The Spiritless Action Design

I had high hopes for The Spirit … despite the overwhelmingly negative response to the movie. I mean, I love writer/director Frank Miller. He’s one of the greatest comic book creators of all time. And The Spirit is one of the most iconic characters of all of graphic novels. But now it’s clear Miller’s “co-director” credit for Sin City was clearly just a case of charity from Robert Rodriquez.

I just rented The Spirit and found it a soulless train wreck of a comic adaptation. And much of it stems from the horrendously (and unintentionally laughable) poor action design.

In the opening set piece, the Spirit battles his archenemy, the Octopus, in a swamp. Neither of them fight with any particularly interesting style. I’m not expecting the Spirit to be a martial arts master. That would be counter to what the character is about. But he should be a good street-fighter with a certain amount of flair. The Octopus should be powerful if sloppy. Yet, their styles are rather similar and ho-hum.

Out of nowhere, the Spirit is hit with a flying kitchen sink. Later the Octopus smashes a toilet over his head! Where the Hell is this villain getting these random furniture pieces? Was this swamp a former Ikea?!?

Later in the movie, the Spirit does handsprings up a fire escape. Doesn’t climb but handsprings up. Yes, upward. On a fire escape. As if gravity — let alone movie physics — doesn’t apply!

Apparently, Miller thinks that because both the Spirit and the Octopus have healing powers (which they don’t in the comics), they can battle and move like it’s a Wyle E. Coyote-versus-Roadrunner episode.

Never once do I get a sense that the Spirit is in any sort of danger. And without that, I never really cared for the character, the story, or the movie as a whole. From the direction and cinematography down to the stunt coordination and fight choreography, The Spirit is one big cruel joke. Unfortunately, it’s the audience who’s getting cranked.

The Spirit was supposed to be a comic book movie, not a cartoon!

Just watch the trailer below and see how Peter Griffin-versus-Giant Chicken it gets:

Tags: action design, comics, Frank Miller, graphic novels, Peter Griffin, The Spirit, Wyle E. Coyote