Elektra Blu-ray delivers great video and superb audio, but overall it's a mediocre Blu-ray release
Not long after recovering from seemingly mortal wounds, Elektra, the deadly female ninja, has
severed all ties with the world, living only for her next assignment. But in an unexpected turn
of events, she is forced to make a decision that can take her life in a new direction - or
destroy her. Key players in Elektra's journey are Stick, a blind martial arts master responsible
for Elektra's 'resurrection', and Mark Miller and Abby Miller, a father and daughter on the run
from The Hand, a powerful syndicate whose members practice the dark martial art of ninjitsu.
With the notable exceptions of Christopher Nolan's two Batman films, whenever superhero movies
go "dark," aim for "psychological perceptiveness," or simply try to turn an action film into a character
study, the results are likely to be disastrous. Case in point: director Ang Lee's The Hulk,
which alienated the big green brute's fanbase by trying to be a father/son tragedy of Greek
proportions and coming off as turgidly self-serious in the process. Then, of course, there was
Spider-Man 3, in which Peter Parker went "emo," causing Sam Raimi's defenders to shrink in
their seats. And don't even get me started on Catwoman. There's definitely a place for
darker, psychological comic book movies, but it takes a strong script, a cohesive vision for the film's
tone, and a director that can balance the action beats with the character development.
Elektra, a spin-off of 2003's Daredevil, is a good example of how not to do it.
Maybe in the sequel she'll use her washboard abs to wash those sheets.
No one really expected an Elektra movie, as Jennifer Garner's character was killed off by
Colin Ferrel's Bullseye in Daredevil. Fanboysand a few fangirlscried foul, and
apparently someone at 20th Century Fox thought the furor was indicative of a potential spin-off's
prospective box-office success. (It wouldn't be so. Elektra grossed only $24 million in the
U.S.) The character's demise is casually dismissed in Elektra's prologue, which explains
that she was resurrected by her mastera white-haired Highlander sort named Stick
(Terence Stamp)who can use the martial art of Kimagure to control the "flow of life and death."
We also learn that there'swhat else?an ancient war being fought between the powers of good
and evil. The baddies are collectively known as The Hand, and they operate out of some crazy dojo
at the top of a skyscraper. This could've been a cool set up, but a.) the only glimpse we get inside
is of the The Hand's stuffy boardroom, populated by apologetic-looking Japanese henchmen, and
b.) we never get any sense of what The Hand want, besides the usual global-domination business.
They're basically your run-of-the-mill, evil-for-the-sake-of-being-evil types. As a McGuffin, they're
after "The Treasure," a.k.a. Abby Miller (Kirsten Prout), a pouty tweenager who can kick some
serious ass. Elektra used to be The Treasure, as did some vampy, Elvira-looking femme fatale that
appears as a villain later in the film, so it's unclear what's so special about Treasure status if
Treasure-hood is so easily passed from one female badass with potential to the next.
Elektra is initially tasked with assassinating Abby and her dad Mark (Goran Visnjic)why, we never
really learnbut she gets too emotionally close to her targets to go through with it. The first act of
the film plays like some bizarre, aimless family drama, with Abby looking for a mother figure and
Mark puttering around the kitchen, making Christmas dinner. The Hand sends some
embarrassingly ineffectual ninjas to kidnap Abby, and after Elektra dispatches themthey turn,
inexplicably, into a poof of green smoke when killedshe decides to escort dad and daughter to
safety. As expected, this is no easy task, as the leader of The Hand, grumpy Master Roshi, orders
his son Kiriji (Will Yun Lee) to do what the ninjas so painfully couldn't. Kiriji's quite the swordsman,
and under his command he's got a unit of super-powered thugs. One chunky brawler is
impervious to physical attacks. Another can bring his animal tattoos to life and send them out to
scout Elektra's movements. The vamp chick leaves a trail of rotten vegetation in her wake and
gives the film a not-so-sexy girl-on-girl kiss of death. (There's also a dude whose sole power seems
to be balancing a coin on his fingertips.) Intermixed with all of the running away and occasional
fighting, Elektra unravels the riddle of her mother's death in jump-cut-heavy flashbacks. These
sequences are artlessly conceived, built out of visual clichs and existing solely as an attempt to
give depth to a script that really doesn't have any.
Like far too many superheroes, Elektra's quest for vengeance was borne out of a childhood trauma
seeing her mother killedand the film mangles this theme with no delicacy whatsoever,
resorting to faux-Freudian nonsense and pointless observations, like the fact that Elektra has OCD
and sometimes counts her steps as she walks. This has nothing to do with the story; it doesn't tie
into anything. I'm all for characters having quirks, but her OCD is used here as nothing more than
a meaningless aside. It's this kind of wannabe high-mindedness that makes Elektra
joyless to watch. Director Rob Bowman takes the material much too seriously. Yes, the character
is named after the Greek myth, but this is a Marvel movie, not Aeschylus. None of the characters
are likable, and no one changes or develops in anything but the most obvious ways. Mid-way
through the film, I found myself rooting for The Hand, hoping Kiriji's footsoldiers would wipe out
everyone and end the movie a half hour early. There's nothing particularly inspired about the
action scenes either. The throwdown in the forest is a decent set piece, and the final fight at
Elektra's childhood home has some interesting, if ridiculous, visual touchesyes, I'm thinking of
the sheets that suspend themselves in the air, flying and flapping all over the placebut the film
is more often inert than active, less concerned with comic book theatrics than with the dour
unraveling of Elektra's mental state. Most of the blame should fall on the screenplay, which is
credited to three separate writers, but I also have to say that Jennifer Garner seems like a strange
fit to play Frank Miller's deadly sexy assassin. Yes, Garner is a stunner in that form-fitting red satin
outfita warning to potential pervs: she only wears it twicebut her perpetually pursed lips and
worried expression removes any allure the character could've had here. To put it simply,
Elektra is dull.
