Superman: Unbound

Superman: Unbound - Dir. James Tucker (2013)

Since 2007, Warner Premiere has been producing a line of direct-to-video animated films based on DC Comics' extensive library of characters. They've actually have a better track record at bringing to life superheroes like Green Lantern and Wonder Woman than WB's live-action division. Lately, they have released some of their best pictures yet with Justice League: Doom and the much-anticipated 2-part adaptation of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. Their latest effort is Superman: Unbound, which is scheduled to be released in May and was recently screened at WonderCon.

Unbound is based on a five-issue story arc by Geoff Johns with art by Gary Frank and taking place in Action Comics #866 through #870. The film opens with Superman (Matt Bomer) and Supergirl (Molly Quinn) flying through Metropolis in an attempt to rescue Lois Lane (Stana Katic) from a group of armed men. From there, the Man of Steel has a heart-to-heart talk with his cousin about her difficulties in adapting to life on Earth. Superman is also having relationship problems with Lois. Before those can be ironed out, Kal-El speeds off to the desert to investigate a robot that crash landed from space. He takes the remains back to the Fortress of Solitude where Supergirl recognizes it as a drone belonging to Brainiac (John Noble). A fusion of flesh and machine, Brainiac collects all the knowledge of a world, shrinks one of its cities to keep as a specimen, and then destroys the entire planet. Long ago, he came to Krypton and took the city of Kandor. Supergirl and her parents barely escaped. Rather than wait for Brainiac's arrival, Superman decides to take the fight to him.

Warner Premiere has struggled working within the limitation of their budget. This has resulted in many movies being released with truncated run times. In some cases, the films barely break the hour mark (Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, Batman: Year One). Although, Superman: Unbound runs 76 minutes, it never plays like huge chunks are missing. In fact, the film feels a lot longer than it is. The script by Bob Goodman (who also adapted Dark Knight Returns) goes deeper in exploring Superman's relationships with Supergirl and Lois Lane. The main characters are fully realized in spite of their relatively short screen time. For all his powers, Superman still has trouble figuring out Lois. Meanwhile, Lois is depicted as quick-witted and fiercely independent, hardly the typical damsel in distress though she regularly gets into trouble. Unbound also earns a PG-13 because of a rude gesture Lois flashes at Brainiac. Supergirl has all the complexities of a teenage girl topped off with super-strength and heat vision.

The animation doesn't look cheap at all and the art style doesn't resemble one used in previous pictures or of Gary Frank's artwork from the original comics. The style has a slight anime influence. Unbound is action-packed as the title refers to a rare instance where Superman faces an enemy formidable enough that he doesn't have to hold back. Brainiac is a creepy foe that is Superman's match both physically and mentally.

The cast is one of the finest assembled by voice director Andrea Romano. Matt Bomer and Castle stars Molly Quinn and Stana Katic are perfect in their roles and it helps that they could portray them in a live-action version. John Noble of Fringe fame is excellent as Brainiac with a booming voice full of menace and arrogance. Rounding out the ensemble are Frances Conroy as Martha Kent, Wade Williams as Perry White, Stephen Root as Supergirl's father Zor-El, and Diedrich Bader as the Daily Planet's resident meathead Steve Lombard.

Superman: Unbound definitely ranks as the best Superman release from DC and Warner as well as one of the best releases in the line.

Rating: *** (*****)

The Double

The Double - Dir. Michael Brandt (2011)

The Double marks the directorial debut of screenwriter Michael Brandt, who has co-written 2 Fast 2 Furious, 3:10 to Yuma and Wanted with his writing partner Derek Haas. Together they have crafted a spy thriller inspired by Robert Ludlum and Tom Clancy as well as classic flicks like 3 Days of the Condor. The Double has languished in development hell for over a decade and was previously acquired by troubled MGM. You'd think the script had been around even longer considering the main antagonists are Russian agents. Yet, the idea of Cold War remnants infiltrating American society isn't too farfetched considering the 2010 arrest of a Russian spy ring, which included the real-life Black Widow, Anna Chapman. Sadly, there are no redheaded femme fatales in The Double, just Richard Gere and Topher Grace.

