Christopher Reeve wasn’t the first Superman to appear on any type of screen, but he was the first major movie version of the Man of Steel. He was nearly perfect in his role, and it breaks my heart knowing about his paralysis later in life after that tragic horse accident. May he rest in peace.
In this version, we do get to see him as a baby on Krypton as his parents send him to Earth but not themselves. Which is a little weird with that kind of technology. Especially since his baby cousin, who would become Supergirl, got the same treatment from her parents as well. Kryptonians should have worked on family-sized spaceships.
His youth is moved fairly quickly in the film, but it definitely gave the future TV series Smallville a lot of inspiration and potential, I believe.
Reeve also did a good job as Clark Kent too. You almost believe he’s a big doofus with no strength or suave. I also like how Clark and Lois (similar to Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson in Spider-Man) play the game of romance, though it creates some awkwardness as both Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson get into that weird situation where they’re technically “cheating” on their respective love interests with their alter egos. Kind of a red flag, not going to lie lol.
I think my favorite moment is in the original against Lex Luthor. Which is ironic considering Lex has no superpowers and only a shiny green rock, but that’s what makes Lex Luthor his best nemesis that virtually no fans disagree with.
And the conflict with General Zod and his two Kryptonian sidekicks was a great story too. Though I always think it’s very unlikely Superman could ever win a 3 v 1 fight. General Zod is about his equal, plus you have two others who may not be as strong, but on their own would easily counter some of the heavyweight DC heroes such as Green Lantern or Wonder Woman. You may have to give Batman A LOT of prep time.
Now there is Superman III and IV, but I’m going to gaslight you by saying they never existed. The only movies that matter are the first and the second. It’s hard to rank Reeve’s Superman against the newer ones with Henry Cavill and David Corenswet, as they all have their pluses and minuses. But I will say Reeve’s face and hair look way more like what Superman’s face should be in my opinion.