The Spirit *** (2008, Gabriel Macht, Samuel L Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes, Paz Vega, Jaime King) – Classic Movie Review 4621

The mastermind behind Sin City and 300, director Frank Miller, lavishly splashes his incredible, eye-catching visual style all over this astonishing 2008 comic book movie, based on the legendary comic book series created by Will Eisner.

In a film that mixes aspects of superhero sagas with film noir, an extremely interesting bunch of actors is shifted about on screen by Miller’s computers, making the idea of performances virtually redundant. So Gabriel Macht embodies – effectively – rather than plays the hero – an ex-cop reincarnated as Central City’s immortal enforcer The Spirit, who is irresistible to gorgeous femme fatale-type women.

We get a splendid bunch of these – Scarlett Johansson’s Silken Floss, Eva Mendes’s Sand Saref, Jaime King’s Lorelei and Paz Vega’s Plaster of Paris among them – all vying to out-vamp each other. Samuel L Jackson, playing The Spirit’s evil nemesis The Octopus, steals the limelight from this talented top cast, overacting wildly and raising some huge laughs.

Mixing bits of Sin City with Batman, the plot is quirky and campy, the dialogue dark and amusing and the film-making clever and startling. Maybe it is a poseur of a film, with nothing but its style to show off, but then its style is astounding.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 4621

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com