Comic book extravaganza #6: Daredevil – Director’s Cut

Staring: Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, Michael Clarke Duncan, Jon Favreau, Colin Farrell, Joe Pantoliano
Director: Mark Steven Johnson


So how do you take a sub-average film and make is brilliant? Take the version of the film from just before it was submitted to butchering by the producers and suits. The problem with the film was not with director Mark Steven Johnson, especially if you've seen the Director's Cut. I mean, dear Lord this version is spectacular, especially compared to the butchered theatrical version.

Many of the problems stem directly from one of the producers of the film, Gary Foster, who has been put on record about how the Director’s Cut pretty much “doesn’t exist”. You can see the frustration of director Mark Steven Johnson can be seen in the cutting room during various behind-the-scene specials by his meddling.

The new version is undeniably superior. In addition to including a very crucial and, quite frankly, necessary subplot where Matt and Foggy defend an innocent convict (played by Coolio – you might have caught him in the early trailers before his role was cut), it removes one of the most forced - and to put it bluntly, poor - scenes of the film where Daredevil and Elektra kiss on the rooftop.

Ignoring the shouts of a child in danger, just to get some action speaks pretty low for the character, and completely against what is set up beforehand, and after in the film. It was completely out of character for him. He’s a hero. Brutal, but still a hero. It also keeps the story from falling into the melodramatic “extreme love story” angle that they pushed on us. Their relationship is now more of a tantalizing friends-but-could-be-more storyline – which if they hadn’t screwed up the first time – could have come up in a sequel.

Not only that, but the resolution of the film makes sense. In the theatrical version – the resolution seems to happen not because of any logical reason – but because Murdoch said so. Poor.

Additional violence and language can’t hurt – especially with it being rated-R - not that bogus “unrated” garbage that tricks idiots into buying films. They actually had the dignity to submit it to the MPAA for a new rating. Completely re-edited and leaps and bounds better.

****/*****