Experiments in public

Frank Miller did not master the theme of the comic book in the cinema if the main villain, the days of the Avenger, the crazy scientist Octopus, tested his super -divineer on the cat, the director Frank Miller without intermediate experiments, immediately fed his work to people. Very humane on his part: why so torment animals?

In an interview with Frank, Miller said that he had taken up the Avenger because he was always amazed by the dramatic depth of the comic book, Will Eisner. Those who have never even held this classic creation in their hands and met him through a film adaptation (and such are the absolute majority, especially in our country), these words may seem like a uniform mockery, because the film leaves that the world has not yet seen more stupidity.

After the amazing “city of sins”, in which Miller acted as full -fledged Robert Rodriguez, it seemed that a new masterpiece was waiting for us. Both of this spoke beautifully to the outrages of commercials and promotography.

However, after watching, the Avenger suggests that Rodriguez did everything himself, and Miller entered the name of pure respect to the artist. Otherwise, where did you go the style, taste, feeling of Frank's rhythm?

However, the troubles of the picture begin with the script. I don’t even want to retell the plot. He looks like a dream: while you look - everything seems to be more or less folding, and when, waking up, you try to retell - you understand that it is complete nonsense. The main story collision is built on the confrontation between a crazy scientist (in comics they are all crazy as a March hare), nicknamed Octopus and a former policeman, whom he revived, making invulnerable, with the help of - just do not fall - the blood of Hercules. The revived dead man called himself the Avenger and, having attached Mr. X and the red tie, rushed to beat the “bad” mask. No less actively he seduces beautiful girls met on the way.

It is unnecessary to talk about the perfect cardboardness of the characters. It seems that the authors did not even try to reveal them. Heroes say stupidity of a universal scale with incredible pathos, then with a claim to humor. Only the lazy in his review will not remember the phrases that "the toilet is always funny" and that "the tie must be red." The language does not rotate this exchange of replicas dialogue.

Everyone says that in front of us is an attempt to create something like an ironic trash with a large fig in a pocket, from which an animated cultural shock can happen at a diplomated culturologist. Artifacts from ancient Greek mythology, parallels with ancient Greek tragedies, villains arranging a circus with horses, dressing in the Japanese kimono, then in the form of officers of the SS ... what is the point, the texture was bright, but it had to be properly submitted, and the talent of the director needed.

Still, everyone should do their own business. If you are a brilliant artist or screenwriter, this does not mean at all that at least a good director will come out of you. This is still a unique alloy of skills, in which Miller clearly missed several points at once. No stars - and there are enough of them here - are not able to unscrew the viewer from the simple fact that the directing in the Avenger is surprisingly mediocre: such as the director had gone into a binge, and an assistant to the illuminator took off for him.

What can not be taken is the pictures: it is spectacular. But a person consists not only from the eyes. There is still a brain. And he can become unpleasant from the fact that he is ignored.

01/19/2009 / Alexander Folin Material published in the newspaper No. 7 dated 01.20.2009.