First, to take this movie and try to compare it to a theatrical release would be doing it and everyone involved in it a disservice. As the writer/director wrote, comparing it to a fan film is more accurate. Using that scale, this film is among the best of the fan films out there. The only one I have seen surpass this is some of the Star Trek fan films like – Star Trek: Of Gods and Men. That beats this because they were actually able to get some of the actors from the original Star Trek series to take some roles (including Tim Russ, Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) , and Walter Koenig (Pavel Chekov) and others). They also had a bigger budget than the $20,000 listed here.
Having said that, using actors with experience helped raised the level here. Julian McDowell as Perry White is a highlight. Yes, as others posted, Martin Richardson does not have the appearance of Superman – but in a fan film – exact appearances are a luxury not a necessity. Overall, the acting is acceptable. Special effects are limited of course as $20,000 does not buy much, but with the limited funds, they do the best they can with it.
Gene Fallaize did this as a fan of the film series, and I am guessing he only had a limited amount of time to write the script in order to do the filming in a short 30 day period. Mr. Fallaize also admits this was done to prove he can direct and get experience for a bigger budget feature film. It appears it worked as on IMDb he is now involved with bigger productions and has a full plate as of 2013 with a number of "B" level films.
So for what it is, it is not that bad. Is it the absolutely best fan film out there? No, as its budget was way too limited to make it anything like that. A few fan films, like the Star Trek film "Of Gods and Men" with their bigger budgets and some original actors have this beat. But for a film that cannot make any money, which is posted on You Tube for fans to watch – it is okay. Yes, the story is weak in a number of ways. But I will give it that the film is creative, and if given a chance, can be somewhat entertaining. Just don't expect a big budget production like seen in the theaters today – you will not get it and be sorely disappointed.
