Elektra (2005)
February 22, 2024 6:52 PM - Subscribe
Elektra the warrior survives a near-death experience, becomes an assassin-for-hire, and tries to protect a single father and his young daughter from a group of supernatural assassins.
The film is a sequel to the 2003 movie Daredevil, starring Ben Affleck; Jennifer Garner reprises her role as Elektra Natchios from that movie, joined by Terence Stamp as Stick (who I could have sworn was in the previous movie, but i guess not), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as the leader of the villainous ninja group the Hand, and Goran Višnjić as the father of a young girl who is more than she seems. The film features other characters that may be familiar to readers of the Daredevil comic, including Stone, Typhoid, and Kirigi. (Some of these characters also appear in the Netflix Daredevil series, as well as The Defenders and Iron Fist.)
The film is scored at 11% on Rotten Tomatoes. I didn't think that it was that bad; to be clear, I didn't think that it was that good, necessarily, but at least aspires to be something a bit more than it needs to be, with the title character both dealing with her traumatic past and trying to establish some sort of human connection that doesn't involve sticking her trademark sais into ninjas who dissolve upon death. There's a whiff of potential romance, but not so much that it distracts from the wire-fu and CGI magic. Stamp helps anchor the movie with some of his considerable gravitas.
It's currently streaming on Max, and people who saw S2 of the Netflix Daredevil series and/or The Defenders can compare/contrast the two. Garner is supposedly going to reprise the role in the upcoming Deadpool/Wolverine movie.
The film is a sequel to the 2003 movie Daredevil, starring Ben Affleck; Jennifer Garner reprises her role as Elektra Natchios from that movie, joined by Terence Stamp as Stick (who I could have sworn was in the previous movie, but i guess not), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as the leader of the villainous ninja group the Hand, and Goran Višnjić as the father of a young girl who is more than she seems. The film features other characters that may be familiar to readers of the Daredevil comic, including Stone, Typhoid, and Kirigi. (Some of these characters also appear in the Netflix Daredevil series, as well as The Defenders and Iron Fist.)
The film is scored at 11% on Rotten Tomatoes. I didn't think that it was that bad; to be clear, I didn't think that it was that good, necessarily, but at least aspires to be something a bit more than it needs to be, with the title character both dealing with her traumatic past and trying to establish some sort of human connection that doesn't involve sticking her trademark sais into ninjas who dissolve upon death. There's a whiff of potential romance, but not so much that it distracts from the wire-fu and CGI magic. Stamp helps anchor the movie with some of his considerable gravitas.
It's currently streaming on Max, and people who saw S2 of the Netflix Daredevil series and/or The Defenders can compare/contrast the two. Garner is supposedly going to reprise the role in the upcoming Deadpool/Wolverine movie.
Elektra: Assassin certainly was something; maybe the best collaboration of Miller with another artist, and well before his pet tropes and personal shortcomings ate him alive, and also probably the best thing that Sienkiewicz did that was close to a conventional narrative, next to his work on The New Mutants. (Stray Toasters was interesting, but I always got the impression that it was basically just Sienkiewicz fucking around.) But something like Elektra: Assassin couldn't ever be anything but a comic book, so I wouldn't even try to compare it to this.
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:52 AM on February 23
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:52 AM on February 23
Supposedly, the director's cut is more like a misfire than a disaster. I'll probably get around to seeing that version one of these days.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:53 AM on February 23
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:53 AM on February 23
I've read that the director's cut of Daredevil is a substantial improvement over the theatrical release. That hasn't been on FF; I may try to hunt it down online just to refresh my memory.
posted by Halloween Jack at 9:19 AM on February 23
posted by Halloween Jack at 9:19 AM on February 23
That might be the one I'm thinking of then. Looks like the Elektra DC is only 3 minutes longer, so not much difference.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:27 AM on February 23
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:27 AM on February 23
It's been ages since I saw this movie, and I don't recall ill feelings toward it. It was fine for what it was, and I was disappointed that Jennifer Garner wasn't given a better movie to work in. I didn't watch Alias, but I was aware of it, and knew she was doing good work there. I think she did solid work in a movie that didn't reciprocate.
And I haven't seen the director's cut of Daredevil in ages, but I think it's a much better movie than the one that got released. It makes more narrative sense, overall, and some of the choices work a lot better. For example, the scene where Daredevil and Elecktra are on the rooftop in the rain ends very differently (and, imo, is much better) in the director's cut. I'd recommend watching the director's cut if only to get a glimpse of a better movie that could have been.
posted by malthusan at 1:37 PM on February 23
And I haven't seen the director's cut of Daredevil in ages, but I think it's a much better movie than the one that got released. It makes more narrative sense, overall, and some of the choices work a lot better. For example, the scene where Daredevil and Elecktra are on the rooftop in the rain ends very differently (and, imo, is much better) in the director's cut. I'd recommend watching the director's cut if only to get a glimpse of a better movie that could have been.
posted by malthusan at 1:37 PM on February 23
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A comfy multiplex movie with Jennifer Garner really can't compare.
*The most deranged has to be Stray Toasters, surely.
posted by Grangousier at 12:14 AM on February 23 [4 favorites]