Saturday, April 16, 2005
Comic Art
What do these pictures have in common?
Frank Miller -- That's what. And since all three of these characters have had movies made about them, you might also know that they are creatures of the strange world where vengenence and justice are deeply intertwined and difficult to tell apart. As a comic writer/artist Frank Miller has left an indelible impression on each of these characters. As Miller has touched these characters they have moved darker, meaner, more vengeful than they ever were previously. But they remain, more or less, "mainstream" comic heroes.
In the most recently cinematized, "Sin City," Frank Miller leaves anything remotely considered mainstream in the comics world way behind. In the world Miller has invented here, vengeance and justice are completely indistinguishable. Evil is so evil that only its utter destruction through extraordinary violence can put a stop to it. The world is so corrupt that the hero's relish the extreme violence that they inflict in the cause of justice. I did not read much of the comic, it was too dark, and Miller's art in the series was just a little too ugly. Not ugly in the sense that it was badly drawn, just that it depicted real ugliness.
Now I have to make a confession that will no doubt lower some of my compatriots view of me. The movie is amazing. I do not recommend it to anybody, it is, as Okie On The Lam says totally disgusting in terms of what it depicts. Oh, but how those depictions are executed is truly marvelous. The movie was an over-the-top noir and is without a doubt the most faithful transfer of comic to film ever done. True comic fans love the Spider-man movies because they are in many cases a picture for picture match of some of the comics. Hey movie fans, does this image from a comic book more than 20 years old look familiar?
The Sin City movie does not do that just in isolated shots, it is literally a comic come to life. I hope it proves to Hollywood, once and for all, that some material does not have to be "reworked," to make great cinema.
Read this review from friend of a friend, Javier Grillo-Marxuach. I think it hits many of the right notes.
Just a couple of comments. The violence is immense, and depraved. But in large part those upon whom it is visited truly deserve it. Before it happens, the "victim" has done something so utterly vile, that you were already wishing "they would get theirs." And that they would get it in the utterly depraved fashion in which it finally arrives.
Secondly, if you break down a Bugs Bunny Cartoon, it too is immensely violent, even horrifically so. The graphic depictions in this film are very cartoonish in nature, which makes them somewhat less stomach churning than might otherwise be the case. This, of course, was not a cartoon, but it was so highly stylized in its presentation that it might as well have been. Much as Elmer Fudd can bounce back from being hit in the head with an anvil, the characters in this movie take enormous amounts of punishment and just keep coming. In the end there is little choice, but the extreme violence depicted to get the job done.
I am not going to defend, nor recommend, this movie but I enjoyed it.
Frank Miller -- That's what. And since all three of these characters have had movies made about them, you might also know that they are creatures of the strange world where vengenence and justice are deeply intertwined and difficult to tell apart. As a comic writer/artist Frank Miller has left an indelible impression on each of these characters. As Miller has touched these characters they have moved darker, meaner, more vengeful than they ever were previously. But they remain, more or less, "mainstream" comic heroes.
In the most recently cinematized, "Sin City," Frank Miller leaves anything remotely considered mainstream in the comics world way behind. In the world Miller has invented here, vengeance and justice are completely indistinguishable. Evil is so evil that only its utter destruction through extraordinary violence can put a stop to it. The world is so corrupt that the hero's relish the extreme violence that they inflict in the cause of justice. I did not read much of the comic, it was too dark, and Miller's art in the series was just a little too ugly. Not ugly in the sense that it was badly drawn, just that it depicted real ugliness.
Now I have to make a confession that will no doubt lower some of my compatriots view of me. The movie is amazing. I do not recommend it to anybody, it is, as Okie On The Lam says totally disgusting in terms of what it depicts. Oh, but how those depictions are executed is truly marvelous. The movie was an over-the-top noir and is without a doubt the most faithful transfer of comic to film ever done. True comic fans love the Spider-man movies because they are in many cases a picture for picture match of some of the comics. Hey movie fans, does this image from a comic book more than 20 years old look familiar?
The Sin City movie does not do that just in isolated shots, it is literally a comic come to life. I hope it proves to Hollywood, once and for all, that some material does not have to be "reworked," to make great cinema.Read this review from friend of a friend, Javier Grillo-Marxuach. I think it hits many of the right notes.
Just a couple of comments. The violence is immense, and depraved. But in large part those upon whom it is visited truly deserve it. Before it happens, the "victim" has done something so utterly vile, that you were already wishing "they would get theirs." And that they would get it in the utterly depraved fashion in which it finally arrives.
Secondly, if you break down a Bugs Bunny Cartoon, it too is immensely violent, even horrifically so. The graphic depictions in this film are very cartoonish in nature, which makes them somewhat less stomach churning than might otherwise be the case. This, of course, was not a cartoon, but it was so highly stylized in its presentation that it might as well have been. Much as Elmer Fudd can bounce back from being hit in the head with an anvil, the characters in this movie take enormous amounts of punishment and just keep coming. In the end there is little choice, but the extreme violence depicted to get the job done.
I am not going to defend, nor recommend, this movie but I enjoyed it.
