For those who don't know, The Spirit was a comic book created and written by Will Eisner. If the name sounds familiar, yes, it's that Will Eisner. As in the guy whose name is on a bunch of comic book awards that are the comic book version of the Oscars. So, let's just say, The Spirit is pretty pumped up, as is its creator. Hell, on the 94th anniversary of Eisner's birth, Google changed it's iconic Google title on it's page into The Spirit icon (they do that on special occasions). So, I don't know if you would say The Spirit is a popular comic (though they were re-printing Eisner's originals in the mid-2000's and Jeph Loeb did a one shot of Batman with The Spirit), but it's creator is legendary, so it stands to reason there is a base of fans out there who love The Spirit. So, if this movie was a terrible representation of The Spirit, I can understand the hate.
Hold on though, if you think this is the end of it, you're sorely mistaken. I know a big fan of The Spirit comic: J-Man! That's right, you're very own video blogger who is one of the creators of this very website, as well as its most frequent poster happens to be a big, big Spirit fan. So, if you want the acid test, then you throw an actual fan of something into a movie and see how they react to the source material. In this case, I know for a fact that J-Man is a big, big fan of this movie. So, there you have it, a true fan of the original source material is equally enthused and excited about the film. In my book, that's all that counts. However, you could also say that the movie in general sucks.
That's where I come in. I don't know a hell of a lot about The Spirit, I never collected the comic and never got the re-prints or anything (though I wouldn't mind checking it out) but I know good movies and crap movies and this is NOT a crap movie, it's a good one. I know everyone is horny for "gritty movies" these days. They think that they can't enjoy a movie unless it's aimed specifically at them and their problems in life. Of course it's that sort of egocentric, self-centered thinking that pisses me off in the first place and shows a serious stunting of the imagination. I think one of the great things about humankind is that we are more than what we are now, because we can actually dream of something better and as someone once said (it may have been me, I don't know), you cannot attain unless you dream of it first. However, with people's attitudes towards movies (and life in general), dreaming has taken a back step to accepting how things are and moaning about your lot in life instead of actually dreaming of a better set of circumstances and then actually working to achieve that dream.
The point is, The Spirit is a fantasy and Frank Miller (who knows a thing or two about comic book writing and adapting comics to the big-screen...see Sin City, which everyone loved) did it as a tribute to its creator. It is unabashed about its fantastical elements and you know up front, this is a movie about imagination, not grounded in reality. To hate a movie specifically on these grounds shows a lack of understanding of genre in film, a lack of imagination and a deficiency in tolerance for other people's views and how they think. Not every film can be The Dark Knight and not every film should strive to be so, either. There's enough room in the world for everyone, even the idiots.
Rating: Worth the hate? Nope.
- Stephenstein
Today, I have seen The Avengers for the 2nd time. That's right, I have seen it twice in a span of three days. If anyone out there wants to go again, give me a ring, because I could do it, right now. Forget everything you've heard the past little while, forget the over-analyzers and the people who are calling this film Transformers 3. Those people are fools and their opinions should not be taken into account. This movie is the real deal folks, you read a lot of bitching on this post about movies and with very good reason, but this one is the one to go and see. You won't be disappointed. Where do I begin?
When the movie was announced, I was skeptical. Of course I was. We've heard about team-ups before concerning comic books and they never seem to work. X-Men? Yeah, the films are getting worse. That's right, worse. Any attempt at imagination or innovation has gone out the frickin' window, it's the same drum that keeps getting banged each and every time. If you want to know what X-Men First Class is about, just watch X-Men 1 and 2. Same themes, same storyline, same boring crap. Fantastic Four? It's heart was in the right place and they weren't as bad as everyone says they were, but I didn't leave the theatre inspired or anything (a cloudy Galactus will do that to you.) Justice League? The live-action film got it's plug pulled, because no one could figure out how to do it, (you put a bunch of heads together in a Hollywood studio and what to do you get? Sawdust). So Avengers, no matter how quality the films were preceding it, I was not convinced all the characters could get the screen time they needed or deserved to have the audience give a damn about them. In today's world, it just isn't done anymore.
Well, I was wrong and I'm not afraid to put it into print here. Everyone gets their moment, you get team-ups within the film, everyone gets a crack at the main villain, it's all there ladies and gentlemen, the film that you would want made about The Avengers was done. I can't believe it. I can't believe I'm writing this sentence. I would have thought it would have been another "yeah, it was good, but you know, they could have done this, this and this." Nope. No complaints. No gripes. It's an event picture. You remember what it was like, lining up for Return of the Jedi or something and the anticipation was off the charts and you couldn't wait to get to your seat, grab your popcorn and wait for the flick to get started? Where they're showing the trailers and you're like, get on with it, already? This is this movie. This is a bonafide, no-kidding, no schtick summer blockbuster. Everything you would want, the characterizations, the plot, the spectacle, the action, the humor, the moments, it's all in there.
This movie makes me want to flood Marvel with emails. I want them to reclaim Spider-Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four. It is a crying frigging shame that these properties are not getting the treatment they deserve. Marvel would elevate all of these films, believe me. How awesome would it be to have Avengers 2 with Spider-Man joining the team? It could happen. It should happen. Marvel has proven that a movie on this epic a scale can not only be done, but be done right. I think there should be some sort of campaign to have Marvel grab all of their properties back. It has to be done. If they can do a movie this big, this good, this spectacular, then any other Marvel movie that is being made by another studio is nothing but a waste of everyone's time.
So, go see this movie. Again...and again...and again. Support it loud and proud. This is one movie that is deserving of every dollar it makes. I can't wait for Avengers 2.
Rating: a big time 5 out of 5.
- Stephenstein
