..Gary
Dretzka
..Noah
Forrest
..Leonard
Klady
..R.J.
Matson
..David
Poland
..Douglas
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
..Michael
Wilmington
Daredevil
Director: Mark Steven JohnsonThe comic book that the superhero film, Daredevil, is based upon was created by men who grew up in the Forties, and so there is an interesting retro-environment to the setting. The 2003 film takes place in the present day but in something that hasn't existed for almost forty years, New York's Hell's Kitchen. More importantly, this setting carries over into the attitude of the drama, which in some ways takes place in a simpler moral universe of time gone by, where the villains are easily defined as crime lords, the hero (in his alter-ego) is a lawyer (his father was a white boxer) and the only sanctuary is a church. It's retro-noir instead of neo-noir.
Ben Affleck stars, his character's other senses enhanced to superior levels when he lost his sight as a child in an industrial accident. He is a lawyer by day and a protector of the innocent at night. One component of the narrative drawn from its comic book source does not follow the film's internal logic effectively - Jennifer Garner's character, with no explanatory special powers (she 'studied with a different sensei every year when she was a child'), has the ability to leap gravity-defying distances. Other than that irritating exception, however, the film is good fun. The special effects aren't bad and the narrative has enough forward movement to keep the viewer involved. Michael Clarke Duncan in the primary villain and Colin Farrell basically steals the movie as one of his henchmen, a marksman who never misses.
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has released the feature as a two-platter Widescreen Edition (2007788, $30), letterboxed with an aspect ratio of about 2.35:1 and an accommodation for enhanced 16:9 playback. Taking its cue from the leather and vinyl costumes, the entire film has that sort of slick, glossy look to it, which comes across very effectively on the DVD. The image is sharp and darker sequences are solid. The film's audio mix is excellent, with lots of rear channel and sub-woofer activity, employed to accentuate the hero's enhanced auditory abilities. The 5.1-channel Dolby Digital track is fine, but the DTS track is the best, with crisp, shear tones. The 103-minute program has alternate French and Spanish tracks in standard stereo and optional English, French and Spanish subtitles. Another subtitling track brings up sporadic background information about the production and the story. There is also an option that prompts viewers during some special effects and action sequences to a narrated breakdown of the composite shots and preparatory animation. On DVD-ROM, there is a history of the comic book that could just as easily have been presented on the DVD itself, and a few other odds and ends.
Mark Steven Johnson, who wrote the screenplay and then directed the film, and Gary Foster, who hired him, provide a commentary track, focusing primarily on the production logistics. They explain how key scenes were staged and what was shot where. They also discuss the various members of the cast and crew and talk a little bit about the background to the story. It is a reasonably informative though not elaborate discussion.
It is in the excellent 59-minute production documentary on the second platter that it really becomes clear how much a fan of the comic book Johnson is and how much his enthusiasm for the project can be linked directly to its success as an entertaining movie. He wasn't afraid to tweak what had to be tweaked for the film because he understood how the diverse elements of heroes and villains and environment would blend together. There are lots of interesting looks at different aspects of the production and good interviews about both the development of various components and their execution. Additionally, there are 20 minutes of outtakes from the documentary that go into more details contain more fascinating developmental materials.
An equally good 59-minute documentary looks at the comic book series upon which the film was based, interviewing a number of artists and writers who have labored on it over the years and discussing the major shifts in style and theme each brought to the franchise. Stan Lee, who first conceived the character in 1963, never mentions Zatoichi, the 'blind samurai' film series that began in 1962, but it is possible he came up with the idea of a blind action hero independently. Nobody mentions how much the original drawings of the villain, Kingpin, look like character actor Tor Johnson, either. Nevertheless, the piece is a satisfying dissection of the comic book series and a good overview of how the comic book industry has evolved during the past forty years.
Also featured on the second platter is a decent 25-minute HBO promotional documentary that contains some fresh material; a fascinating 8-minute segment on the film's 'sight impaired' advisor, Tom Sullivan, who can be seen, among other things, playing golf; 2 minutes of Garner's screen tests; a segment that presents a complete collection of takes from a couple fight scenes; a less interesting 2-minute segment on Duncan; three trailers; a Fuel music video; a The Calling music video; an Evanescence music video; a great collection of comic book-like storyboards on still frame; an equally stimulating collection of costume, set and production designs in still frame; and a 6-minute montage that compares the comic book art to sequences from the film.
July 28, 2003
Douglas Pratt's DVD-Laser Disc Newsletter is published monthly.
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