It begins with the murder of a United States senator, whose throat was slit by a garrote wire. This method of death was the trademark for a Russian assassin code-named Cassius, long thought to be dead. CIA Agent Paul Shepherdson (Gere) is called out of retirement as he had spent much of his career attempting to capture Cassius and his conspirators. Shepherdson is paired with FBI analyst Ben Geary (Grace), a Harvard graduate who wrote his thesis on Cassius.

As much as it would like to be another Bourne Identity, The Double isn't much more than a nondescript espionage film full of tropes and archetypes we've seen a thousand times over. The protagonists are a generically mismatched pair with Shepherdson as the world weary veteran and Geary as the wide-eyed and determined rookie. Shepherdson lives a lonely existence while Geary is blessed with a loving wife (Odette Yustman) and newborn baby.

The Double also hinges on two major plot twists, the first of which occurs early in the film and is given away in the theatrical trailer. The twist is a fairly obvious one, unless you've never watched a movie before in your life. At least, the first twist makes sense and propels the story into the second and third acts. The climactic twist comes out of nowhere and only muddles the narrative rather than adding an extra dimension.

Though Brandt has written some really good action movies, he doesn't have a firm grasp of the genre as a director. Perhaps, it had something to do with the limitations of shooting on a low budget. The action sequences are brief, uninspired and only seem to exist as a vain attempt to bring a little energy to the lifeless drama.

Richard Gere is still pretty spry for a man who is sixty-two. His role in The Double isn't the usual genial character he's played in so many romantic comedies. It's a part that lies somewhere in between his turn as a corrupt police detective in Internal Affairs and his cynical beat cop from Brooklyn's Finest. Topher Grace has a knack for comedy and he shines in the film's lighter moments, but doesn't make much of an impression when he's forced to exercise his dramatic muscles. The cast also includes Martin Sheen as the Director of the CIA, Stephen Moyer as a Russian assassin, and the lovely Stana Katic from Castle as a prostitute.

There isn't a good reason for this movie to even exist. The Double feels unnecessary compared to recent spy films. It doesn't come close to matching the depth and complexities of the masterful Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. In fact, it doesn't even have half the thrills of Salt or even Spy Kids: All the Time in the World.

Rating: * ½ (*****)

The Spirit

The Spirit - Dir. Frank Miller (2008)


I wouldn´t presume to know what the late-Will Eisner would think of Frank Miller´s adaptation of his most renowned character. Suffice to say, I´d wager he might have the same befuddled expression on his face as I did as this bizarre concoction unfolded across the screen at my local multiplex.

Eisner is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of the comic book medium. The Spirit began life in 1940 as a Sunday newspaper comic strip. It was part-film noir, part-adventure with dark and lighthearted moments throughout its run. Eisner never dumbed down his creation, aiming for an adult audience. He revolutionized comic composition by freeing the strip from the confines of the typical panels used by other cartoonists. Eisner even coined the term ´graphic novel´ (used so frequently nowadays) to describe his semi-autobiographical book, A Contract with God.

Comic book fans know Frank Miller best for his magnum opus, The Dark Knight Returns, which many list as one of the greatest comics ever written and is mentioned in the same breath as the equally heralded Watchmen (which was released the same year). Miller´s work on Daredevil was largely the basis for the character´s much-maligned feature film while his Batman: Year One was certainly influential on Batman Begins. After a poor experience writing the scripts for Robocop sequels, Miller personally stayed away from Hollywood until Robert Rodriguez called to co-direct the big-screen adaptation of Sin City. Hot on its heels, Miller´s 300 was faithfully recreated by Watchmen director Zack Snyder and met with equal success. So it was only a matter of time before somebody gave Miller a chance to go solo.

Miller considered Eisner a friend and mentor. Conversations between the pair were published in Eisner/Miller, a comic book equivalent to Hitchcock/Truffaut. Miller took on the daunting task of bringing the Spirit to life mostly because he didn´t want somebody else ruining the character. A previous version filmed for television in 1987 was so bad it made Eisner´s "toes curl." From then on, Eisner was staunch in his refusal to allow anyone else to do it again. He rejected proposals to give the titular character superpowers or put him in superhero tights. Miller vowed to remain faithful and was even going to title the film, "Will Eisner´s The Spirit." I have no idea what changed his mind, but this is "Frank Miller´s The Spirit" all the way.

