SPAWN (PG-13)
Reviewed by E. Benjamin Kelsey
* 1/2 (out of four)
"Spawn" may be somewhat of an older film. In fact it will probably be on video before anyone who hasn't seen it will finally get to see it (that is, IF they see it). But i managed to catch it before it made it's way out of theaters and into the world of rentals and, God forbid, video cassette purchasing.
It wasn't the worst film of year by any means. It isn't even on the top 5 of the worst films of the year. But it did manage to top the bottom five of the bottom ten, which, in simpler terms, means it comes in at number 6 on my "Worst of 1997" list. The only reason it doesn't come in lower is thanks to the special effects, which might actually have been some of the best of the year.
Performances, however, were either wooden or, for the most part, unforgivingly campy. In fact, this film shows no signs of attempting to avoid campiness! Even the editing seemed to boast a campy quality. I don't know how to explain that one; it wasn't exactly choppy, but something about it seemed . . . well, annoyingly unprofessional. John Leguizamo almost makes it as Clown, but not quite. He is the only character who provides the audience with any laughs that can honestly be called intentional.
But the main problem i found with "Spawn", as with most films that wind up on my "worst of" lists, is that it was just plain boring. I wouldn't even say there was a climax to the film. Sure, it had the big battle scene at the end, but the only excitement felt was that the movie might be nearing a conclusion. Never too soon, the movie did conclude in a very simple, disappointing way. Even though it's one of the shorter movies i've seen this year, it's one that I would definitely not want to subject myself to sitting thru again.
Like I said, the special effects are the only reason that this film should have any sense of pride, no matter how small. I was impressed with the opening sequence, so long as I didn't allow the melodramatic voice-over and lobotomizing editing to get to me. And Batman has nothing on the spectacular visuals Spawn's outfit created. But even the effects got tiresome during the final scenes, which looked quite a bit like a modern video game. Who knows if "Spawn: The Video Game" wasn't part of the plan from the beginning?
Keeping in mind that the film was based on a comic book makes it somewhat more approachable, and in a very small amount, makes up for the cheeziness of it all. But none of this movie's saving graces can it make it something I'd recommend seeing, no matter what the price of admission. This movie is definitely not for young children, which shouldn't really be a problem seeing as how only teenagers, if anyone, would likely find it appealing. If you really want to catch a movie, there are many better ones out there, no matter what your tastes might be! Trust me! "Spawn" has very little to offer even the most avid moviegoers!
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