Daredevil (2003) review

In preparation for Marvel Studios’ upcoming Netflix-released TV series ‘Daredevil’, I decided to take a look back upon the last major book-to-screen adaptation of the blind lawyer from Hell’s Kitchen known as ‘The Man without Fear’; Matt Murdock AKA Daredevil. That was in the form of 2003’s ‘Daredevil’, which starred Ben Affleck in the title role 10 years before he would be cast in another superhero flick, this time as Batman in the upcoming ‘Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice’. But as for ‘Daredevil’, well, this is easily one of the most infamous entries of the modern pre-MCU era of superhero films. Early on, the reaction towards the film was mixed but in the years since its release the internet, being its usual ‘generally negative’ self, has been much harsher towards this film and Affleck has basically become the big scapegoat in regards to the general dislike of the film. This was the reason why the internet was so up in arms over him being cast of Batman, after all. Well, after re-watching his first foray into the superhero film genre, I’ll say this; Affleck is not the one to blame for this film’s shortcomings. Now let me be clear; I’m not saying that ‘Daredevil’ is one of the best superhero films ever; far from it, to be perfectly honest. Compared to many of its fellow superhero films, ‘Daredevil’ is a fairly average entry in the genre that definitely feels like it fell victim to a lot of studio mandates. But at the same time, this really isn’t as bad as the internet has put it out to be.

As a kid growing up in Hell’s Kitchen in New York, Matt Murdock (Ben Affleck) was taught by his father, former boxer Jack Murdock (David Keith), the importance of ‘doing good in school’ so that he could succeed in life. Matt does listen to his dad but one day, after witnessing his father act as an enforcer for a local mob boss (something he thought that his father had moved away from), he gets into an accident where he is blinded by toxic waste. But despite the loss of his vision, his other senses become enhanced. Matt uses his newfound abilities to train himself in martial arts while also helping his father get back into boxing. But soon after his father’s career gets back on track, he is murdered by the mob after refusing to throw a fixed fight. As a result, Matt vows to avenge his father’s death by helping those who have been wronged by others. Years later, Matt is now an accomplished lawyer, owning a firm that he runs along with his best friend Foggy Nelson (Jon Favreau). At night, he becomes the vigilante crime-fighter Daredevil, going after criminals that haven’t properly given the payback they deserve. As Matt continues his campaign of justice against the criminals of New York, he soon meets Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner), the daughter of a businessman who becomes a target of crime boss Wilson Fisk (Michael Clarke Duncan) AKA The Kingpin, and finds himself getting involved in this whole situation.

If Affleck isn’t the big scapegoat for this film’s problems, then director Mark Steven Johnson is, who would later go on to direct another much-maligned superhero film; 2007’s ‘Ghost Rider’. However, like Affleck, it’s not 100% his fault either for the problems of this film. I mean sure, they could’ve gone with a better writer than Johnson (who wrote the screenplay) but this is a clear case of a film that got changed around during post-production so that it could be marketed towards a wider audience. I may not be a big comic book reader but I can tell that Daredevil is meant to be one of the darker/more mature characters in the Marvel lineup. And as proven from the advertisements for the new ‘Daredevil’ series, that’s clearly the route that they are taking with that show. But as for the film version of ‘Daredevil’, it’s an obviously toned down PG-13 rated affair that can best be described as a ‘Hollywood’ film. By that I mean a film that has that ‘Hollywood popcorn flick’ aura about it that’s heavy on both the soundtrack and the melodrama, the latter of which is even more evident due to the fact that Stan Lee felt that the film was too ‘tragic’. Most of the action sequences feel rather generic and even the final fight between Daredevil and Kingpin is a little anti-climactic. I’m aware of this film’s ‘Director’s Cut’ which adds in a whole half hour of new footage, including a whole sub-plot with a character played by Coolio. From what I hear, this version is a definite improvement over the theatrical cut that’s both darker and much more in line with the character’s portrayal in the comics. However, at the time I am writing this, I have not yet seen that version of the film.

