CGC Home Video Grades First and Second-release Videocassettes of Superman: The Movie
CGC Home Video™ recently certified two “super” home video releases: Two very early releases of Superman on videocassette!
The first CGC-certified videocassette is a sealed Superman: The Movie graded CGC 8.5 A+. This VHS was released in 1980 by Warner Communications Inc., a predecessor to Warner Media and Warner Bros. Discovery. First release copies of Superman: The Movie can be easily identified by the “WCI Home Video” banner on the front of the videocassette’s book box and the PG rating on the back of the box. Additionally, if the book box were to be opened, a “1979” release date can be found printed inside the box’s gatefold. Although the film wasn’t released to the public until 1980, the VHS’s packaging was finalized in 1979, hence the printed date.
Meanwhile, CGC Home Video also certified a second release of Superman: The Movie on VHS. This complete copy of Superman: The Movie is graded CGC 7.5 with CIB ratings of 6.5 for Case and 9.4 for Media. Unlike its first-release counterpart, this second release not only uses the “Warner Home Video” logo but also erroneously uses the “R” rating on the back of the box, even though Superman: The Movie is rated PG.
Interestingly, although Superman: The Movie was long enough to warrant two videocassettes, Warner Bros. chose to release the film on one to accommodate a release within book boxes. In order to achieve this constraint, Warner Bros. opted to remove most of the film’s credits and speed up some of the non-dialogue scenes within the movie, cutting around 20 minutes total from the film.
Fans noticed the strange speed-up segments and missing credits in the first release of Superman: The Movie and criticized the missing content. To rectify the audience’s concerns, Warner Home Video included a small card in the second release’s book box explaining the lack of a credits sequence. This card is exclusive to the second release of Superman: The Movie.
To learn more about these two releases of Superman: The Movie, check out the video below.
About CGC
Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for sports cards, TCGs and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. CGC Home Video provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of videocassettes, DVD, Blu-ray and more.