Critical Capsule: Spawn

I decided to revisit the Spawn film the other night. Just as I had suspected it is as bad as it ever was, yet I still find it as compelling as ever. The film is seriously dated and somewhere along the way in adapting it from comic to screen, it lost a good deal of the seriousness and darkness that it had. That said, the hero of Spawn is still a compelling character, a killer recruited by Satan doing his bidding on Earth while thinking, or trying, to do the right thing. I have always loved this character and this film will always evoke a love/hate response from me. For as bad as it is and how much was changed, there are still elements that I like. Michael Jai White, a victim of bad writing, has the physicality to play the role and does his best with what he has. The shining performance belongs to John Leguizamo, legitimately electrifying as the bad guy, a short, fat, white clown. I cannot recommend this movie, but it has a secial place for me.

Movie Review: Hana-Bi (aka Fireworks)

Hana-Bi, or HANA-BI, or Fireworks, if you prefer, was a fascinating viewing experience. I am not saying it was great, although it was certainly very good, it was just something that that I was completely not expecting. It is not so much a movie as it is an existential bi-polar examination of a man who seems to be so disconnected as to not care anymore, although if there is one thing that he does, it is care. It might help that I am not that familiar with the films of Takeshi Kitano, and what I do know makes it a complete surprise to know that he is famous as a comedian. I didn't see that one coming.

Movie Review: Leprechaun 4 - In Space

Despite taking 1996 off, the Leprechaun franchise was clearly not over with. I mean, Leprechaun 3 (the first to be released direct to video) was the biggest selling direct to video title of 1995. Consider that the budget could not have been too high, there really wasn't a question that there would be another incarnation on the home video market. It doesn't really matter how bad the movies were, people were buying them, and when there is money to be made, movies will be made. Now, the key is to freshen things up. We have had the gold bit, the wife bit, and then more gold, what to do to bring some new life to the franchise? Send it to space!

Blu-ray Review: Spawn (1997)

I was a fan of Spawn from the moment the comic hit the shelves way back in 1992. The 1990's were my heyday when it came to comic books. I had become a fan of Todd McFarlane from his work on Spider-Man and followed him when he split with Marvel, with a group of other comic creators, and helped form Image Comics. So, when his creation, Spawn, arrived, I was hooked. This dark tale of a hero spawned from Hell with limited energy and a destiny to lead Hell's army was just fascinating. It was that and much more, there is a lot of emotion to be found as well. It makes me wish I kept up with the series.