Supergirl Reviews

With the success of the "Superman" films, it seemed only natural that a film about his comic book cousin Supergirl would follow. Unfortunately, SUPERGIRL is barely worth a glance. Supergirl (Helen Slater) lives on the planet Argo, where the refugees from the exploded planet of Krypton now live. Zaltar (Peter O'Toole) has gotten hold of a power source for the planet, a small glowing ball that he accidentally zaps into space. Supergirl quickly goes after it, chasing the small globe in a space pod. Selena (Faye Dunaway), a witch who wants to rule the world, gains possession of the ball when it lands on Earth and soon realizes its strength. But Supergirl is nearby and takes the guise of a student at a private school, calling herself Linda Lee, as she plans to retrieve the globe. What made SUPERMAN and SUPERMAN II work so well was their reverence toward the Man of Steel, coupled with some good tongue-in-cheek humor. SUPERGIRL takes the opposite approach, playing the story for high camp, which just doesn't work. The film, with a dreadful cast and relying heavily on special effects, quickly grows boring. Jeannot Szwarc's direction is flat and uninspired, emphasizing the jokey elements without any sense at all for the material.