The Shadow, the Phantom or Dick Tracy?

[Jochimus]

I love these pulp fiction films.
You also should've added The Rocketeer.

Hell, some may know my intense love for The Phantom and The Shadow, so I don't know which one I'd chose. Perhaps The Shadow. All 3 are great films, btw.

The Rocketeer wasn't actually created in the '40s, though. In fact, I'm kinda surprised Flash Gordon isn't on the list...

 

[rogue trooper]

The Rocketeer wasn't actually created in the '40s, though. In fact, I'm kinda surprised Flash Gordon isn't on the list...

Well, the De Laurentis film was not set in the 40's or 30's. It was contemporary. Maybe if it had been done ala "Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow".

 

[Kevin Roegele]

If I may point out the great things about The Shaodw;

- Alec Baldwin is absolutely perfect as both Lamont Cranston and the Shadow. As Cranston, he is the perfect comicbook Bruce Wayne the movies have never given us. Pure charm, charisma and dapper playboy. As the Shadow he is sinister and heroic at the same time, and hypnotically mysterious. Baldwin brings a real substance and dramatic weight to the role, he gives it everything and he judges it perfectly. And his bellowing laugh as the Shadow would make any criminal panic.

When people talk about actors like Reeve and Jackman being perfect for their roles, Baldwin should be included for the Shadow.

- The tone of the movie. It's dark but not grim, fun but not light. As we've seen with the original four Batman movies, it's a very hard balance to create (arguably only the 1989 Batman acheived it, with the others being too dark or too light).

- The score. Perfectly puply, noirish, msyterious, with elements of wonder.

- Penelope Anne Miller. Pitch perfect recreation of a 1930's romantic intrest, from the glamour to the screwball comedy.

 

[rogue trooper]

If I may point out the great things about The Shaodw;

- Alec Baldwin is absolutely perfect as both Lamont Cranston and the Shadow. As Cranston, he is the perfect comicbook Bruce Wayne the movies have never given us. Pure charm, charisma and dapper playboy. As the Shadow he is sinister and heroic at the same time, and hypnotically mysterious. Baldwin brings a real substance and dramatic weight to the role, he gives it everything and he judges it perfectly. And his bellowing laugh as the Shadow would make any criminal panic.

When people talk about actors like Reeve and Jackman being perfect for their roles, Baldwin should be included for the Shadow.

Christian Bale was the perfect Bruce Wayne that was finally given to us.

 

[Kevin Roegele]

Christian Bale was the perfect Bruce Wayne that was finally given to us.

I should have known someone would say that.

I'm not criticising Batman Begins in any way, I'm talking about The Shadow.

 

[rogue trooper]

I should have known someone would say that.

I'm not criticising Batman Begins in any way, I'm talking about The Shadow.

I do apologize. It's just that when you said, "he is the perfect comicbook Bruce Wayne the movies have never given us", it sounded like the perfect Bruce Wayne had yet to come. But now I see.

 

[Symbiotic]

I prefer The Shadow out of these three.

 

[Sandman138]

The Rocketeer, obviously. I haven't seen The Shadow in ages. I remember they went heavy into his Tibetan Occult origins. I was never a fan of that, always liked him better when he was a mysterious character who kept showing up but we never really knew how he did what he did. I always loved The Phantom, I'm a sucker for period pieces. Dick Tracy has the best cast of any comic book movie ever.

 

[Kevin Roegele]

I do apologize. It's just that when you said, "he is the perfect comicbook Bruce Wayne the movies have never given us", it sounded like the perfect Bruce Wayne had yet to come. But now I see.

No problem bud.

 

[Kevin Roegele]

Dick Tracy has the best cast of any comic book movie ever.

Warren Beatty, Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, Madonna, Dick Van Dyke, James Caan, Paul Sorvino, James Tolkan, Cathy Bates...

It's amazing, though I'd argue Batman Begins has the best...Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanbe, Rutger Hauer, Cillian Murphy.....I mean wow. The very fact that the previous Batman movie was Batman & Robin makes this even more astounding.

 

[Ceb-Man]

The Shadow.

 

[Ceb-Man]

The Shadow.

 

[st barbara]

I have most of that series of novels...they came out in the 70's. I haven't read them since back then...but I remember them as being pretty good.

As for the movies....the Shadow, Phantom, and then Dick Tracy is my order of preference.

Do you have "The Phantom Chronicles" Joe Gentile & Lori Gentile (eds) From "Moonstone Books" published in 2007. Seventeen new "Phantom" stories . I only recognise a few of the authors (Ron Fortier,Will Murray,Trina Robbins and Craig Shaw Gardiner), but 17 new "Phantom" stories looks cool !

