...the film's tone is so unrelentingly dark, its script so gloomy, and Affleck so determinedly vapid, the film falls flat.
Joe Pantoliano shows up as a newspaper reporter, Ben Urich, hot on Daredevil's trail and keen to unmask the anonymous crime-fighter, but his role leads only to the expected, inevitable conclusion. Then there's the mysterious "Kingpin," the city's prime mover in the world of wrongdoing and the man Daredevil thinks is responsible for his father's death; but he's such an obvious mark, he's not mysterious for long.
The film has an especially effective, atmospheric look and feel to it, and it doesn't matter that it's derived from Burton's "Batman." The film also has a couple of exceptionally exciting fight scenes in it (choreographed by Cheung-Yan Yeung), and it doesn't matter that they're derived from "The Matrix." In addition, the film has a number of convincing digital effects in it that are hardly noticeable as special effects at all. Combine these qualities with a strong supporting cast, and you'd think you'd have a darned good action film.
But no. The movie as a whole is let down by a script that hammers away with a grim vengeance at death and destruction. On the one hand it tries to be grittier and more realistic than the average superhero movie, while at the same time it's just as silly and exaggerated. The result is a film often sillier and more exaggerated than it intends to be. Yet it still leaves a bitter taste in the mouth when it's finished. One curious motion picture.
Moreover, Affleck as the lead is so laid back and bland, he appears half asleep most of the time. I mean, how can his character be at once so tortured, so reserved, and so totally colorless? Maybe it's just a case of miscasting. Affleck is about as suited to the part as Barbra Streisand was for "Hello Dolly" or Lucille Ball for "Mame." Whatever, Mr. Nice Guy Affleck isn't up to conveying much of his character's pain or nobility, and the movie suffers accordingly. Not a bad movie on the whole, you understand, but a disappointment, nonetheless.
Video:
To its credit the video quality is sharply defined, with clean edges, and virtually no grain in a wide 2.13:1 ratio anamorphic screen size. The deliberately murky, often sepia- tempered colors come off well, and detail remains good even in dimly light areas of the screen. On the deficit side, there is occasionally some line flutter and pixel displacement, and one can't help noticing most of the time the image is somewhat hard, glossy, and glassy. Like the picture's noir tone, I'm sure these hard, glassy properties were intentional in order to give the film a tougher, more severe appearance, but they are probably too much of a good thing, another example of the film's never knowing when to stop.
Audio:
The sound in Dolby Digital 5.1 is excellent, as I'm sure it is in its alternate DTS 5.1 mode. The dynamic response is strong, the stereo spread wide, and the balance fairly natural. It is only the deepest octaves that are slightly lacking in punch. The surround channels carry out their duties impressively, creating an all-enveloping environment, a good depth of field, and imposing side and rear audio effects. The soundtrack also well serves composer Graeme Revell's background score, reminiscent of Danny Elfman's music for "Batman." What's more, it's not five minutes into the film before the soundtrack offers up the obligatory helicopter flyover just to ensure we know this is a modern action movie. "Daredevil," for all its imagination and creativity, never lets a good cliché get by it, either.
Extras:
As one would expect of a major DVD release, this two-disc special edition comes with a wide assortment of bonus goodies. Disc one contains the widescreen presentation of the film, of course, with its Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtracks; English, French, and Spanish spoken languages; and English and Spanish subtitles. In additionally, there's a narrative track for the visually impaired, appropriate given Murdock's lack of sight in the film, and an audio commentary by director Mark Steven Johnson and producer Gary Foster. Then, there's an enhanced viewing mode that allows the user to go behind the scenes during the film with explanations and annotations by Visual Effects Producer John Kilkenny. Furthermore, you can click on a text commentary for notes to appear on screen continuously during play. The first disc concludes with thirty-two scene selections and some DVD-ROM features for your computer.
Needless to say, it's the second disc that contains the bulk of the extras, and there's more here than a person can probably absorb in a single sitting. The bonuses are divided into two categories, "The Film" and "The Comic Book." "The Film" begins with a one-hour documentary, "Beyond Hell's Kitchen: Making Daredevil," that can be watched in an enhanced viewing mode with further extended sequences. Then there's a brief Jennifer Garner screen-test, followed by two multi-angle glimpses at a pair of dailies, showing us how the scenes were shot. Next is a two-minute featurette with actor Michael Clarke Duncan, revealing how the Kingpin was transformed from the comic book to the big screen. After that is another featurette, "Daredevil: HBO First Look Special," a typical behind-the-scenes affair lasting about twenty-five minutes. Then, there's an eight-minute segment called "Moving Through Space: A Day With Tom Sullivan," about the sight-impaired consultant to the film. Finally, this batch of extras is concluded with five widescreen theatrical trailers (three for "Daredevil" and two for other Fox releases); three music videos: "Won't Back Down" by Fuel, "For You" by The Calling, and "Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence; and five still galleries covering storyboards, costumes, set design, production, and props.
"The Comic Book" section contains three items. The first is a documentary, "The Men Without Fear: The Art of Daredevil," over an hour, divided into chapters, and detailing the lives of the people who brought you the characters. The second is "Shadow World: An In-depth Look at Daredevil's Sight," about six minutes of comparisons of the comic-book's depiction of Daredevil's vision to the movie's. Lastly, there are several "Modeling Sheets," quick bios of several villains and heroes in the movie as they are described in the comic books.
Parting Shots:
Frankly, I wish Colin Farrell had played Daredevil and Ben Affleck had been in some other movie, "Pearl Harbor II" perhaps. Affleck simply does not look or behave like he belongs in a film this gothic and moody. Nor does the film's gothic feel work as well in this superhero flick as it did in "Batman." Instead of "Daredevil" uplifting our senses, the movie weighs them down.
