Superman (Salkind films) him to contradict Jor-El's orders to avoid altering human history, time traveling to save her from dying. Superman instead takes the advice of Jonathan Kent, his father on Earth. One of the most important aspects in the first and second films was the romantic relationship between the two main characters; Clark was hopelessly in love with Lois and even gave up his powers in order to be with her as depicted in "Superman II". The character and the portrayal by Christopher Reeve has garnered positive reviews by film critics and many other journalists. American Film Institute ranked Reeve's take on
Superman (1978 film) gave a very positive review, awarding a full four stars and writing, ""Superman" is a pure delight, a wondrous combination of all the old-fashioned things we never really get tired of: adventure and romance, heroes and villains, earthshaking special effects and wit. Reeve is perfectly cast in the role. Any poor choice would have ruined the film." Ebert placed the film on his ten best list of 1978. He would later go on to place it on his "Great Movies" list. Gene Siskel gave the film three stars out of four, calling it "a delightful mess. Good performances. Slopppy editing.