The passing of Margot Kidder has affected me more than I might've expected. The Superman movies of the late 70's were some of the most thoroughly convincing presentations of a superhero on screen I'd ever seen. Christopher Reeve was ideal in the title role but his counterpart of Lois Lane as portrayed by Margot Kidder added the pepper to a story which could have easily mired itself in schmaltz and self-importance. Kidder's Lois was a sultry and snarky and potent agent of her own, not looking to anyone on this world or any other to protect her, though her reckless nature made that saving important.
Kidder herself was a rambunctious person by all accounts who truly sucked the marrow out of life before life turned on her in brutal ways. Her difficulties are well known, and her brave, even brazen manner made her survive them all and even allowed us to root for her as she struggled to find balance in a life we all fight to make sense of. Margot Kidder was a "dame" of the first order, a powerful personality who for a brief time evoked a character who represented the best in us all, the desire to know the truth whatever the cost.
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Hard to believe that we believed a man (and a woman alongside him) could fly 40 years ago. Rest in peace Margot. And say hello to Chris for me.
ReplyDeleteIt was a neat moment in time when a good superhero was very hard to find. The lives lived by both Reeve and Kidder show that reality is so much harsher than the rigors of fiction, but the heroism is no less real.
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