Ten Moments That Make The Spirit Worth Watching

I saw The Spirit when it came out in theaters, and I enjoyed it in all it's silly, uneven, free-wheeling splendor. I was a little surprised by the degree of vitriol leveled at the film from the online fan community, to say nothing of what most film critics thought of it. I mean, was it just me? Had my critical faculties deserted me on the day I saw Frank Miller's directorial debut?

I took a second look at The Spirit, this time in the comfort of my own living room on Blu-Ray (coming out nationwide tomorrow), and I stand by my initial assessment. I don't care that the film bares more resemblance to Diet Sin City than Eisner's original series. The lack of plot doesn't bother me - there's more to movies than plot. What I see when I watch The Spirit is a collection of distinctive images, unearthly characters (matched by some unearthly performances), and action sequences that rely on a set of physics most commonly found in cartoon and video games.

The end result is not quite a movie at all, but rather a moving collage of what Frank Miller thinks of when he thinks of the Spirit. It might bare little resemblance to what Spirit fans think of the character, but for fans of extreme and indulgent pop art, Miller's vision contains several moments that should not be missed.

And with that, I present: Ten Moments That Makes The Spirit Worth Watching....

Plot spoilers after the jump, but again, why would you watch this movie for the plot?

1. The Giant Wrench (0:13:18)
During a outlandishly cartoonish fight scene early in the film, a gigantic wrench appear out of no where and is used to hit The Spirit in the crotch, and then as a ramp for the Spirit to run up so he can achieve the height needed to kick the villainous Octopus in the face. It was at this point in the film that I suspected the next 90 minutes would have at least some entertainment value for a person who enjoys slapstick and absurdity, such as myself.

2. Wordplay (0:18:00)
The following exchange occurs between the Spirit and one of his many love interests, with complete dramatic sincerity; "The Octopus knows something!" "Why do you say that?" "Because he just told me he knows something!" This got a big laugh from the audience when I watched it, and I have to believe it is an intentionally silly bit or writing in the vein of Strangers with Candy.

3. "No Egg On My Face" (0:23:30)
I have no idea who The Octopus is in the original comics. But in the movie, he is a crazy scientist who talks a lot about eggs. He is also Samuel L. Jackson's best role since Pulp Fiction. At this moment in the film, Octopus says he refuses to have egg on his face. He then shoots an offending henchmen and screams, "NO! EGG! ON! MY! FACE!....not a globbb!".
Then, in a whisper, starring at his reflection in his gun,"...not a glob." If there is one scene you need to see in this movie, it's this one. I mean, look at this. Madness on film.

4. Elevator Silhouettes (0:43:00)
Miller uses a simple visual gimmick here to spice up a short expositionary dialogue scene - three characters travel up in an old iron cage elevator, and we only see their back-lit silhouettes as they ascend. But is this live action? Is it animation? Is it some sort of aftereffects composite? Whatever it is, the body language is pushed to cartoon-level exaggeration, and it's a blast to watch. I'd love to see an an entire short film shot like this.


5. The City Is My Weapon (0:56:20)
This is one of the few sequences in the film that works as a genuine piece of cinematic storytelling. It's an action sequence that illustrates a central part of the story; The Spirit is part of the city he inhabits. As he fights off thugs, the Spirit uses literal pieces of the city in combat; snowballs, a manhole cover, the sidewalk itself. There are a lot of things for detractors of this movie to point to to tear it down, but I tell you what; ain't nothing wrong with this scene.

6. "It smells....dental..." (01:01:10)
When the Spirit wakes up tied to a dentist's chair facing a giant swastika, his reaction is my favorite line of the movie: "Dental and Nazi....great."

7. The Death of Danny Colt (01:05:15:)
Another all around solid sequence, this one dealing with a whole lot of exposition in a sharp, visually interesting way. Highlights include a morgue evoked with only a man, a corpse, and a red panel of ceiling, and a great POV shot of Danny trying to claw his way out of being buried alive (Miller's solution to the no-light-inside-a-coffin problem? Just light it anyway!).


