Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
#1
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Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
Full disclosure, I've never read any of Will Eisner's "The Spirit," but am also not a a Frank Miller fanboy.
I passed on the movie amidst all the backlash claiming it was the worst comic movie ever made. Intrigued by the visual look, I snagged a copy of the DVD for cheap and watched it. I thought it had a good sense of humor and felt more over-the-top like a comic than most comic movies I've seen. Yes, a lot of the dialogue was trying to be too cool and the Octopuses henchmen were eye-rollingly lame, but I felt I got my money worth and it was at least a C-plus film (drop the clones and I'd call it a good B-movie). Having not read Eisner's material, I realize a lot of the problem comes from it likely being unfaithful, but I would argue, people seemed to look past Tim Burton stomping all over Batman's legacy with the liberties he took.
I know the movie really got raked over the coals, especially due to Miller's involvement. Aside from some of his 80s stuff, I've never bought into his hype. Sin City just doesn't hold up in my book, and the dialogue there feels just as corny in places if not moreso than in this film. I wonder if the movie had been made by a newcomer, if critics would have been a bit kinder.
Anyone else share similar thoughts?
I passed on the movie amidst all the backlash claiming it was the worst comic movie ever made. Intrigued by the visual look, I snagged a copy of the DVD for cheap and watched it. I thought it had a good sense of humor and felt more over-the-top like a comic than most comic movies I've seen. Yes, a lot of the dialogue was trying to be too cool and the Octopuses henchmen were eye-rollingly lame, but I felt I got my money worth and it was at least a C-plus film (drop the clones and I'd call it a good B-movie). Having not read Eisner's material, I realize a lot of the problem comes from it likely being unfaithful, but I would argue, people seemed to look past Tim Burton stomping all over Batman's legacy with the liberties he took.
I know the movie really got raked over the coals, especially due to Miller's involvement. Aside from some of his 80s stuff, I've never bought into his hype. Sin City just doesn't hold up in my book, and the dialogue there feels just as corny in places if not moreso than in this film. I wonder if the movie had been made by a newcomer, if critics would have been a bit kinder.
Anyone else share similar thoughts?
#3
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I gave it a shot despite the bad reviews and ... thought it was pretty terrible. Colorless main actor, Samuel Jackson overdoing it, a spazzy plot... Wasn't the worst thing ever but very much a throw everything in the blender and see what sticks sort of movie. And as a longtime fan of the comics, yeah, I don't know what Miller was thinking but this sure isn't Will Eisner's Spirit on screen.
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
Count me as a "non-hater" of The Spirit. I didn't completely love it, but once I realized the tone was going to be sort of silly-campy, as opposed to hard-boiled, I just went with it and had a good time watching it.
Here's my The Spirit review, if you're bored...
Here's my The Spirit review, if you're bored...
Last edited by Pointyskull; 06-10-10 at 07:20 AM.
#6
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
Sorry, it's the only movie I've ever walked out on. I'm not one for wasting money and I've stayed in my seat to watch some movies I've considered horrible (Blankman...Powder..), but I couldn't do it with Spirit.
#7
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I liked it enough. At the very least, it's visually stunning.
Boba, how can you like The Spirit and dislike Scott Pilgrim??
Boba, how can you like The Spirit and dislike Scott Pilgrim??
#9
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I didn't hate it but I did somewhat enjoy it. Ok..let me elaborate on that. I disliked it more than I liked it. I wanted to like it cuz I liked The Spirit himself. It's barely ok...and it's hard for me to say that. I really wanted to think it was a good movie but it's flawed as hell. Miller should never be without Rodriguez.
I liked The Spirit himself and the women involved. It was very pulp noir w/ that aspect. My major displeasurement of it was that it's male characters were some of the most poorly written ones, I could care less about whatever any male character was doing besides The Spirit. The dames were great especially their interaction w/ The Spirit but I could care less about The Octopus and all the other male characters.
I liked The Spirit himself and the women involved. It was very pulp noir w/ that aspect. My major displeasurement of it was that it's male characters were some of the most poorly written ones, I could care less about whatever any male character was doing besides The Spirit. The dames were great especially their interaction w/ The Spirit but I could care less about The Octopus and all the other male characters.
Last edited by Solid Snake; 06-10-10 at 08:18 AM.
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I didn't think it was completely horrible, but then again my complete worship of Eva Mendes will blind me sometimes. She was in that movie.
#12
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I am a fan of most of the actors in that movie but it was terrible.
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#15
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I enjoyed it. I didn't really have high expectations or anything, and I wasn't familiar with the original comic, so that may have helped.
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I didn't think it was the steaming pile of crap others lead me to believe it would be. Though I think the combination of low expectations Eva Mendes helped a lot.
#17
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I liked it. It was a fun silly movie.
#18
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
It was a piece of crap. Yeah its fine if you like it, those DVDs need to be sold. But it was a piece of crap
#19
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
#20
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I caught it just the other day for the first time (premiered on HBO I think). I thought it was fairly decent actually (although I had very low expectations going in).
#21
Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I saw this in the theater and a few weeks back noticed it on TV. I decided to give it another try.
My thought was that this movie is a year and a half old, and it hasn't aged well.
My thought was that this movie is a year and a half old, and it hasn't aged well.
#23
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
I give this movie a C- as a movie in and of itself, but a solid B for all of the beautiful women involved.
I have to say that I found the movie to be mediocre overall, and I only thought that because I was familiar with the kind of style and characters typical of a Frank Miller story, which in that sense makes the movie tolerable. However, were I a fan of the original Spirit or just looking for a stand alone movie, I would have thought it one of the worst movies ever made.
But hey, we got a great Sam Jackson quote: "Toilets is always funny!"
I have to say that I found the movie to be mediocre overall, and I only thought that because I was familiar with the kind of style and characters typical of a Frank Miller story, which in that sense makes the movie tolerable. However, were I a fan of the original Spirit or just looking for a stand alone movie, I would have thought it one of the worst movies ever made.
But hey, we got a great Sam Jackson quote: "Toilets is always funny!"
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Re: Am I the only one who thought "The Spirit" wasn't that bad?
Beautiful women notwithstanding, it's absolute crap. Nothing redeeming whatsoever. Ineptitude of the highest order.
That about covers it.
That about covers it.