The Shadow (1994)

ray gower

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synopsis
Based on the 1930's comic strip, this film, starring Alec Baldwin, puts the hero up against his arch enemy, Shiwan Khan, who plans to take over the world by holding a city to ransom using an atom bomb. Using his powers of invisibility and "The power to cloud men's minds", the Shadow comes blazing to the city's rescue with explosive results.
To make a modern film version of an old pulp comic you need to approach the subject with a good level of tongue in cheek and a good dab of stylisation. You only need to look at Dare Devil or the somewhat older Captain America to see how bad they get if you take the subject too seriously.
Needless to say, this is one of the better film pulp comics;)
Strangely the same rule did not apply to the older black and white versions?
 
I did not like this film. I thought the acting was bad and the story could have been better. It seemed that it everything was overly done.
 
I suspect you may be missing the point with films like this?

The Shadow (or even Sky Captain) is trying to bring a golden age comic to life in a way that is both modern and faithful to the original.

In this the film does very well, having all the major requirements:-
Fantasy scenery,
Fantastic (improbable) plot,
Cliched and stunted dialogue,
Improbable props,
Two dimensional characters.

The film is pure fantasy entertainment. There is no way that you should try and compare it with something like say Titanic, or Day After Tomorrow. Unless it is to comment just how bad they were in being able to compare them at all!
 
Actaully like this film and was disappointed that it didn't get a sequel , Ive read one Shadow novel by Walter Brown Gibson It was pretty good :cool: stuff.
 
I liked how it tried to capture the ambience of 1940s film and radio with the casting choices.
Especially the cab driver and the museum people.

The main cast tended to be a little tongue-in-cheek. Great musical score.



"I guess you would call it an implosive, explosive sub-molecular device."

"Or an atomic bomb."

"Hey..that's catchy."
 
I liked how it tried to capture the ambience of 1940s film and radio with the casting choices.
Especially the cab driver and the museum people.

The main cast tended to be a little tongue-in-cheek. Great musical score.



"I guess you would call it an implosive, explosive sub-molecular device."

"Or an atomic bomb."

"Hey..that's catchy."
Perhaps an Andrew Lloyd Weber Musical ? ;)
 

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