Our hero, played by Gabriel Macht, is Denny Colt, a beat cop who is gunned down, but somehow comes back to life. In the comics, Colt allowed everyone to still believe he was dead and adopted the alter-ego of the Spirit. He put on a blue three-piece suit, matching fedora, and a domino mask in order to fight crime in Central City. His origin remains mostly the same except he wears all black with a blood red tie. The Spirit´s arch-enemy is the Octopus, a mysterious crime boss whose face was never revealed in the strips. He was only recognized by a pair of purple gloves with yellow stripes. Here, he´s Samuel L. Jackson who wears a variety of outlandish outfits in his attempts to conquer the world. He constantly talks about eggs for some reason. Don´t ask. Oh, have I mentioned both men are invincible? Through some sort of cockamamie science project, the Spirit and the Octopus are rendered virtually indestructible. This is evidenced at the start of the film when the two engage in a one-on-one fistfight that´s usually saved for the climax. It isn´t just a fight, but a Looney Tunes horror show as the Spirit punches the Octopus in the face about two dozen times to no effect. They smash each other with several large objects including (literally) the kitchen sink. The battle culminates in the Octopus braining the Spirit with a toilet, then gleefully cackles, "C´mon, toilets are ALWAYS funny!"

This one fight largely sums up just about everything that is wrong with this picture. First off, any sort of suspense the audience might have is killed off because we know neither lead can be. Uh-oh, the Spirit just got pushed out a window. No worries, he can´t be killed. He just got stabbed with a sword? Riddled by a machine gun? The Spirit just shakes it off. Secondly, the fight runs far too long and the same can be said for the majority of the film. Some people love to hear the sound of their own voice. Frank Miller seems to be a man who loves to hear actors speak his lines. He packs in tons of dialogue leading to an overly talky film. Scenes and conversations go on and on with no point whatsoever. One minute, the Spirit is delivering a gruff, hard-boiled voice-over in the vein of Raymond Chandler, the next, he´s bantering with his colleagues in the style of a screwball comedy. Miller never seems to make up his mind whether he wants The Spirit to be a dark film noir, a frothy adventure or a campy comedy.

The film´s most infamous moment comes when the Spirit is captured and tied to a dentist´s chair, ready for torture. The Octopus emerges from behind a red curtain dressed in a Nazi officer´s uniform replete with monocle. There´s Nazi paraphernalia everywhere and the set looks like a commedia dell´arte remake of Triumph of the Will. It´s almost amusing in a WTF kind of way, but Miller drags the proceedings beyond the point of tolerance as the Octopus commits the cardinal super-villain sin. He monologues. Yes, this is the point in the movie where the bad guy reveals his origins and his detailed plans for world domination. I kept waiting for those folks from Monty Python and the Holy Grail to show up and scream, "Get on with it!" Ironically, the Spirit remarks that he's just plain "bored" by his nemesis. So am I, Spirit. So am I.

The crux of the story revolves around the Octopus´s endeavors to acquire the Blood of Herakles which will complete his transformation to immortality. By the time it´s all revealed, the audience has long since stopped caring. At least, there´s plenty of eye candy for the men. Miller has shown he has a strong predilection for sultry vixens and he makes sure there´s a wide assortment of beautiful ladies, each one falling head over heels for the masked protagonist. At the head of the class is Sand Saref (Eva Mendes), a world-class thief and the childhood sweetheart of the Spirit. However, the Spirit´s heart seems to belong to Ellen Dolan (Sarah Paulson), a doctor and daughter of the police commissioner (Dan Lauria). She´s the only good girl in the film. There´s Morgenstern (Stana Katic), an eager and earnest rookie cop. Working for the other side of the law are the Octopus´s girl Friday, Silken Floss (Scarlett Johansson), and a dagger throwing belly dancer assassin named Plaster of Paris (Paz Vega). Finally, Jaime King appears in several interludes as the spectral siren, Lorelei Rox.

The ensemble cast also includes an army of dim-witted clones (each played by Louis Lombardi) who serve as the Octopus´s henchmen. These goofs are like something out of Batman. I'm not talking about the Christopher Nolan version or the Tim Burton incarnation, but the cartoonish Adam West series. Remember when the Joker would show up with goons adorned in black shirts with names like ´Tee-Hee,´ ´Ha-Ha,´ and ´Ho-Ho´? Well, these guys have names like ´Phobos,´ ´Nervos,´ and even ´Huevos´ and ´Rancheros.´ I´d call them comic relief, except I didn´t find them to be funny at all.

