Despite its reputation as the worst of the Superman movies, Superman IV: The Quest For Peace is not. Despite the horrendous special effects and rushed ending, the film manages to still present itself with some respect.

Christopher Reeves had proved in the three previous films his ability to convincingly play the role of Superman. With this film, he not only proves his abilities but this is, in many respects, his best performance in the role. His speeches during the film are a sign of this and his chemistry with all the other actors helps also. Reeves also does his best to sell the special effects sequences it is a shame he couldn't. Reeves is the films biggest saving grace and it's a shame this would be his last time in the role.

Gene Hackman also returns in the role of Lex Luthor and with brings him that character's with, charm, and silent menace. But somehow he seems to be out of place most of the time and serves as a drawback in many of his scenes. Mark McClure, Jackie Cooper and Margot Kidder all return in their roles. But unfortunately they are all under used and their appearances might as well be cameos.

The rest of the cast does a decent job. Mark Pillow does excellent in the role of Nuclear Man, Luthor's super powered creation. Pillow does the role so well that one wonders how much better eh might have been in the special effects had been better. Mariel Hemingway is a welcomed addition to the cast as a heiress who serves as an additional love interest for Clark Kent. The only major addition that doesn't fit is Jon Cryer who could easily be the single most annoying character to ever appear in a Superman movie.

The film's real drawback is its low budget values. While this doesn't affect the majority of sets, the Fortress of Solitude set in particular looks cheap when compared to the one found in previous films. The same can also be said of the Daily Planet set. The low budget would also hurt the film in the area a budget was needed most: special effects.

The previous films, for all their flaws, at least had decent special effects and mostly convincing flying sequences and this film has neither. The special effects are sub-par by virtually any standard and despite being made nearly a decade after the first movie the effects from the first movie are still more convincing. The truly horrific nature of this films effect sequences can be seen during the climactic battles between Superman and Nuclear Man. The added addition of new powers with bad special effects doesn't help either.

The other major problem is the pacing of the film. The first 50 minutes or so is sheer entertainment that's the set up the story of both Superman riding the world of nukes and Luthor's evil plan. The set up, however, is better then the execution of the ending, which is both rushed and disjointed. The subplots of Mariel Hemingway's character and the boy who inspired Superman's quest are both left unfinished for example. Whole scenes feel incomplete and the final battle is over far too quickly to be effective.

But the film does have a saving grace in its concept. The idea of taking Superman, the ultimate hero of America, and placing him into the timely situation of Cold War disarmament is a stroke of utter brilliance. The concept of Luthor and Nuclear Man added to it also serve as an interesting addition to the story and it makes for good entertainment when viewed in this context. But this concept is ruined by the rushed feeling of the ending. But one still has to give high marks to Christopher Reeves and the screenwriters for their concept.

The films does have another saving grace: its musical score. Like the Ken Thorne scores for II and III, Alexander Courage's score makes heavy use of the John Williams themes composed for the first film and is highly effective. The Courage adaptation never fails to use the Williams music to maximum effect and it's a shame that, at Courage's own request, it has yet to see release.

Despite its flaws in special effects and editing, Superman IV has saving graces in Christopher Reeves, the rest of the cast, the music, and the timely nature of the story. While nowhere near as good as Superman The Movie or Superman II and while not as bad as Superman III, the film still serves its purpose and is your average Superman adventure.

"Superman IV: Quest for Peace" should have been renamed "Superman IV: Quest for a Plot" as the film's script is pure garbage...full of schmaltz, preachiness and so many things that simply are dumb and make little sense. It's also a film that clearly shows the limits of special effects, as even with 1980s technology the film should have looked so much better--especially since it's about the most effects-laden Superman film up to that time.

The story is full of saccharine when the entire planet stops to take notice of some little boy who writes to Superman to request that he bring about world peace! Superman, never wanting to disappoint any child, responds by destroying the world's nuclear stockpile. However, Lex Luthor disguises one of the nuclear missiles as just a garden variety nuclear bomb when really it's infused with some Superman DNA. So, when the missile is tossed into the sun, it naturally produces an evil Krytonian who is bent on killing Superman and working for Luthor. Can our incredibly plastic hero destroy this evil menace AND balance two women...one who is beautiful and loves Clark and another who's an idiot who STILL can't understand that Clark and Superman are the same freaking guy!!

While the story is saccharine and stupid and the special effects quite bad, the film team do manage to also make the acting terrible- -even by Superman standards. The standout in this department is Jon Cryer-- who really can act. But given the bilge the writers (a room full of baboons, I think),he comes off as simply annoying and hateful. The rest, by the way, aren't much better.

So do I recommend this film? Yes and no. No if you want to see a decent film. Yes if you are either using it to torture someone or if you are a glutton for punishment, like me, and occasionally enjoy laughing at Hollywood stars destroying themselves. A little schadenfreude is what's needed to enjoy this picture, that's for sure.

I loved the first two Superman films, the third was okay, but this one was awful. Other than Christopher Reeve's assured lead performance and the rousing score, there is very little I can say that is good about this film. The special effects are incredibly cheesy and dated. The story is hackneyed, unoriginal and pretty predictable. The script is lamentable. The direction is stodgy. The pacing is uneven- there are parts that are rushed and there are parts that drag. The other acting is not even worth mentioning, as much as I love Gene Hackman I just don't buy the possibility he thought this film had a good script. Overall, awful and while not the worst sequel ever made it is a disgrace. 1/10 Bethany Cox