Eddie Harrison film-authority.com Sep 2, 2026 2/5

…Superman III is crass, corny, and a permanent strain to watch…Richard Pryor’s brand of worldly comedy just doesn’t fit this universe and the result is a tonal catastrophe that shows director Richard Lester way out of his comic element….

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Richard Freedman Newark Star-Ledger Jan 12, 2026

The "Superman" saga seems to be running out of fresh ideas, smack into premature middle age.

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Brad Cook Flickering Myth Jul 10, 2025 2/5

Lester apparently encouraged Pryor to do a lot of the shtick he was famous for at the time, which made the movie more campy than it should have been.

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David Denby New York Magazine/Vulture Jul 8, 2025

Tedious, labored, and feeble beyond belief.

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Michael D. Reid Victoria Times Colonist (B.C., Canada) Jul 8, 2025

Attempting to endow Superman with human weakness drains the inherent magic.

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David Wilson Tulsa World Jul 8, 2025

It's neither bird nor plane, nor super sequel. It's Superman III, and it flies the lowest of three films featuring the strong-but sensitive stud.

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Tom Sabulis Tampa Bay Times Jul 8, 2025 3/5

Ultimately, Superman III is not bad considering the other action packed drivel coming out of Hollywood.

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Anna Maria Dell'oso Sydney Morning Herald Jul 8, 2025

A witty refreshing escape of a movie.

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Harper Barnes St. Louis Post-Dispatch Jul 8, 2025

Mainly, it is pretty much what you would expect from a Superman movie starring Richard Pryor: moderately entertaining and totally predictable.

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Bruce R. Miller Sioux City Journal Jul 8, 2025

Obviously, III was made to make money. It's just too bad its ulterior motive couldn't have been fun.

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John Stark San Francisco Examiner Jul 8, 2025

Lester fails to keep that spark going, despite the charismatic presence of Richard Pryor.

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George Williams Sacramento Bee Jul 8, 2025

It has a disjointed script that manages to transform the Man of Steel into a first-class dope. And it misuses a strong performer like Richard Pryor in a way that any 12-year-old movie fan could have predicted would leave an audience cold.

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Jack Garner Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Jul 8, 2025

Superman III fails to balance three separate, and not always well articulated stories.

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George Anderson Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Jul 8, 2025

The new movie pushes the comedy so hard the heroine is lost.

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Desmond Ryan Philadelphia Inquirer Jul 8, 2025

Superman III has a pleasing, down to earth quality, and Pryor serves as the bridge to the fantasy elements.

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Joe Baltake Philadelphia Daily News Jul 8, 2025

It shouldn't work. But it manages to get by because of a couple of guys named Richard and the pure pleasure syndrome that each one brings to the production.

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Noel Taylor Ottawa Citizen Jul 8, 2025

Even with Pryors help, it's clear by now the Superman mystique has worked itself out.

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Jay Boyar Orlando Sentinel Jul 8, 2025 4/5

The results are as surprising and charming as a vacation in the bottled city of Kandor.

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Bob Hicks Oregonian Jul 8, 2025

This is a comic book movie, and it feels just like a comic book -- visually, verbally, in its flat but flighty caricatures and the crazily out of whack inventiveness of its story line.

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Joseph Gelmis Newsday Jul 8, 2025 2.5/4

The movie works best as slapstick comedy.

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