Movie Defense Force: Daredevil

[Jimothy Sterling]

Daredevil

With Ben Affleck enduring scorn for the crime of accepting a Batman role, Movie Defense Force takes pity and offers some praise for his last superhero outing, the ever-mocked Daredevil. This is a show without fear, after all.

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[sid]

The only experience I've ever had was a snippet of the movie while channel surfing. The bit that I saw seemed really good, and I was sad that I had to leave before it was over. Flashforward a few years, I find out that the movie supposedly sucks and everyone hates it. Glad to see someone agrees with me that it wasn't all that bad

 

[Arslan Aladeen]

Now, I don't know. I feel like I've seen enough defenses for this movie, particularly the directors cut that this seems too easy to have done. I guess it was for the topical-ness of it. If you want a challenge, try the latest Die Hard movie, A Good Day to Die Hard.

 

[Irridium]

I remember seeing this like five years ago. People made it out to be complete shit, but it was alright.

Speaking of complete shit, Jim, please do Batman and Robin one of these days. That movie is glorious and amazing and hilarious and could use a good defending.

 

[Count_A'ight]

Thank you Jim. I didn't mind Daredevil when it came out. Like the character but don't read the comic so the movie worked for me. Besides, any comic that runs for a long enough run eventually turns to crap due to a continuity that is dictated by a string of writers who don't know/care about what the previous/following writers do with the character/story.

Comics are a lot like professional wrestling. Once the audience is aware of all the standard tricks and tropes, repeat consumption is merely based on being a fanboy/girl on the property.

 

[Groverfield]

The writing's not that great, but I feel the weakest part of this film is Daredevil itself. The character just doesn't translate well to modern times. I really think that a lot of these types of characters should, if they're still being written, be written in a universe that isn't modern times, or evolve them to fit such as how batman only really works in a setting that's postwar 1940's, or a cyberpunk dystopia because of what his character does. Still, acting's fine, action scenes were okay, the lawyer part could've been spiced up if the creative team had a few goes at Phoenix Wright before writing. What we truly needed to fix this film though, is a more modern version of Daredevil that would still be relevant in 20 years, so 1) No tron suit, 2) keep him blind, it's his trademark, 3) Drop the echovision, and instead use the effects budget to make a soundscape that draws the audience into the heightened hearing. This isn't a complete list, but it's a start.

 

[Maerx]

I remember watching this movie when I was a kid and I thought it was awesome, but what kid doesn't think that anything superhero related is awesome? As I grew up I started hearing how bad it supposedly was but I still couldn't see it, maybe I wasn't classy enough to see the flaws or maybe nostalgia. This movie made me a fan of Ben Affleck.

I felt some joy when I heard they were making a new one with the same cast, too bad it didn't materialize. On the bright side, marvel got the character rights back.

Now I can understand it's flaws and I agree that it doesn't have the depth of something like Spiderman 2 or The Dark Knight but hell, back then nothing did. This movie gets more crap than it deserves really, is not a masterpiece for sure, but is it the worst thing to happen to the superhero genre? I don't think so. And if we're getting REALLY picky, Daredevil has better fights than any of Nolan's Batman movies.

Jim gotta defend Elektra now, good luck.

PD: Daredevil came 10 years ago, ugh... I feel old.

 

[bandit0802]

Thank you, Jim! I've been defending this movie every chance I get! It does Daredevil the character a great service, and Ben Affleck has said that he's a huge fan of the comics. I think it busted at the box office because it was around the time Spider-Man 2 had come out, and it ended up being edited to look like a less kid-friendly Spider-Man. I think the Director's Cut was the version that should've been released in theaters because THAT was the Daredevil movie. We saw Matt and Foggy working a case alongside the main plot, and the two weren't completely disconnected. And even if they were, that wouldn't have been a bad thing.

Well done, Jim.

 

[RJ Dalton]

Elektra: I am now fighting you for no reason other than to prove that I am capable of kicking ass, because I am a woman and that needs to be established immediately, in whatever crude way possible, because you won't believe it if we don't beat you over the head with it.

Ben Afleck: The fuck?

 

[DTWolfwood]

would love to see his chin act as batman.

