There are many comic books that have featured a wide variety of characters, many of which I have heard very little or nothing about.  Even when I don't know anything about the characters, I still will usually watch these types of movies since I tend to enjoy them overall.  I just watched one of those movies, The Spirit.

A masked man known only as the Spirit to most people, works with the police in Central City to fight crime.  He use to be Denny Colt before a horrible injury drastically changed things for him.  He receives a call about something going on in the mudflats that might involve the Octopus, a criminal operating in the city that the Spirit has been after for a while.  A beautiful woman, Sand Saref, is also involved and implicated in the shooting of a police officer.  The Spirit is troubled by Sand's connection since they use to be involved when they were younger.  Octopus, with the help of his accomplice Silken Floss, has a plan to gain immortality.  Things are complicated when Sand ends up with something he needs.

The Spirit is based on a newspaper comic strip of the same name created by Will Eisner.  The character first appeared in 1940.  DC Comics started to publish comic books featuring the characters in the 2000s.  I haven't read any of the comic strips, so I have no idea how close to the original material the movie stays.  I hadn't heard of this strip or any of the characters before seeing the first preview for this movie.

Some information, like how important the city is to him, is shared through voice overs by Spirit throughout The Spirit.  Every so often, he seems to be talking to himself.  When the movie begins, the Spirit is already a known crime fighter in Central City.  As things progress, he drops hints about how he came to be a vigilante working with the police.  Later in the movie, more background on that part of his life does come out.  I do think enough of a backstory is shared, though since that came out later, it is a little confusing at first about why he does what he does.  

The plot for The Spirit seems a bit complex at first since so much is going on.  A little in the movie, things are less complex and the plot ends up being a bit silly and even campy at times.  Some things that happen are just strange, which does give the movie a slightly bizarre feel.  I don't mind that since I enjoyed the movie overall, though some viewers may feel differently.  A little bit of mystery is tied to exactly what Sand and Octopus are up to, though those things are cleared up fairly early.  All the strange and bizarre things going on do help to make the movie interesting and entertaining.

Violence turns up in a few scenes of The Spirit, usually when the Spirit and Octopus fight.  They have one somewhat drawn out, stylized fight fairly early in the movie.  Their confrontation later in the movie doesn't last as long.  The violence isn't overly graphic, though there are a few disturbing things shown.  The movie does deserve the PG-13 rating and it really isn't one that would be a good choice for children.  There isn't as much action in the movie as I had expected.  Some scenes do move a bit slower, which makes the pacing uneven.  

The Spirit has a very unique look with how certain colors are used.  The movie was made with the same digital background technology that was used for Sin City and 300.  The locations do have a different look to them because of how they are created.  Some people may not care for the look of the movie.  It does create some interesting visuals, though a few of them seem more distracting.

I don't feel like there is any romance in The Spirit even though there are a few relationships going on.  The Spirit flirts with every woman he sees and seems to chase after them all even though he is sort of in a relationship with Ellen Dolan, a doctor who takes care of him after he is injured.  She is also the daughter of the police commissioner.  The Spirit and Ellen do make out once without it going any further.  It is made clear that she has issues with him and his tendency to go after all women.  Sand is very seductive and willing to use her sexuality to get her way.  She is shown naked once, though all her bare back and butt are shown.  She and the Spirit had been involved years before.  There are various sexual remarks made throughout the movie even though there are no actual sex scenes.  The Spirit is shown making out with other women, Lorelei and Plaster of Paris.  He also flirts with Morgenstern, a rookie cop who seems to idolize him.

There really isn't a lot of character development in this movie.  The Spirit is around more than other characters, and more is eventually shared about him, but the development could have been better for him.  He seems driven to fight crime in the city, even when he ends up in various dangerous situations.  Gabriel Macht does fine with the part.  Lorelei, the Angel of Death, turns up in a few short scenes, so Jamie King doesn't have a lot to do.

The Octopus is a villain who wants to control the entire city and has a plan to become immortal.  He does seem to be missing a few of his marbles at times.  Samuel L. Jackson does well with the part.  It does seem like he is going overboard at times, but that works for the character.   Silken Floss works with the Octopus.  She acts just as deranged most of the time, though she does seem slightly more stable.   Scarlet Johansson is fine in the part.   Plaster of Paris is an assassin working with the Octopus who dresses like a belly dancer.  She is only in a few short scenes, so Paz Vega doesn't have much to do with the part.

Sand Saref is a beautiful, seductive woman who has a love of shiny things.  That love drives her criminal activities.  She doesn't directly kill people, but men have a way of turning up dead around her.  Eva Mendes is fine in the part.  Morgenstern is a young rookie cop who shows potential while idolizing the Spirit.  Stana Katic does fine with the part, though the voice she uses for the character is kind of annoying.  Commissioner Dolan works with the Spirit even though he doesn't approve of some of what he does.  Dolan turns up several times throughout the movie.  Ellen the doctor is his daughter and he does show some protective tendencies toward her every so often.  Dan Lauria and Sarah Paulson are fine in the parts, though nothing special.

Main Cast
    
Samuel L. Jackson - The Octopus
Scarlet Johansson - Silken Floss
Stana Katic - Morgenstern
Jamie King - Lorelei
Dan Lauria - Commissioner Dolan
Gabriel Macht - The Spirit
Eva Mendes - Sand Saref
Sarah Paulson - Ellen Dolan
Paz Vega - Plaster of Paris

Frank Miller - Director

DVD Information

I decided to go ahead and pick up The Spirit on DVD when I found it for about $7.  The version I have has the widescreen version on one side of the disc and the full screen version on the other side.  There are no extras.  I do remember seeing two disc DVD version that had more extras back when the movie was first released on DVD. 

The Spirit is kind of odd, but it works overall as an interesting and entertaining movie.  It isn't going to work for everyone though, especially if people are expecting it to be more like other popular movies based on comic books.

I would have gone with three and a half stars for this one if I had the option.  Since I don't, I decided to round up to four.

This review is part of elvisdo's 2010 Funny Pages Write Off and CaptainD's Good Movies EpiGuide 3 Write Off.

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Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD