The Man Without Fear or The Movie Without Thrills
Mood:  down
Now Playing: DAREDEVIL
I finally got around to watching DAREDEVIL this afternoon. I wasn't very excited about it, but Csiki lent me his Director's Cut DVD, claiming it was much better than the reviled theatrical version. It makes me wonder how bad it was originally. This version suffers from maddening inconsistencies in character and plot that distracted me from the heavy-handed dramatics. For instance, Elektra witnesses Bullseye's murder of her father, but is somehow convinced Daredevil is the culprit. Characters who are human and possess no superpowers per se are somehow able to leap tall buildings in a single bound and fall great distances without injury. At one point, Daredevil loses his baton/grappling hook, yet is somehow able to use it to make his escape. Bullseye emphatically demands a costume from his employer, yet the next time we see him, he isn't wearing one.

Much of DAREDEVIL's failure rests on its cast. Colin Farrell's performance as the assassin Bullseye is beyond awful, mincing and preening like a Puerto Rican drag queen on Ecstasy. It's not even consistent with his character, who wouldn't last very long as a high-paid hitman the way he stands out in a crowd. As an actress, Jennifer Garner, who plays Elektra, is about as deep as a Very Special Episode of SAVED BY THE BELL, whereas Ben Affleck is a light comic leading man who lacks the gravitas appropriate to portray a wounded loner obsessed with revenge. Plus, I think it should be a rule that, if you play a superhero, you have to be able to kick my ass. Affleck is about as menacing as Shields and Yarnell.

My pop culture metaphors are off the charts today.

I found out this morning that Johnny Carson has passed away. I immediately called my friend Jerome in Florida. Next to me, he's the biggest Carson fan I know. He had already heard the news on CNN this morning, and we were lamenting the fact that NBC, a network partially built upon Carson's stature as host of THE TONIGHT SHOW for 30 years, one of the most important and influential figures in the history of television, hadn't even deigned to run a crawl announcing his passing.

More on Johnny later. I want to rewatch his last two TONIGHT SHOWS, which I haven't seen since they aired in 1992.