Superman - The Ultimate Max Fleischer Cartoon Collection: Amazon.ca: Bud Collyer, Joan Alexander, Jackson Beck, Jack Mercer, Julian Noa, Dave Fleischer, Max Fleischer, Izzy Sparber, Jay Morton, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Seymour Kneitel: DVD

Product Description

From Amazon.com

This collection of fully restored, 1930s animated shorts from the legendary Max Fleischer are a real treat. For anyone who has grown up associating the Superman character with different phases of art direction in Superman comic books over the last 50 years, or best remembers the look of the Christopher Reeve films or the old television show, these 'toons will be a mini-revelation. Expanding on cues from the first generation of Superman comics, Fleischer immerses the man from Krypton in a marvelous blend of art deco, William Cameron Menzies-inspired sets, and edgy compositions that can't help but remind one of Fritz Lang-ian paranoia. Everything is oversized, blocky but rounded, ferociously modernist, and all too vulnerable. Superman's very function as a character in these highly dramatic and richly colored fables is both defending the overbearing, urban progressiveness and capital excesses of a young 20th century while also reassuring us that progress is not as indomitable as a man--at least a Superman. The DVD includes a bonus Fleischer short, "Play Safe," plus information about the restoration process, three choices of sound, complete history, synopsis, and credits. --Tom Keogh

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Customer Reviews

52 Reviews

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (52 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars How about a blu ray version?, Nov 23 2011

By

Kevin Barton (Whitby, ON Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Complete Superman Cartoons - Diamond Anniversary Edition (1941) (DVD)

I think these classic Superman cartoons should be enhanced and digitally remastered in Blu-ray high definiton, because it is a great one to have on blu-ray. I hope it will come soon.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Superman with Style!, July 5 2004

By

Neil Leslie (Marion,, SC United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Complete Superman Cartoons - Diamond Anniversary Edition (1941) (DVD)

Nostalgia buffs, "Superfans,"students of quality animation, and lovers of classic comics will enjoy these 17 cartoons produced between 1941 and 1943 by Paramount Studios. In these little gems, the Man of Steel battles an assortment of monsters, mobsters, mad scientists, and malefactors bent on wreaking havoc in Metropolis and sabotaging America's war effort. Despite the rather formulaic plots, what makes this collection worth having is the outstanding attention to detail in the animation and backgrounds, especially in the first nine 'toons produced by Max Fleischer and directed by his brother Dave. The skyscrapers have a distinctive Art Deco look that gives Superman's world a real personality, a real sense of time and place. Lois Lane shows plenty of spunk long before anyone ever heard the phrase "women's liberation." She bluntly calls Clark Kent a fool, packs her portable typewriter (a 1940s laptop) almost anywhere, wields a machine gun to foil train robbers, and flies off solo, Amelia Earhart-style, to interview a mad scientist.

As noted by other reviewers, the quality of the animation and storytelling drop off noticeably in the remaining eight shorts, produced after the Fleischers left Paramount. Overall, however, the series maintains a fairly high standard throughout, probably because associates of the Fleischers also worked on the later entries in the series. Even the lesser quality animation of the later 'toons, to my eyes, looks better than much of the drivel produced for the Saturday morning shows. Modern day viewers may be uncomfortable with the portrayals of Germans and Japanese, but, after all, these cartoons were produced during World War II, when Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were our mortal enemies. I daresay that if someone were to produce a cartoon adventure of Superman vs. Al-Quaeda today, Osama bin Laden and his ilk wouldn't be portrayed very favorably. All things considered, the Last Son of Krypton has seldom looked better than he does in these cartoons.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Best Superman DVD Available, Jun 23 2004

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Steven A. Bibb "Varied Interests" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Complete Superman Cartoons - Diamond Anniversary Edition (1941) (DVD)

Growing up in the '80s these Superman cartoons were my absolute favorite. They were readily available on VHS from numerous companies as they were in the public domain, and as such the quality of the prints was often very poor. I wanted to watch every Superman cartoon, but they were not al available.

This DVD set has EVERY Superman cartoon made in the 1940s. Today they hold up just as well, beautiful animation, great plot lines, and some are just plain racist, but they still have all the charm and effect from when I was a kid.

Because several, if not all of the cartoons on this DVD are in the public domain, you will find that there are other companies that also release Superman cartoons on DVD, however this is the one DVD to get. These cartoons have been restored, and are well worth the money.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Mighty Good Stuff!
BOY! These cartoons are GREAT STUFF! I read about them as a child when I saw a 1942 ad for the cartoons and it whetted my appetite for them. Read more

Published on May 15 2004 by Andre M.

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitive!
Of all the collections of Superman Fleischer cartoons available, THIS IS THE ONE TO GET! Audio and picture quality of these classic cartoons that is leaps and bounds ahead of the... Read more

Published on Mar 22 2004 by richw5000