20th Century Fox brings Elektra to Blu-ray with a 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer that looks
greatand likely looks exactly as intendedbut would be much more impressive if the film didn't rely
on so much post-production tweaking. And I don't mean CGI. I'm talking about the film's
extremely pushed contrast. For much of the film, particularly scenes indoors, blacks are
oppressive, obliterating shadow detail in an attempt to craft a bold chiaroscuro visual style. I get what
the filmmakers are trying to dogive the movie an edgy, unique lookbut at times the image seems
unnecessarily dark, to the point where it gave me a bit of eye strain. Obviously, this is a your
mileage may vary-type issue, and I don't doubt that many fans will love how the film has been
reproduced on Blu-ray, but it is something to consider. Other than that, though, I have no qualms
about this transfer. The contrast-heavy aesthetic extends to the film's color palette, which selectively
desaturates some colors while enriching others. Elektra's costume is a vivid cherry red and the scenes
in the forest pop with ultra-green foliage. Skin tones can be somewhat inconsistentalternately tan
and pallid, depending on the scenebut this is all part of the overall look. Where the transfer is most
striking is its exceptionally strong clarity. Check out the detail in Stick's craggy face and notice the fine
texture that's visible on Elektra's various outfits. Personally, I think it's unfortunate that overly inky
blacks absorb much of the shadow detail, but I can't really argue with directorial intent. At any rate,
this Blu-ray version of Elektra is a vast upgrade from the DVD.
Less controversial is the film's ear-pleasing, room-shaking DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track,
which seems precision engineered to rock your socks off. As you'd expect from an action filmthough,
as I mentioned above, the movie is more often inert than activethe fight/chase/assassin sequences
are a mix of chest-rumbling dynamics and immersive cross-channel effects. Bullets zip and careen
with alarming force, knives flip through the rears, fists and feet land bass-heavy blows, andin the
fight scene with the floating sheetsthe airy whip of fabric fills the soundfield impressively. High-end
sounds, like a shattering whiskey glass, are pristine, and the LFE channel throbs palpably whenever
the film calls for a sonic kick in the pants. When not occupied with whiz-bang-pow action, the rear
channels frequently put out environmental ambience, like pouring rain and assorted outdoorsy noises.
Likewise, Chistophe Beck's fitting but rather unremarkable score fills up each channel with depth,
spread, and definition. Dialogue sounds clean, but my only complaint about this track would be that
the voices sometimes feel a bit too low in the mix. Never to the point where I couldn't understand
what was being said, though; I just found myself volume boosting occasionally. The film's audio is, in
my opinion, the best element of this complete Blu-ray package.
Commentary by Director Rob Bowman and Film Editor Kevin Stitt
This commentary is interesting, if only because director Rob Bowman seems to have no idea that
the film he made isn't very good.
Relentless: The Making of Elektra
Nearly as pretentious as the director's cut of Elektra is this overlong two-part making-of
documentary, which takes itself and the film far too seriously. Part 1: Production (SD,
1:27:14) is an on-set look at the film's acting and fight choreography, with interviews from nearly
everyone involved. Part 2: Post-Production (SD, 53:09) focuses on editing, sound mixing,
and visual effects. At three hours, this is most definitely quantity over quality.
Showdown at the Well: Multi-Angle Dailies (SD, 2:26)
Here, using the angle button on your remote, you can toggle through multiple angles for the fight
sequence at the well.
Deleted Scenes (SD, 5:12)
Includes three scenes, with optional commentary by director Rob Bowman and editor Kevin
Stitt.
Alternate/Extended Scenes (SD, 13:41)
Seven scenes here, once again with optional commentary by the director and editor.
Elektra: Incarnations (SD, 52:49)
By far the best bonus feature on the disc is this comprehensive history of Elektra in the comic
books, from Frank Miller's first stories to the present.
Elektra in Greek Mythology (SD, 15:26)
A runner-up would be this featurette, in which Dr. Katerina Zacharia, of Loyola Marymount
University, discusses various iterations of the Elektra story.
Billed as the "Director's Cut," this version of Elektra is only three minutes longer than the
theatrical release. I never saw the original cut, so I can't say what has been changed, but this is still a
decidedly PG-13 picture. (Unlike the extended cut of Daredevil, which added nearly 30
minutes of footage and upped the rating to an R.) Supplementary materials remain nearly identical to
the 2-disc DVD release, but the upgrade to high definition audio/video may sway some fans to a
purchase. For the uninitiated, however, this is rental material at best.
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has revealed the release details for the Blu-ray edition of Elektra: Director's Cut, which, as previously reported, will hit shelves on May 4. In this Daredevil spinoff starring Jennifer Garner, the titular Marvel heroine comes ...
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has revealed its slate of catalog releases for April and May, which also includes one title from MGM. The most notable entries are Ron Howard's 1985 science-fiction movie Cocoon, as well as the release on individual editions ...