8. "Get me a tie, and it sure as hell better be red!" (01:19:45)
When the Spirit cheats death yet again and wakes up in a ER, he just yanks the EKG cables right off and power-walks down the hallway with his sidekicks in tow. Lead actor Gabriel Macht made a fan of me with his performance in this film, and this scene is just one shining example of how he manages to nail a swaggering walk and pulp-noir growl with just the right amount of sincerity.

9. "We are locked and loaded!" (01:21:50)
Another performer who knows exactly how to play a cartoon character is Stana Katic, who plays Detective Morgenstern, a comically earnest rookie cop with a off-the-charts Bal'mer accent. In this scene, she whips out a gigantic gun out of nowhere that looks like one of those Zorg Guns from The Fifth Element, but MORESO. And it's a perfect character moment, because nothing phases this gal, she's enthusiastically unflappable. If that makes sense. Okay so maybe I have a little crush on this character. Shut up.

10. "Let's die!" (01:28:58)
Again, just another tip of the hat to Gabriel Macht for a killer line delivery. He's in Whiteout next, you know. I'll see it.

There you have it. Ten iron-clad reasons to check out one of the most maligned comic book movies in the last decade. And if that's not enough, it's also got Scarlett Johansson giving one of the most confused performances I've ever seen on screen. You feel bad for her, you do. You get the sense she couldn't stop starring at the green screens, and thinking, "This is not why I went to acting school."

Mondo Monday Movie Update:Astroboy, Everquest, Anaconda Oh My!

Caine's High Praise for Ledger's Joker: "He's Not Jack"

To all you thinking that Heath Ledger will be doing a Jack Nicholson impression for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight (I won't name names, but believe me, there are some within the G'nerd halls), take these words straight from Michael Caine's mouth: "He’s fantastic. He’s gone in a different direction than Jack… Jack was like a really scary old, nasty old uncle with a funny face. Heath is like the most murderous psychopath you’ve ever seen on the screen... [he] frightened the bloody life out of me… It’s amazing and it’s so different from Jack."

Via /film.

Hit the jump for a first look at Astroboy, Kevin Smith getting shot down, Frank Miller getting more ladies and Warner Bros getting rid of 'em.

First Look: Astroboy

I must admit I've never read the manga nor seen the animated series, but this little robot boy is a big deal in his home country of Japan and don't be surprised if his CGI movie is the big crossover success he needs to take over America as well. First time director Colin Brady says he is "being faithful to [Astroboy creator Osamu] Tezuka's original story arc and at the same time bringing out elements needed for those unfamiliar with the story." From the image they just released, it looks like they've done a pretty good job maintaining the look of the 2D incarnation, though perhaps with slightly drabber colors than the original. Slated for a 2009 release.

Via Empire.

The Spirit Gets All the Ladies...

Two more lovely ladies have joined the lady train also known as Frank Miller's Will Eisner's The Spirit. Now we have Jamie King (Sin City) as phantom siren Lorelei and Paz Vega (Spanglish) as the knife-wielding Plaster of Paris. For a guy whose comics have such a misogynistic bent, he sure has a way of rounding up hordes of women to do his bidding. The full roster now, in addition to these two, is Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes, Sarah Paulson, and Stana Katic.

Via Variety.

And Warner Bros Hates All the Ladies

After disappointing returns from Jodie Foster's The Brave One and Nicole Kidman's The Invasion, Warner Bros president of production Jeff Robinov has made a new decree that "We are no longer doing movies with women in the lead." Snap! Apparently he doesn't even want to see a script with a woman in the primary position. Sounds like somebody is looking for a scapegoat for all the shitty movies he's been signing off on.

Via Deadline Hollywood.

Avi Arad Bringing Everquest to the Big Screen

The guy whose name you've seen at the beginning of every Marvel movie you can remember has been away from the House of Ideas for about a year now and is trying to make some waves. His first flick, Bratz, didn't go over so well with a meager $22mil in box office, and after his next toy "adaptation" Robosapien he will be taking on the computer MMORPG Everquest. 300 screenwriter Michael Gordon is on board, and he has a lot of work to do... Taking a generic fantasy setting with no central character and making it interesting to a bunch of fans that have long moved on to World of Warcraft? Unpleasant job.

Via Empire.