Miller uses the same green screen techniques from Sin City to create a stylish world cut from the same cloth. He highlights bright colors, such as red, and sprinkles in silhouette shots. Taken individually, they look great, but there´s no flow from scene to scene, especially during action sequences. It looks like they strung together a bunch of comic book panels without bothering to create transitions in between.

The acting is all over the place. Some actors seem to take the film seriously while others just ham it up. Jackson chews through his scenes like a piranha and normally that´s entertaining enough, but (just like his director) he´s just far too excessive for his own good and working with such flat dialogue didn´t help. As the lead, Macht is far too bland to really be effective as the square-jawed hero. Sarah Paulson is the only actor in the entire movie that plays their character as an actual human being.

2008 was a big year for comic book films. They started out strong then fizzled out as time progressed. Iron Man and The Dark Knight were both faithful translations and did gangbusters at the box office. Wanted wasn't quite as faithful to the source material, but was still a fun action flick. By year´s end, fanboys only got lackluster efforts like Punisher: War Zone and The Spirit.

I would have been fine with Frank Miller turning The Spirit into a spin-off of Sin City. It wouldn't have bothered me too much if he decided to do the movie as a tongue-in-cheek camp cartoon. I just wished Miller would have made up his mind. The Spirit suffers from an inconsistent tone and a complete lack of direction. The film goes nowhere fast and comes off as a self-indulgent exercise of unrestrained lunacy.

Rating: * 1/2

Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace - Dir. Marc Forster (2008)

"The first thing you should know about us…is that we have people everywhere."

It may be three years since Casino Royale, but its floridly titled sequel, Quantum of Solace takes place only minutes after the conclusion. Bond interrogates Mr. White to gain more information about the ruthless terrorist organization known as Cobra…er…Quantum.

The major complaint from the majority of critics and viewers has been that the latest Bond movie doesn’t feel like a Bond movie. My reply, is that such a bad thing? This is a grittier, nastier 007 with little time for cheesy puns and room service caviar. There’s plenty of globe-trotting, but no chance to partake in the lush scenery. Bond is more action hero-y than ever before, cutting down bad guys one after another. Would I l have liked a Bond who was less with the blunt and more with the cunning & guile? Yes. Much like, the Batman reboot we saw the ultimate fighting machine Batman before we got the detective skills.

The second piece of criticism comes is how the new Bond film apes the Bourne franchise. The fights and rooftop chases look like they came right out of the Greengrass helmed pictures. Not surprisingly, Bourne editor Richard Pearson and stunt coordinator Gary Powell both worked on Quantum as well. The film opens with a breakneck car chase. Breakneck because you’ll probably snap yours trying to follow the muddled action. The studio took a chance on hiring director Marc Forster better known for more intimate films such as Finding Neverland, Stranger Than Fiction, and The Kite Runner. Forster isn’t as flashy as Martin Campbell, but he gets the job done. No more, no less.

Quantum also borrows heavily from past Bond pictures. Bond goes rogue on a mission of vengeance (Licence to Kill). There’s a side story involving the lead Bond girl also on a quest for revenge (For Your Eyes Only) while another ill-fated Bond girl meets her maker after being dunked in oil (Goldfinger).

Craig continues to be a perfect blend of the past iterations of Bond though he isn’t as charming as he could have been. At one point, he drops his friend’s body into a dumpster ("He wouldn’t care."). Judi Dench as M finally gets some scenes she can really chew on. Mathieu Amalric looks the part of a super-villain with his scrawny frame and bugged-out eyes, but his Dominic Greene never feels like the larger-than-life threat he should be. Even less memorable is Olga Kurylenko who makes the least interesting love interest for 007 since Tanya Roberts. Her whole subplot feels forced into the proceedings, as if they couldn’t go one film without a woman tagging along on Bond’s adventures.

What we have is essentially Casino Royale Volume 2. While Casino clocked in as the longest Bond film, Quantum has the shortest runtime. Taken on its own, Quantum of Solace is a fun action movie that’s missing a few ingredients to really heat things up in the kitchen. The rebooted Bond films are best viewed back-to-back as one epic.

Rating: ***