The Shadow
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Movie Reviews of The Shadow
Movie Review: What makes a great movie...The Shadow knows!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a straight ahead adventure film with an all-star cast giving great performances in the style of the 30's and 40's mysteries.
The film is definitely a throwback and I think that may be what turned-off the audiences of the 90's, as the tone is very classic in it's over dramatic performances and humor.
That being said, the film has some great scenes:
-The Shadow's intro is perfect as it establishes his dark edge and ability to psychologically and physically defeat his opponents.
-The introduction of Shiwan Khan hypnotizing the museum guard, sets up a great villain played perfectly by John Lone.
-Margot changing into Lamont's Aunt's dress while convincing Lamont that he needs her help really endears you to the characters.
-The manic back and forth banter beween the hero and villain in the Sanctum Sanctorum is the high point of the film.
-Tim Curry has a great mental breakdown towards the end of the film.
-And all of the effects are beautifully carried out.
The film does have just a few low points that may have been a factor in the bad reviews which can all be attributed to the scenes of Alec Baldwin as the warlord Yin-koh which are dampered by the terrible costumes and sets.
I may be a bit biased as I was a 12 year old Shadow fan at the time this movie came out, with a membership in The Shadow fan club (agent ring and all) who loved listening to the old radio shows on long drives. But this movie is one of my all-time favorites and definitely worth your money.
Buy it, rent it, just see it! You'll be glad you did.
Movie Review: Great movie, why not Widescreen?
Summary: 5 Stars
From the first time I saw this movie I loved it. The acting is wonderfully entertaining with an all-star cast. The story is is captivating. My questions are why was it not a hit, and why is it not widescreen?
The writing recreates the nostalgia of the radio era, but adds the video. There is even a line where Khan asks Lamont where he got his nice tie, to which he responds, "Brooks Brothers". This is how radio used to plug in ads from their sponsors into story lines. The humor may at times be a little subtle for some, but that's what adds to the fun of it.
Back to the above topic of widescreen, there was only one version released in that form, and that was on 12" laserdisc, which I am fortunate enough to have found. You are not missing quite as much as you could be because it was filmed in 1.85:1. Still it is a travesty to cut off so much of the movie's real-estate as do all Pan & Scan (I REFUSE to say "fullscreen") versions. Hopefully, all P&S will soon go away with CRT TVs and the rest of the dinosaurs.
I guess it's probably also too much to ask for a Blu-Ray version. Of course, if it does come out in that form, it'll probably be $30+ like the rest of 'em. I hope that Sony can avoid making another "Beta" mistake in which they priced themselves into oblivion. Where DO they get the idiotic executives that make such bad (albeit money-grubbing) decisions anyway? Oh well, they DID recently release "The Phantom" on BD, and it is very reasonably priced, so there may be hope yet.
Movie Review: This Shadow is Exceptional !!
Summary: 5 Stars
I remember when this movie first came out in the theaters in 1994 I was very excited. I was living in Parker, Arizona a town with no movie theater, so I drove across the desert to the closest theater showing it which was in Laughlin, Nevada.
I was and am a total Shadow-phile. I've listened to dozens of the radio shows, read many of the classic pulp stories and read numerous histories of the character. This adaptation blew me away! It honored elements from both the pulp stories and the classic radio shows.
Alec Baldwin is perfect as Lamont Cranston/The Shadow....just as I had always imagined him. John Lone plays Shiwan Kahn with just the right amount of over the top maniacal super villain and tongue in cheek comedy. Tim Curry is just plain glorious as Shiwan's mind controlled minion. Peter Boyle plays The Shadow's agent Shrevey the Cab Driver spot on to the radio show voice and Ian McKellen as the absentminded professor will make you forget Gandalf and Magneto
Lastly the special effects really do make you believe that The Shadow can cloud our mind to his presence. The art deco world is right out of the 1930's and adds that bit of realism to this time period specific picture.
This is one film I can watch over and over again and never lose the sense of joy and wonder.
Movie Review: THE SHADOW - Super Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
My wife & I viewed this movie for the second time & enjoyed it as much as when we viewed it the first time on our laser disc widescreen version; however, this DVD was in FULL FRAME & we were disappointed that it was not presented in the original widescreen version. The amazon add states that the format for this DVD cited both FULL SCREEN & WIDESCREEN, but unfortuneatly, was not the case as our DVD only came in full screen. I did notice that the ratio was 1.33:1 which is the full screen version which should have alerted me. I suggest that the widescreen be deleted in the add as it is not available in DVD. As a Laser Disc owner, we have the Shadow movie (as mentioned above) in the widescreen version, so I can't imagine why the DVD is not in widescreen too. The widescreen shows much more movie than the fullscreen version, which makes the movie even more enjoyable as you see the entire picture as it was made to look in the theaters. As with all films made of comic book & radio heros, this film is definitely worth viewing. All aspects of the time period were done very well, similar to the movies of Dick Tracy, Batman, Superman, etc., which were all done in widescreen.Movie Review: Brought back my childhood radio daze . . .
Summary: 5 Stars
I really liked this movie. I saw it in the theater and several times on DVD and VHS. When I was a kid in the 40's this was one of my favorite radio shows. It worked then because of my imagination and the talent of those radio actors and writers. The later black and white movies were a disappointment because of the lack of special effects, so they weren't convincing at all. Just a guy in a black baggy outfit with the other actors pretending not to see him. This version had it all. The right guy in the starring role, Alec Baldwin as the handsome Lamont Cranson/Shadow. Penelope Ann Miller as the vivacious Margo Lane and a great supporting cast with John Lone as the villain, the great Tim Curry, Ian McKellan before The X-Men and Gandalf, Peter Boyle, Jonathan Winters, et. al. The look of the film was excellent, the comic relief really well done and the writer David Koepp deserved a big slap on the back. This is one of those films that I will look at over and over in the future. The film deserved better and I think better advertising might have created a better financial performance, maybe one matching the performance of all who participated in making the film.