Weinsteins Pass on Kevin Smith's Red State

Possibly feeling a bit burned from their last attempt at concept horror (Grindhouse), the Weinstein's (who have been behind every Smith film but Mallrats) have decided not to have a hand in Kevin Smith's Red State. Smith says: "It’s the first time Harvey and Bob have passed on anything I’ve wanted to do, but if they were gonna pass on anything, this’d be the one to do it on... I get excited thinking about having to raise financing for our hot potato of a flick." Smith also posted the initial e-mail response he got from Harvey, who says "Your new script is quite disturbing and challenging, a departure from what I’m used to reading from you." I don't know about you guys, but all this talk makes me much more interested in the flick.

Via /film.

The Hoff Signs Up for Anaconda 3... And 4!

Distraught that he isn't involved in either of the Knight Rider movies and sick of eating hamburgers off the ground, David Hasselhoff is looking for a paycheck from two made-for-TV sequels to the revered Anaconda series. He'll be playing a "mercenary-for-hire who accepts a mission from a billionaire to capture a dangerous snake that could possibly help cure a terminal illness." MmHm.

Via Empire.

Snap Judgements: Tek Jansen, Martha Washington, Green Arrow

As always, Snap Judgements gives you Triple-S comic reviews: short, sweet, and spoiler-free.

Silverfish: Pre-Review Rant

You know what I'd really like to be SnapJudgin' today? David Lapham's Silverfish. I'm a huge fan of his and was really excited to pick up his book today before I realized it would set me back $25. That is way too much to pay for 160 pint-sized (6.875” x 9”) black and white pages, I don't care how flippin' hard your cover is. Moving on.


Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen #1: Cable Funnyman in Space

I actually had high hopes for this series, since I'm a fan of Colbert and get a kick out of the brief Tek Jansen jokes on The Report. In case you're unfamiliar, these jokes involve Colbert making up some silly futuristic names for things. For example (and this is from the comic): "Look at the chronotime! No time to radioshower, lasershave, or autodress!" That shit cracks me up. Unfortunately, that line was pretty much all this ish had to offer. And the story is so forgettable that... I just forgot it. The back up tale had the benefit of having a satiric bite, but it's over way too soon. Apparently catchy one-liners don't expand well into full-length comic stories. Color me disappointed.

Supposed To Be Funny, Not - Bad Story + A Bit of Satire = D

Reviews for Martha Washington Dies and Green Arrow: Year One after the jump...

Martha Washington Dies: Guess What Happens?

I'm a Frank Miller junkie, but recently his work has been pretty lazy. All-Star Batman will make me chuckle occasionally, but there's really not much depth to it. And The Dark Knight Strikes Again... Well, I have a pet theory that the whole thing was a great joke Frank played on all of us and he's laughing his ass off right now. But Martha Washington Dies is some good stuff. It felt so good to read a Miller book that wasn't so... Miller-ish. There's no jokes, no silliness, no lazy pages... Just some solid storytelling that caps off the story he began telling 18 years ago. There's one big problem, though... The book is only 17 pages! WTF?! It feels like a backup story, and maybe should have waited until the Complete Martha Washington Collection which is advertised in the back of this issue. I guess he wouldn't be Frank Miller if he didn't piss us off at least a little. Oh, and Dave Gibbons art is scrumptious as always, though Angus McKie's colors don't do it much justice and there are some fireworks at one point that are clearly cut-and-pasted jpegs somebody downloaded from the internet. It is some ugly shit.

FM Returns to Form + Great Gibbons - Short As Sin = B+

Green Arrow: Year One #1: Ollie Wanna Reboot?

If this book didn't have the words Green Arrow on the cover, I think I would've come away happy. The writing is sharp enough, the art, while a little bare, gets the job done, and the growth of this "Oliver Queen" character seems like it will be fun to watch... The problem is that it says Green Arrow on the cover, and the Ollie Queen in this book is not Ollie Queen in my book. And I hate "modern" reboots of characters that are doing just fine. And the cover features some crucifixion imagery. Which is silly. Did I mention my sarcastic, witty Ollie Queen has turned into a spoiled frat boy? Not that there isn't a precedent for this, the Ollie of Mike Grell's The Wonder Year was similar, if I'm remembering correctly. But I don't remember liking that story either.

OK Writing - No Backgrounds - Annoying Ollie = C+