The Spirit

Well one thing's for sure: I certainly didn't expect "The Spirit" to be that hilarious! The way I've been describing this film is Adam West's Batman meets Frank Miller. All the cheesiness of your overacted comic book camp smashed together with the dark sexiness of Frank Miller's direction. And it works!

Sitting in the theatre preparing for this film, all I could think of was, "Do I really want to sit through another Frank Miller?" I mean "Sin City" was revolutionary, "300" was riveting, but everything I'd seen in trailers of "The Spirit" looked like nothing new. Like "Sin City" redux, but less violent and gritty. Little did I know that, unlike its predecessor, "The Spirit" blissfully didn't take itself seriously at all. It was campy, it was over the top, and it wasn't ashamed to be silly.

The story follows a former cop named Denny Colt who mysteriously returned to life and proclaimed himself The Spirit (Gabriel Macht), an un-killable vigilante determined to destroy The Octopus (a phenominally crazy Samuel L. Jackson) and learn why the two of them are unable to kill each other no matter how many wounds they inflict. He is constantly haunted by two women, Loreli Rox (Jamie King), the beautiful angel of death who continues to call him back to his grave, and Sand Saref (Eva Mendes), former girlfriend turned jewel thief hell bent on getting some serious bling. Along for the ride are Ellen Dolan (Sarah Paulson), a young doctor who has the hots for The Spirit, her police commissioner father (an unchanged Dan Lauria not seen since "The Wonder Years") and a deliciously sarcastic Silken Floss (Scarlett Johansson), sexy sidekick to Sammy J.

First of all, I gotta say... incredibly gorgeous women in this film. Thank you Frank Miller, you have made classy sexy again. That said, I would argue that Sam Jackson and Scarlett, yes Scarlett, make this film worth watching. Whenever the two of them are on screen together it's pure comedic gold. I never knew she had it in her to be that sarcastic and funny, with great comic timing. This movie needs to be seen for the Nazi interrogation scene if nothing else. Priceless.

The other thoroughly enjoyable aspect is The Spirit and his uncanny ability to seduce any woman he meets. He milks that for all it's worth, and it's hysterical. And his ability to deliver such lines as, "Somebody get me a tie. And it'd better be red!" is worth the price of admission alone.

All in all, the action is awesome, the comedy is an unexpected surprise, and the ladies are stunning to behold. Merry Christmas.