Frank Miller directs 'The Spirit'

Largest of Als · 26th September 2007, 1:27pm

Quote:

Sarah Paulson has joined the cast of "Will Eisner's The Spirit," comic auteur Frank Miller's directorial effort featuring the classic comic strip character. Also joining the cast are Dan Lauria, Stana Katic, Johnny Simmons and Louis Lombardi.

Paulson joins leading ladies Eva Mendes and Scarlett Johansson in the film noir about a rookie cop who returns from the dead to fight crime as the Spirit from the shadows of Central City. However, while Mendes and Johansson are playing femme fatales, Paulson is playing the hero's true love, Dr. Ellen Dolan, the police commissioner's daughter.

Gabriel Macht is on board as Denny Colt/the Spirit, and Samuel L. Jackson will play the villainous Octopus.

Lauria (ABC's mini "The Path to 9/11") is playing the police commissioner, while Katic ("Feast of Love") is a rookie cop. Simmons ("Evan Almighty") plays a young Denny Colt, while Lombardi (Fox's "24") will play Phobos, a henchman for the Octopus.

Production will begin in October in New Mexico and will be shot entirely at Albuquerque Studios.

Odd Lot Entertainment's Deborah Del Prete and Gigi Pritzker will produce along with Michael Uslan of Batfilm Prods. Batfilm co-founder Benjamin Melniker and Steve Maier are executive producers. Odd Lot's Linda McDonough and Batfilm's F.J. DeSanto serve as co-producers.

Odd Lot and Lionsgate are production partners on "Spirit," with Lionsgate holding domestic and U.K. rights. It is scheduled to release the film in 2009.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/...fc30c57ac95955

Al

Posh · 26th September 2007, 3:36pm

I hope Al Quaeda blows up Frank Miller's face.

Stew · 12th April 2008, 4:20pm

There are a bunch of greenscreen images that were leaked here.

While these images just came out the other day (linked, 'cos they're huge):

Neil. · 12th April 2008, 4:27pm

Pfft.

The spirit books were remarkable for what they did with the form of comic books a film version would be like doing a comic book of 'The jazz singer', kinda missing the point of why its important in the first place.

It won't transfer to screen, unless it was done by a truly remarkable master of the movie format, which it isn't.

Seriously. Pffft.

*Charlie Parker* · 12th April 2008, 7:42pm

film noir my arse

Neil. · 13th April 2008, 3:13am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charlie Parker

film noir my arse

Dunno, seems to tick enough of the film noir boxes to be slotted into the genre. Whether its good film noir is a very different thing.

MarkMono · 13th April 2008, 4:44am

Miller is not a film director, I hope this is a lie.

Posh · 13th April 2008, 2:21pm

I'm not going to lie - I've thought about choking Frank Miller in his sleep.

Stew · 13th April 2008, 8:45pm

Miller is definitely drawing visual cues from the classic Shadow pulp magazine covers -- the Shadow's black fedora, black outfit and floating red scarf are his trademarks. The Spirit was more along the lines of Golden Age superhero comics and the Spirit's blue suit, blue hat and blue gloves (with white shirt and red tie) were very distinctive. While the classic Spirit comic books are often reprinted in B&W, the original 1930s and '40s Spirit Sunday comics appeared in colour.