 

[Gizmo1990]

Personaly I am indifferent about Afleck as Batman. As time has gone by my opinion of the Nolan films has droped alot (tho Ledger still crushed being the Joker) and I always considered Bale as Batman to be the weakest part of the movies even when I still found them entertaining.

I was more annoyed at hearing that it would be Batman Vs Superman and not Batman AND Superman. Batman has only ever won these fights in the past due to kryptonite or because he is the Batman so he gets plot armor. That and I did not like Man of Steel that much.

 

[Drake666]

Elektra: I am now fighting you for no reason other than to prove that I am capable of kicking ass, because I am a woman and that needs to be established immediately, in whatever crude way possible, because you won't believe it if we don't beat you over the head with it.

Ben Afleck: The fuck?

Yeah, that was a really REALLY weird part in the movie... worst, at that moment, she thinks he's a blind man... who the heck goes around beating blind person to show they're "capable of kicking asses" ? :|

 

[RatherDashing89]

When Tristram is ashes, you have my permission to Stay Awhile, and Listen.

 

[Grabehn]

I always thought this movie was pretty cool (Unlike the Elektra spin-off) Except for the weird way the Bulls eye character was done. But seeing Kingpin, especially portrayed by the huge guy that MC Duncan was.

I would like a better approach to that "awful movie" part though, since I felt Silent Hill "2" would've been the right choice, of pretty much the one "new" good videogame movie imo that was the first one. Or Mortal Kombat/Street Fighter, of which I never heard of any hate, rather than a "the movie's silly but entertaining".

Now, I don't know. I feel like I've seen enough defenses for this movie, particularly the directors cut that this seems too easy to have done. I guess it was for the topical-ness of it. If you want a challenge, try the latest Die Hard movie, A Good Day to Die Hard.

What? You mean you didn't like the ultra innovative nemesis russian bad-person

Spoiler: Only if you don't care about the ending

that died being being reduced to a red cloud by a helicopter, while they again fell through a couple of floors and survived, while ALSO being directly exposed to radiation

Well... yeah, I thought it was completely shit too.

 

[The Material Sheep]

Eh... I still don't care for Affleck as an actor. Perhaps its just me never getting the idea that its Ben Affleck out of my head when I'm suppose to see him as the character he's playing. Not super against him as Batman, but I haven't really liked any of the actors who've played batman. Meh. I don't see why people are that against him specifically being batman in the next superman movie, but I never found him to be that good an actor.

OH WELL

Good defense Jim. I don't agree but your arguments are well reasoned at the very least.

 

[Goliath100]

So, Jimmy,, did you see the director's cut? The reason the theater version don't really work is supposedly because it was chopped up and glued together agian with all the good parts missing.

 

[RJ Dalton]

Yeah, that was a really REALLY weird part in the movie... worst, at that moment, she thinks he's a blind man... who the heck goes around beating blind person to show they're "capable of kicking asses" ? :|

In Hollywood terminology, "strong woman" is synonymous with "borderline psychopath."

 

[SnakeoilSage]

My problem with Daredevil was the writing. Daredevil seems to get more and more psychotic throughout the movie without any real explanation why. Matt Murdoch and Elektra's romance is almost puppy-love levels of cutesy without any real substance or chemistry and because no real explanation is given for Elektra having ninja skills, she just has them and we're supposed to accept it because this is Daredevil's movie, not hers. It would have been better to extend the fight between Daredevil and Bull's Eye into a more satisfying climax and tone down Wilson Fisk's roll to be more of an ominous presence over the criminal underworld instead of a chuckling Chesire Cat who's secret identity is more of an open secret so obvious that we get annoyed waiting for DD to catch up. I would have preferred to see Stick instead of Elektra, training DD in his youth and setting him on his path.

There's so much they could have done better with the character but they avoided it for a bland romance plot and an unsatisfying conclusion.

As for Affleck, yeah, I don't have any real problems with his acting. In the DD mask he had the perfect menacing look, he can even do that tooth-baring snarl so many actors can't that looks like it was taken right out of the comics. As Matt he looked believably blind. Watching him do gymnastics in full-daylight in front of a bunch of witnesses is really stupid, but that wasn't his call, was it?