Director: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Josh Brolin, Eva Green, Rosario Dawson
9 years have passed since Frank Miller first teamed up with Robert Rodriguez to bring his graphic novel to the big screen and while it was a bit uneven it was the visually truest book to screen adaptation a graphic novel has ever made.
Round two delivers more of the same, both in terms of its wrote dialogue and its usage of it’s unique visual style. Black and white with the occasional muted color to accent the situation is the constant in every scene. Whether it be the piercing green of Ava’s (Eva Green) eyes or a pool of crimson blood pouring out of Bob’s head (Jeremy Pivens), Color is constantly utilized to create an emotional impact on the scene.
As with the first film we are given multiple narratives that loosely connect together in the end. The look is the epitome of a graphic novel, offset by dialogue that is weak 50’s gumshoe patter.
Most people attribute the Wrestler as the beginning of Rourkes comeback when in reality it was the tougher than leather character of Marv that got that ball rolling. Much can be said about Rourkes physical appearance but his turn as the granite chinned protector of Nancy (Jessica Alba) is the epitome of perfect casting he is the physical embodiment of Marv. The same cannot be said for Alba who lacks the acting chops to pull off the person of a successful stripper or an alcoholic. Anyone familiar with the source material will note that Nancy is not a stripper in name only. Alba plays her as a prude who for some unknown reason is the most famous stripper in Basin City even though this peeler never strips, you know it’s a bad sign when Ray Liotta shows more Ass than Alba. I am sure 9 years ago Miller and Rodriguez thought they had the second coming of Salma Hayek in From Dusk Till Dawn. Alba’s Nancy could only dream to reach the sensual heights of Santanico Pandemonium.
Enter Eva Green to solve this problem, Her turn as Ava is the high point of the entire film, deftly able to combine fraility and sexiness into one sinister package. She was the standout in the adaptation of Millers Xerxes aka 300 Rise of An Empire and commands the screen once again in Dame.
The intersecting stories involve a card sharp who can’t lose named Johnny () who unwisely embarrass Senator Rourke (Powers Boothe) the Father of the original Sin City’s Yellow Bastard in a high stakes Poker Game. Nancy (Alba) who wants to take down the Senator for causing Hartigan (Bruce Willis) to take his own life and Dwight (Josh Brolin) a guy who can’t get over his lifelong love Ava even if it is what is best for him. Interspersed throughout is Marv who involves himself with Nancy and Dwight storylines.
Much like the black and white Crazy 88’s scene in Kill Bill vol 1 there is no way that in color this film gets its R rating. The violence is constant yet done in such a way that it is never overtly shocking and I am talking about arrows through the head, Beheadings, Gunplay, and for a good measure an eyeball getting ripped out with Marv’s bare hands.
This is about as niche a film as one can get. Fanboys of the graphic novel will be delighted; it’s about as good an ensemble cast that one could imagine. Rosario Dawson and Eva Green more than make up for Alba DOA performance. Alba is neither up to the challenge of the character or the material (And really how hard could it be to play a lovelorn and damaged stripper). Dawson is as game as ever and Green once again makes the most of her assets chewing up every minute of screen time. For everyone else it’s probably not going to be your brand of vodka.
Grade -76
