Always one to pursue useless knowledge wherever he can find it in a seemingly never-ending quest to achieve the improbable and downright unlikely status of modern-day Renaissance man, Mark Bittmann has indulged his desire to never be lost in any conversation, by developing an arcane understanding of things of little consequence or import while maintaining his alleged status as a small fish in a small pond.
As long as his self-indulgent whim is catered to, he manages to sustain the facade of someone under the misperception that others care about what he thinks. With a ubiquity normally reserved for greenhouse gasses, he chases his random and inconsequential thoughts with all the tenacity of a banana peel. This is his life, his curse, and his twisted and maniacal way of impressing the ladies.
Despite all of the forces of my life working against me I managed to find the time to see Marvel's latest cinematic offering and it seems they are still keeping their winning streak alive. Although, like most movie interpretations of comic book superhero adventures, it was a tad different than the source material, it still captures the essence and feel of the world of Matt Murdock. In short, Marvel continues to capitalize on the firmly established status quos of their characters whilst retaining the spirit of the comics, even though the interpretation of their hero's exploits in a different visual medium requires necessary changes in character dynamics and storytelling structure.
The good things about this movie are many. DD is tough, gritty and vengeful, going so far as to let an acquitted rapist (named Jose Quesada, in one of many nods to Daredevil creators past and present to be found in the movie) be run over by a subway train when he could very easily have saved him. He is a man covered with the scars earned in his one-man war on the underbelly of Hell's Kitchen (if such a disreputable place has an underbelly) who has grown accustomed to and learned to deal with the pain involved in turning over one's life to vigilantism. Ben Affleck's journeyman performance as blind lawyer cum leather-wearing dispenser of justice manages to convey the pain and pleasures to be gained leading a dual life without having to rely on his star wattage to earn the audience's sympathy. His Daredevil is worth rooting for and a pleasure to watch. Although the leather costume didn't work for me personally, because I know better, I sensed the presumably layman audience I viewed it with didn't seem to have a problem with it. Something tells me solid action and engaging special effects go a long way in helping to suspend one's disbelief, as the notion of a guy wearing a red, sculpted dominatrix cast-off to fight crime in didn't seem to play as silly to me, or be interpreted as such by others. Most of the comments viewers let fly during the screening were along the lines of hoots of encouragement for DD's quest and as acknowledgement of visual touches they found themselves impressed by. I also discovered that I was not the only one in the audience who knows Stan Lee when he sees him. "There's Stan the Man" leaped out of the mouth of a viewer seated behind me, literally taking the words I was saying to my companion out of my mouth.
It was also a treat to hear the words Miller, Mack and Bendis inserted into the script as well, although personally, I think David Mack's contributions to the Daredevil mythos are minimal and there are many artists who served time on the series far more deserving of having their name dropped onscreen, Gene Colan being only one of them. Still, seeing John Romita's name on the marquee outside the boxing ring certainly was a treat, as was seeing Frank Miller's cameo as the unfortunate owner of a motorcycle Bullseye is in need of. The visual touches in this movie were a kick for comic book fans without confusing the uninitiated. From the aforesaid nods to comic book professionals to the way Elektra's leather top stretched over the exiting sai being shoved through her rib cage as it was in the panel Frank Miller drew, lo those many years ago.
Of course, I have a few quibbles as well, for no comic book superhero movie has ever been a perfect adaptation for one reason or another, usually having to do with the fact that Hollywood doesn't know jack about comic book mythos. Mark Steven Johnson, however, has no excuses and, thankfully, he doesn't need to make many. One of the few problems I had with the movie is the seesaw sparring/courtship scene between blind lawyer Matt Murdock and Elektra (let me just interject that, while she may lack black hair and the skimpy costume, there is nothing ugly about Jennifer Garner). It was akin to the scene in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man where Peter Parker fights Flash Thompson in the school hallway in that it is a dead giveaway as to his secret identity. In Spider-Man, the entire cafeteria not only is treated to the site of Peter dragging a lunch tray with his webbing, they also see him perform acrobatics that no previously frail science geek (or acrobat for that matter) has any business being able to execute. In Daredevil, Matt Murdock basically lets a dozen people (Miss Natchios included) observe the fact that he isn't remotely close to being handicapped, despite his blindness. To the contrary, he demonstrates that he, as a blind man, is more agile, acrobatic and visually aware than a person blessed with sight. In my book this is a mistake, just as it was in Spider-Man. Any schmuck with half a brain can put two and two together and come to the conclusion that Murdock is either 1) not blind and faking it or 2) not at all what he appears to be. Throw in the adeptness at martial arts he displays and anyone who has seen DD in action and notes that his eyes are eclipsed by solid red lenses can deduce that this blind chap with moves like Jackie Chan and obvious extra-sensory abilities could very well be the vigilante known as Daredevil…especially if they happen to pay attention to the facial moles shared by the two. Of course, height and build factor in as well.
As for Kingpin, I didn't find him nearly menacing, calculating or imposing enough. True, Michael Clarke Duncan is a good 7 feet tall if he's an inch, but his Kingpin wasn't given enough pathos, backstory or screen time in my book. He was too much the gentle giant, instead of the ruthless hands-on character in the comic book. Fortunately what screen time he was denied was more than made up for by Colin Farrell's scenery-chewing turn as Bullseye. Driven, egotistical and relentless, Bullseye is every bit as psychopathic as he should be and Farrell seems to be enjoying every minute of his role as assassin for hire.
As much as I enjoyed Daredevil, it is the trailer for X2 that preceded it that has me stoked. One look and it is obvious that they are operating under a much bigger budget this time around. Good. It looks killer. Unfortunately they didn't double my pleasure, double my fun, by attaching the new Hulk trailer as well. I would have liked to see him throw that tank across the desert on the silver screen. Guess I'll have to wait a while. Fortunately, all the waiting I've done for Marvel movie adaptations thus far has been worth the time.