Unquestionably, "Daredevil" is a strange film all the way around, fun to look at, with some spectacular fight scenes, but slow and dispiriting, too. It's a polar opposite of something like "Spider-Man," and I advise caution.
The film has an especially effective, atmospheric look and feel to it, and it doesn't matter that it's derived from Burton's "Batman." The film also has a couple of exceptionally exciting fight scenes in it (choreographed by Cheung-Yan Yeung), and it doesn't matter that they're derived from "The Matrix." In addition, the film has a number of convincing digital effects in it that are hardly noticeable as special effects at all. Combine these qualities with a strong supporting cast, and you'd think you'd have a darned good action film.
But no. The movie as a whole is let down by a script that hammers away with a grim vengeance at death and destruction. On the one hand it tries to be grittier and more realistic than the average superhero movie, while at the same time it's just as silly and exaggerated. The result is a film often sillier and more exaggerated than it intends to be. Yet it still leaves a bitter taste in the mouth when it's finished. One curious motion picture.
Moreover, Affleck as the lead is so laid back and bland, he appears half asleep most of the time. I mean, how can his character be at once so tortured, so reserved, and so totally colorless? Maybe it's just a case of miscasting. Affleck is about as suited to the part as Barbra Streisand was for "Hello Dolly" or Lucille Ball for "Mame." Whatever, Mr. Nice Guy Affleck isn't up to conveying much of his character's pain or nobility, and the movie suffers accordingly. Not a bad movie on the whole, you understand, but a disappointment, nonetheless.
Video:
To its credit the video quality is sharply defined, with clean edges, and virtually no grain in a wide 2.13:1 ratio anamorphic screen size. The deliberately murky, often sepia- tempered colors come off well, and detail remains good even in dimly light areas of the screen. On the deficit side, there is occasionally some line flutter and pixel displacement, and one can't help noticing most of the time the image is somewhat hard, glossy, and glassy. Like the picture's noir tone, I'm sure these hard, glassy properties were intentional in order to give the film a tougher, more severe appearance, but they are probably too much of a good thing, another example of the film's never knowing when to stop.
Audio:
The sound in Dolby Digital 5.1 is excellent, as I'm sure it is in its alternate DTS 5.1 mode. The dynamic response is strong, the stereo spread wide, and the balance fairly natural. It is only the deepest octaves that are slightly lacking in punch. The surround channels carry out their duties impressively, creating an all-enveloping environment, a good depth of field, and imposing side and rear audio effects. The soundtrack also well serves composer Graeme Revell's background score, reminiscent of Danny Elfman's music for "Batman." What's more, it's not five minutes into the film before the soundtrack offers up the obligatory helicopter flyover just to ensure we know this is a modern action movie. "Daredevil," for all its imagination and creativity, never lets a good cliché get by it, either.
Extras:
As one would expect of a major DVD release, this two-disc special edition comes with a wide assortment of bonus goodies. Disc one contains the widescreen presentation of the film, of course, with its Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtracks; English, French, and Spanish spoken languages; and English and Spanish subtitles. In additionally, there's a narrative track for the visually impaired, appropriate given Murdock's lack of sight in the film, and an audio commentary by director Mark Steven Johnson and producer Gary Foster. Then, there's an enhanced viewing mode that allows the user to go behind the scenes during the film with explanations and annotations by Visual Effects Producer John Kilkenny. Furthermore, you can click on a text commentary for notes to appear on screen continuously during play. The first disc concludes with thirty-two scene selections and some DVD-ROM features for your computer.
Needless to say, it's the second disc that contains the bulk of the extras, and there's more here than a person can probably absorb in a single sitting. The bonuses are divided into two categories, "The Film" and "The Comic Book." "The Film" begins with a one-hour documentary, "Beyond Hell's Kitchen: Making Daredevil," that can be watched in an enhanced viewing mode with further extended sequences. Then there's a brief Jennifer Garner screen-test, followed by two multi-angle glimpses at a pair of dailies, showing us how the scenes were shot. Next is a two-minute featurette with actor Michael Clarke Duncan, revealing how the Kingpin was transformed from the comic book to the big screen. After that is another featurette, "Daredevil: HBO First Look Special," a typical behind-the-scenes affair lasting about twenty-five minutes. Then, there's an eight-minute segment called "Moving Through Space: A Day With Tom Sullivan," about the sight-impaired consultant to the film. Finally, this batch of extras is concluded with five widescreen theatrical trailers (three for "Daredevil" and two for other Fox releases); three music videos: "Won't Back Down" by Fuel, "For You" by The Calling, and "Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence; and five still galleries covering storyboards, costumes, set design, production, and props.
"The Comic Book" section contains three items. The first is a documentary, "The Men Without Fear: The Art of Daredevil," over an hour, divided into chapters, and detailing the lives of the people who brought you the characters. The second is "Shadow World: An In-depth Look at Daredevil's Sight," about six minutes of comparisons of the comic-book's depiction of Daredevil's vision to the movie's. Lastly, there are several "Modeling Sheets," quick bios of several villains and heroes in the movie as they are described in the comic books.
Parting Shots:
Frankly, I wish Colin Farrell had played Daredevil and Ben Affleck had been in some other movie, "Pearl Harbor II" perhaps. Affleck simply does not look or behave like he belongs in a film this gothic and moody. Nor does the film's gothic feel work as well in this superhero flick as it did in "Batman." Instead of "Daredevil" uplifting our senses, the movie weighs them down.
Unquestionably, "Daredevil" is a strange film all the way around, fun to look at, with some spectacular fight scenes, but slow and dispiriting, too. It's a polar opposite of something like "Spider-Man," and I advise caution.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]10814[/release]