The Shadow [DVD]

Just as the superhero movies were few and far between. Very enjoyable, whatever happen to John Lone, he just eats up the screen

The Shadow is a bit of an oddity - part of the wave of films from when studios were falling over themselves to imitate the success of Warner Brothers and Batman by licensing pretty much every other pulpy comic-book character from the 30s: The Phantom, The Rocketeer (a homage to the 30s), Dick Tracy and...The Shadow is one of the earliest and best of these; at one point famously voiced by Orson Welles in his radio incarnation, the pulp magazines inspired Bob Kane to create Batman, and the similarities between the characters are obvious. The film is a mixed bag - Alec Baldwin oozes charm as Lamont Cranston and the film has a great art-deco look to it, mixing great old-school special effects (models, matte paintings) with a few snazzy (at the time) CGI ones. The script is fairly zippy and tongue-in-cheek, the cast is full of great character actors and moreover it's fun. The lack of any big set pieces hurts it - there's no really impressive action sequences, and the climax is a big letdown (it was rushed due to the original sequence being abandoned as an earthquake damaged the hall of mirrors set).Mediumrare has ported over the US Shout Factory disc untouched. The transfer is the same (and it's pretty good), and the only real special feature (a 25-minute retrospective) is decent enough and features the major players.This is a fun movie that undeservedly flopped on release and I had fond memories of seeing it at the cinema. It's been a while since I watched it and it's still just as fun.

A famous long-dormant character of the 1930s gets a 1990s update, primarily fitting in the mold of other crime-fighting superhero efforts like Batman, the look of this film reminded me very much of Tim Burtons Batman, Through it's dark moods and it's sweeping vistas of a very Gotham-esque New York. The Shadow was apparently primarily popular through radio programs, as well as in pulpy novels, comics from various publishers, a few films, and on television to a lesser extent. The problem with this film is that we never really feel like there's more to know about the mysterious figure that we aren't already introduced to, primarily because the film itself never seems particularly deep enough to handle a richer characterization.If all you're looking for is a diversion, I suppose you could do worse than The Shadow. Of course, these days, you could do a great deal better, as once you scratch the one-layer surface of this film's visual appeal, you'll find nothing underneath to draw your interest. Special effects, nice retro costumes, and plenty of moody lighting dazzle the eyes, and yet, at no point did I ever feel a connection to any of it. For what it is, it isn't bad, but it lacks any true distinction, which makes it a rather disposable form of entertainment for just about all audiences.The story , just never is able to bother with such things as characters to identify with and a tale worth following. The only place left to go is into the humor department, as there are a few quips here and there that might be funny if they were set up properly, but the delivery tends to favour gunfire and mayhem much more than dialogue, so these jokes do little but languish noticed but unappreciated. Silly items like vacuum tubes that run all over the metropolis just never catch the eye of anyone, but when a whole town doesn't recognize that there is an invisible high-rise hotel in their midst, perhaps the entire city of New York is under a perpetual hypnotic spell of wide scale inobservance.After a film like Batman, a flick like The Shadow feels more like second-hand goods. Ironically, resembling its namesake.

For some reason I never went to see this movie on the big screen in 1994, my loss. I have seen snippets of it on TV over the years and have always meant to sit and watch the whole movie. Finally saw it on a free movie channel and WOW! I had to have it and I had to have it WIDESCREEN! I live in the USA and purchased this film at Amazon UK. It's entertainment folks, don't pick it apart too much... Mr. Alec Baldwin IS "The Shadow", perfect for the role. Great film, great acting by the rest of the star-studded cast, great music by Jerry Goldsmith, great sets, just WOW. Too bad they never made the sequel or sequels so we could see more character devolpment. Mr. Baldwin, would you reprise your role?? Sadly it wouldn't be the same without the wonderful Peter Boyle as Moe, but... there's always hope for a sequel. This film does have a huge cult following, me included. If you have 2 hours, watch it, don't let your mind be clouded by the naysayers who gave this movie negative reviews... Find out what evil lurks in the hearts of men.... watch "The Shadow".....

This entertaining film based on the classic pulp fiction character is surprisingly good despite some terribly cheesy moments. The film follows Lamont Cranston as he uses his mental powers to fight crime in 1930's New York as the mysterious Shadow but when the last descendent of Genghis Khan with similar powers comes to town looking to finish his ancestors conquest of the world.I do have something of a soft spot for this film as although it is terribly cheesy and camp in places it is still never less than entirely entertaining. The film stars such as Alec Baldwin, Ian McKellen and Tim Curry all look like they are having a great time making the film. The special effects are somewhat hit and miss with some being very good for the time while others have dated poorly.Overall, although I have never read the original pulp fiction the film is based on, I still enjoy this film and would recommend it to anyone looking for a nice light and fun film.