Blade (1998)
Director: Stephen Norrington Cast: Wesley Snipes, Stephen Dorff, Kris Kristofferson, N'Bushe Wright, Donal Logue, Udo Kier Screenplay: David S. Goyer Producers: Robert Engelman, Peter Frankfurt Runtime: 120 min. US Distribution: New Line Cinema Rated R: violence, language
By Nathaniel R. Atcheson (nate@pyramid.net)
I never really read comic books when I was a kid. I liked the Transformers comics, and a few years ago I tried with futility to collect some of the numerous Aliens series. Other than that, my experience is limited to glancing about the comic store once or twice a year. Some of the art pleased my inexperienced eyes, and from time to time, I actually found the stories interesting. The plots were never coherent -- no, they jumped from scene to scene worse than a badly edited Warner Bros. movie. My overall impression had me dismissing comic books as pornography for adolescents -- the only acceptable way to indulge in violence and sex without the need of a fake ID.
In the last few years, we've had a deluge of films based on comic books. Blade is the newest one, and while it is easily one of the best-looking films of 1998, it features common problems of the genre. It's certainly more satisfying than the dull experience of Spawn, and infinitely more enjoyable than the laughable Batman & Robin. The presence of Wesley Snipes also elevates the film's odd charm. But there just isn't any depth -- there are many scenes of attempted depth, but they're mostly just endless shots of a brooding Blade, staring with numbing sincerity into darkness. A couple of lines of convincing dialogue would have helped out immensely.
Still, it deals with vampires, and is proficient in its us of exploitative violence and gore. Snipes plays the deeply disturbed Blade, a human-looking monster, known in the vampire culture (it is widely accepted now that vampires do, in fact, exist) as the Day Walker because -- you guessed it -- he can walk during the day. In fact, he's an all-around great guy: he has all of the vampire's strength, and none of their weaknesses, aside from The Thirst (he looks so pleased, immersed in wonderment, as he injects that human blood into his jugular vein . . .). Blade, however, hates vampires, because they killed his mother and made him what he is today.
And that, my friends, is a bad-ass mo' fo! A butt-kicking, vampire-slaying, sword-wielding maniac! Yes, Blade is very good with his weapons and appendages, and seems rather adept at killing vampires quickly and with as many guns as possible. The story comes in when he meets Deacon Frost (a pallid and unshaven Stephen Dorff), a youngish vampire who wants to revive the Blood God and take over the human race. It's strange how the words "Blood God" don't sound particularly funny in the film, but strike me as loudly amusing in text-form. Anyway, it's up to our main man Blade to stop this incessant vampire madness.
Well, it's the end of the summer, and my tolerance for big-budget action has reached its yearly low (especially after last week's un-Avenged tragedy). It's a marvel that I enjoyed Blade as much as I did, for it really is the essence of mindless big-budget action: it's well-choreographed, sharply directed (by Stephen Norrington), and quickly edited. It's also like the upper-echelon of action movies in it's mock-depth approach, in which case it's clear that the screenwriter (David S. Goyer, in this case) wanted to inject depth but was only partially successful. The result is gory action intertwined with silent, motionless scenes of brooding. If only we knew what Blade was thinking.
But I did enjoy myself, even while admitting that I was indulging in pornography. The action is top-notch -- Blade finds many new and interesting ways to dispatch of his foes. There are also some funny running jokes, one of which includes a vampire (Donal Logue) who keeps getting his hands cut off. The blood scenes are eclectic and exciting, particularly the opening scene in a vile vampire nightclub. Blade also has a lot more personality than most of the action films to come out this year, thanks to the always-appealing Snipes and his co-star, the sometimes-appealing Dorff. For the record, I also liked N'Bushe Wright in the token female role, and Kris Kristofferson in the token sidekick role.
And I suppose that, like all films, this one has to pander to a certain audience. Norrington is a skilled choreographer, and a visual stylist, but he doesn't know much about characters. I like that depth was attempted, but it's an unsuccessful attempt: it takes more than long shots of nothing to convey a thought or an emotion. And while the beginnings of interesting themes are certainly present, none are developed, and all are abandoned in favor of wholesale slice-and-dice. Don't get me wrong -- Blade is a good time at the movies, and easily the best comic-turned-film I've witnessed. It's a step in the right direction, but someone needs to learn that action and depth can both be important in the one movie.
**1/2 out of **** (6/10, C+)
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Nathaniel R. Atcheson
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