air with her arm outstretched in front of her (as she does often), she seems to be saying, โGive me an M, give me an I, give me a Dโฆโ Her romantic interludes are reminiscent of Sandra Dee in her prime. And young Bochner is understandably sick of reciting the poetic lines that were handed to him for these same interludes.
On the other hand, Dunaway and her sarcastic sidekick Brenda Vaccaro seem to be having the time of their lives as mistresses of the shadows of darkness (their ramshackle abode is a cheerful house on a ghost train, decorated with skeletons, spiders and tattered webs). Dunaway is amusingly bossy as she tries out her newfound abilities; Vaccaro is her more realistic partner, never quite sure how their venture will end but expecting the worst. And Peter Cook, who can put a funny twist on the flattest line, is politely sinister as the professor who would like to start his own coven. Peter OโToole brings his usual grace and authority to his role as the patriarch of Argo City, although he only appears briefly in the filmโs opening and closing sequences; while Mia Farrow, who gets fourth billing, actually appears onscreen for less than two minutes as Supergirlโs mom.
With his big name as just one example, Supergirl This is a film that promises more than it delivers. The disasters our heroine prevents are terribly small potatoes: an out-of-control bulldozer, an out-of-control amusement park ride, some mischievous teenagers plotting to turn a girlโs shower into a steam bath. Even the special effects prove less than impressive, especially since Jeannot Schwartzโs meticulous direction gives plenty of time to sit and figure out how they were pulled off. AND obligatory scene of these epics, the race through space occurs so early that it is almost thrown out.
Despite these shortcomings, the Tri-Star presentation will likely easily survive the holidays thanks to a strong pre-sales campaign; but none of the guys I talked to after the preview last Saturday morning expressed much interest in coming back for a second helping. โ Arthur Knight, originally published November 20, 1984
1984 theatrical poster for the film Supergirl.
Everett Collection