With
Spider-Man pulling in monstrous numbers last summer, it isn't at all surprising
that studios are now rushing to the comic book vaults to bring famed superheroes
to the big screen. This summer will see the release of The Hulk and X-Men 2, but
first out of the gate in the year 2003, is Daredevil starring Ben Affleck as a
blind lawyer by day, and a blind superhero by night.
Like
many heroes of the Marvel and DC comics, Daredevil is a hero driven by rage and
a taste for revenge that stems back to a tragic event in his past. His alter ego
is attorney Matt Murdock (Ben Affleck), which is rather humorous, because he basically
serves as jury and executioner to those who he feels slipped through the justice
system. Matt also finds time for romance in the form of the sleek and sexy Elektra
(Jennifer Garner). And what would a great hero be without a great villain? Actually,
there are two on display here. There's Kingpin (Michael Clarke Duncan), a bulky
crime lord who basically controls the city, and Bullseye (Colin Farrell), an expert
marksman with a really bad temper..
Let's
start with the performances. Affleck is no action hero, but he certainly fares
better here than I ever thought he would. Perhaps that was because of my low expectations.
Affleck is unable to completely exude the pain and loneliness of Murdock's world,
but at least he doesn't overplay the part. Garner is a beauty to behold and the
Alias training certainly helps her here, but there isn't much depth to this character.
Duncan really seems to be enjoying himself but there is very little background
to his character. He's simply mean for the sake of being mean, but then many comic
book villains are the same way. Of the entire cast, it is Farrell that really
lets himself go. While Bullseye too, is merely a stock villain, Farrell is a ball
of energy and I really enjoyed watching him. I also got a kick out of cameos from
Daredevil creator Stan Lee and Clerks creator Kevin Smith.
Daredevil
is painted on a much smaller canvas than Spider-Man. This movie is also much darker
in tone, although it isn't without it's tongue and cheek moments.
Writer/director
Mark Steven Johnson (Simon Birch) wants this to be a character driven piece, and
this is certainly more intimate than most superhero flicks. Unfortunately, the
film has major pacing issues, and some of the action sequences are weakly executed.
The first major fighting sequence in the picture is very muddled and it's virtually
impossible to see what's going on. And the courtship between Affleck and Garner
in the playground is silly beyond belief. It is poorly choreographed and has no
rhythm. Thankfully, things do pick up, and the climax pitting Daredevil against
Bullseye is thrilling.
There
has been a lot of buzz surrounding Daredevil for months. I really wanted it to
be a great movie. I admire Mark Steven Johnson's passion and determination. He
fought and fought to get the rights to this project, and it saddens me that he
is the primary reason the picture doesn't work. His heart was certainly in it,
but the movie just doesn't flow. For me, it suffered in the same way Spider-Man
suffered. The pacing is just off, although Daredevil does offer up better CGI
work then the webbed one.
Superman
and Superman 2 are examples of great superhero movies. They are character driven
but offer up grand adventure as well. I also loved the underrated Unbreakable,
a film that most people don't mention when talking superhero films. While it is
true that that picture was not based on a comic book, it still has a comic book
sensibility.
Daredevil
was just okay. It certainly felt rushed and the entire time I watched it, it felt
as if the studio had a franchise in mind. I have no doubts that this movie will
make tons of money, so hopefully, Fox won't rush the sequel.