So with all of that said, why then do I not hate this film like most people on the internet? Well, because I did actually find the film to be fairly entertaining even if it wasn’t as strong in terms of execution compared to films like ‘The Dark Knight’, ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’, or any of the MCU films. I was never really bored by it at any point even with all of the clichés in this film that come from the script. There are some generally cool things about this film, the biggest one being how they portray Daredevil’s powers. Being blind, Matt Murdock has this sonar sense that allows him to ‘see’ what’s around him through the use of sound. The visual effects/overall design for this element of the film is arguably the standout aspect of the film. And despite all of the overly-dramatic melodrama, there is one scene that I feel does work really well thanks to the use of this effect. It’s the scene where Matt and Elektra are on the roof before it starts to rain. Matt brought her up here because he knows that when it rains, each raindrop produces a sound when it comes into contact with a surface. Because of this, whenever it rains, it’s basically the closest that Matt will ever get to, in a way, be able to see again. This allows him to finally see Elektra for the first time. This was a really well-done scene, arguably the best scene in the entire film. And yes I know it’s quite derivative of the upside-down kiss scene from the first ‘Spider-Man’ but it’s still a well-handled scene that does a great job at showcasing how Matt is dealing with his disability.

So now let’s talk about the ol’ scapegoat, Ben Affleck… he’s actually not that bad in this film. Obviously I know plenty of you will disagree with me on that, but hear me out. Was he the best choice for the role at the time? Probably not, as Guy Pearce (who would later go on to be the villain in ‘Iron Man 3’) and Matt Damon (who declined the role as he didn’t have faith in either the script or the director (Ben probably should’ve listened to his pal Matt on that one)) were some of the other major candidates for the role. That and of course he doesn’t really have the best material to work off of either. But I do think that Affleck deserves credit for doing the best that he could with that material in what is pretty much a highly complicated role. Same goes for Jennifer Garner as Elektra. They both sort of get screwed over by the material but the two of them do have a pretty solid romantic chemistry (they are married in real life, after all). The two villains of the film do come off a little better in terms of their performances. Michael Clarke Duncan definitely has quite the presence in the role of the Kingpin. Obviously he’s not the ‘spitting image’ of the Kingpin from the comics given the fact that Kingpin is usually, well, white but I’m not going to go any further into this other than saying that Duncan was a good choice for the role regardless of the fact that he doesn’t necessarily resemble Kingpin. As for Colin Farrell as the extremely accurate assassin Bullseye, there is a fun layer of campiness that comes from his turn here. I’m not saying that it’s a ‘great’ performance but it looks like Farrell was at least having fun in the role.

‘Daredevil’ is not one of the best superhero films of all time. For the most part, it’s a fairly average entry in the genre that was toned down by the studio to appeal to a larger audience despite the fact that its main superhero is one of the darker characters of the Marvel Universe. And it’s basically the very definition of a ‘Hollywood’ film with its emphasis on its soundtrack and its various writing clichés that make the film far more ‘tragic’ then it needed to be. And yet, despite all of this, I still generally like it. It’s nowhere near as re-watchable as any of the MCU films but I never found it to be boring and despite what the internet may say about his performance, Ben Affleck isn’t that bad as Daredevil. I believe that, had the studio not been so picky about toning the film down and a better director/writer had been chosen to work on the film, this could’ve turned out much better and Affleck would’ve really shined here in the time before he really made it big through his directing work. Ultimately though, Affleck isn’t the one to blame for how this film turned out. You see, the thing about the internet when it comes to films is that it loves to target certain controversial aspects of films, even if they aren’t the primary problem of the film (see ‘Phantom Menace’ (Jar Jar Binks/Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker) and ‘Spider-Man 3’ (‘Emo Peter’) for further proof of that). Sure, as is, the first major ‘Daredevil’ film is only an average superhero film but it’s far from being the worst of the genre. Believe me folks, of the many superhero films that I’ve seen over the years, I’ve seen worse than this one.

Rating: 3/5