The Spirit (2008)

User Rating:

5.0/10   

Director:

Frank Miller

Writers (WGA):

Frank Miller (screenplay)
Will Eisner (comic book series)

Release Date:

25 December 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Thriller

Tagline:

Down these mean streets a man must come. A hero born, murdered, and born again.

Plot:

Rookie cop Denny Colt returns from the beyond as The Spirit, a hero whose mission is to fight against the bad forces in Central City.

Plot Keywords:

Hero | Copier | Stabbed In The Chest | Storm Drain | Underwater Scene

Cast

Jaime King	...	Lorelei Rox
Gabriel Macht	...	The Spirit / Denny Colt
Dan Gerrity	...	Det. Sussman
Arthur the Cat	...	Himself
Kimberly Cox	...	Damsel in Distress
Brian Lucero	...	Thug #1
David Brian Martin	...	Thug #2 (as David B. Martin)
Larry Reinhardt-Meyer	...	Officer MacReady
Frank Miller	...	Liebowitz
Eva Mendes	...	Sand Saref
Eric Balfour	...	Mahmoud
Samuel L. Jackson	...	The Octopus
Louis Lombardi	...	Pathos / Ethos / Logos
Scarlett Johansson	...	Silken Floss
Sarah Paulson	...	Ellen Dolan

Also Known As:

Will Eisner's The Spirit (USA) (poster title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of stylized violence and action, some sexual content and brief nudity.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #44585) | Norway:11 | UK:12A (cut) | Ireland:12A | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-13 | Australia:M | Sweden:15 | Germany:16 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | South Africa:13V | New Zealand:M | Hong Kong:IIB | Taiwan:PG-12 | Argentina:13 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | UK:15 (uncut) | Brazil:14 | Mexico:B | Iceland:12 | Iceland:16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque Studios - 5650 University Boulevard SE, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Company:

Lionsgate

Trivia:

When the Spirit finds Sand Serif's derrière photocopy and says, "You shouldn't have signed it", the phrase was from one of Frank Miller's early Daredevil comics.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene involving a poster of a diagram of The Spirit and his body (divided into lots of separate sections), it first shows him with no clothes on, and when we see the poster several seconds later he is wearing shorts.

Quotes:

The Spirit: [Wakes up after being unconscious] What smells dental?
The Spirit: [Looks around at Nazi decorations, and realizes he's tied to a Dentist chair] Dental and Nazi. Great.

Movie Connections:

References Marathon Man (1976)

Soundtrack:

Deutschland Uber Alles

I can;'t imagine what Frank Miller was thinking

I honestly thought he would treat this much-loved and admired classic with some respect. Guess I'm naive. It certainly looks gorgeous, but that's almost regrettable in a film that's otherwise so utterly, grindingly, gone-to-hell stupid. Awful performances (except by Gabriel Macht as Our Hero, who looks great with his wide earnest eyes and buff physique, and handles the lines about his love for the city with fine, tough conviction), jaw-droppingly overdone dialogue, what seems like hours of totally unnecessary comic material ...man, it's just dreadful, and a great disappointment to me. If I ever buy the DVD I'll only watch it with the sound turned off.

Poor Will Eisner must be spinning in his grave tonight.