Some say that I'm foolish to care, but I do care about Cannon's ill-fated Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and its requested restoration. With that said, I do comb the Internet from time to time to get updates on developments, much in the way that I've done for Albert Pyun's re-edited Captain America, which at least is likely to get a release. With regard to Quest for Peace, I'm sometimes encouraged by what I find; other times, my heart sinks, and a trace of paranoia (justified or not) surfaced in one, recent instance.
I was discouraged by a particular comment on one particular site (I'll be polite and not mention it by name, since I do believe its overall cause to be just), which was not so much about Quest for Peace's restoration, but rather a reflection on a noted, intact sequence.
There's this moment in Quest for Peace where Superman assists periled cosmonauts and does so in a way that displays camaraderie and gratitude from both ends. The author's reflection describes the scene with fondness, but also derides Reagan's famous "evil empire" statement as if this cinematic moment stands as a rebuttal to the President's resounding proclamation.
For the record, Reagan's evil-empire condemnation was (and remains) on the mark, for the Soviet Union did, in fact, suppress its citizens, defiling their most basic rights. That practice was evil. Period. The Soviet Union's need to overtake the world, which many of its leaders declared, is evil. Superman's assisting the cosmonauts wasn't either an endorsement or acceptance of the Soviet Union's maligned practices, but rather an American citizen's means to aid humans in trouble: humans, that is, otherwise subjected to a oppressive regime, due to no fault of their own. To misconstrue this point is to misconstrue Quest for Peace's broader, humanitarian view.
With this said, I do believe there's more worth in Quest for Peace's objective than not, even as it exists in its present, rough state, and yes, a hefty refurbishing is long overdue. Why DC/WB has yet to restore the movie is beyond me, and many do feel as I do. Yes, the restoration would cost a pretty penny, but when WB has been quick to toss away a ninety-million-dollar Batgirl and now plans to rehash the Potter universe via a superfluous set of miniseries, a Quest for Peace revisit appears a more sensible (and preferable) alternative, especially in light of James Gunn's upcoming, talk-of-the-town, Kal-El revival. A theatrical re-release of a polished Quest for Peace and a high-profile, Max premiere would draw tons of interest and along with it, tons of change.
I hope Quest for Peace does get the fix it deserves, and I trust it'll maintain its The Day the Earth Stood Still perspective, as it should, unless some holier-than-thou feels inclined to twist its meaning, by adding segments of penetrating "wakefulness," and yes, even with the socio-political tide shifting, I do fear that could happen. Spite runs high in Hollywood, not to mention a sector of the fanboy niche, which often denounces the Reeves chapters as Cold War propaganda. Any misinterpretation of Quest for Peace's alteration, through "clever" insertion/editing of overanalyzed rhetoric (like one finds in Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story), would be beyond disastrous. Regardless of one's political views, it is the fine art of reconstruction, not blasphemous grandstanding, that would grant the movie a successful and respectful revival. Let's hope that, if our wish is granted, that is what we receive and nothing more.
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