Eye Candy #180 - "The Spirit"

The Spirit: Frank Miller has jumped the shark. Best known as a comic book writer and artist of such works as “Sin City” and “300”, Miller has dabbled in film before. He’s acted before, he’s directed a bit (as he did with “Sin City”), and he’s written (as he did with the seminal classic “Robocop 3”). Based on the Will Eisner comic strip of the same name about a costumed vigilante who returns from the dead to fight crime and colorful villains, this is Miller’s first solo directorial go-round and unfortunately it has a lot of problems. Where do I begin? The plot - it drops you into the middle of a story involving characters that aren’t explained until halfway through. For a character that’s relatively obscure even in the comic world (more people know of “The Spirit” than actually read it), that character would be COMPLETELY obscure to the general public. The dialogue - demonstrates Miller’s ongoing obsession with hard boiled crime noir, but to a fault: his characters, even the minor ones, just won’t shut up. Doesn’t he understand he’s working in a visual medium? Don’t tell us – SHOW us. The overall plot device is absurd and silly, yet the film’s artistic choices don’t support it. You can’t have a doofy plot about stealing the blood of a Greek god sandwiched between vamping, a French bellydancer/assassin, and implied nudity. It’s incongruous. Most of the acting is atrocious, special effects overwhelming and visually self-serving. “The Spirit” is proof positive why Miller needs another director to rein him in. Woodchuck sez, “Disappointing on so many levels.”