 

[The Major]

The Shadow.

That film made me a fan from life.

It took some liberties, and had some flaws but over all I thought it treated the franchise with respect while being enjoyable to watch.

To bad the sequels never happened. The Shadow has some really twisted enemies that I'd like to see in live action one day.

 

[Nathan Petrelli]

Dick Tracy please, filmed in Sin City style

 

[honest george]

If I may point out the great things about The Shaodw;

- Alec Baldwin is absolutely perfect as both Lamont Cranston and the Shadow. As Cranston, he is the perfect comicbook Bruce Wayne the movies have never given us. Pure charm, charisma and dapper playboy. As the Shadow he is sinister and heroic at the same time, and hypnotically mysterious. Baldwin brings a real substance and dramatic weight to the role, he gives it everything and he judges it perfectly. And his bellowing laugh as the Shadow would make any criminal panic.

When people talk about actors like Reeve and Jackman being perfect for their roles, Baldwin should be included for the Shadow.

- The tone of the movie. It's dark but not grim, fun but not light. As we've seen with the original four Batman movies, it's a very hard balance to create (arguably only the 1989 Batman acheived it, with the others being too dark or too light).

- The score. Perfectly puply, noirish, msyterious, with elements of wonder.

- Penelope Anne Miller. Pitch perfect recreation of a 1930's romantic intrest, from the glamour to the screwball comedy.

Wow, very well put; I agree with all your points. I had discovered the Shadow as a kid and always loved the 30's pulp-radio, hero thing. I looked forward to this movie alot when it was being released. At the time I worked at a movie theater and offered to paint the flm's logo image on the huge front window of the building; I wish I had a picture of it now. I even ordered the Shadow replica ring from some outfit in Florida, I still have it with the original tin box it arrived in; I used to have a Purba dagger but sold that after I got married.

Oh yeah, The Shadow for me too.t:

 

[The Major]

i think if anyone is going to say anything about the Shadow or the Phantom, then they need to know the characters... These aren't generic well known comic heroes like Spidey or Batman... they are living legends... I mean the Shadow is from 1931 & the Phantom from the 40's... They haven't recieved nearly enough attention but are still as strong as Batman.

Agreed.

I think the reason that films made about the pulp heroes are and will always be doomed from the start.

Hopefully that'll change one day.

They are not as well known and can't be adapted properly...

Not being well known is probably affecting how well they're going to be adapted.

Comic book characters are more well known these days then pulps in Hollywood so they're more likely to get made then pulps.

I'd love to see either Raimi or Nolan do a dark revamp on Shadow to make it closer to the pulps.

The realism, detail, intelligence, creativity and brutality of The Shadow's pulps would be amazing to see on film. The Sin City and Batman Begins audiences would love it.

The pulps had sex & violence and death and murder that is too strong for some generic hollywood adapted PG-13 film... They should all have a SIN CITY feel to them...

I agree. The Shadow was great but it chose campy over pulp for its story. Perhaps they thought it would appeal to more people that way.

Making Lamont Cranston The Shadow's true alias instead of Kent Allard did make sense. It would be to confusing for the audience in that story. They'd need a Begins style movie to make the Kent secret identity that work IMO.

At least it introduced the franchise to more people so Hollywood might one day relaunch it.

 

[The Major]

Okay, so you're saying The Shadow was fun, but it should have been dark, therefore it would have been better? Dark = superior? Really?

The Shadow is supposed to be much darker then the film showed.

It got most of the key elements right but toned down the brutality to PG when it could be R rated easily and the story was straight forward instead of an actual mystery which he usually got involved in.

 

[rogue trooper]

The Shadow is supposed to much darker then the film showed.

It got most of the key elements right but toned down the brutality to PG when it could be R rated easily and the story was straight forward instead of an actual mystery which he usually got involved in.

I think Sam Raimi did a better Shadow movie with Darkman.

 

[3dman27]

Agreed.



Hopefully that'll change one day.



Not being well known is probably affecting how well they're going to be adapted.

Comic book characters are more well known these days then pulps in Hollywood so they're more likely to get made then pulps.

I'd love to see either Raimi or Nolan do a dark revamp on Shadow to make it closer to the pulps.

The realism, detail, intelligence, creativity and brutality of The Shadow's pulps would be amazing to see on film. The Sin City and Batman Begins audiences would love it.



I agree. The Shadow was great but it chose campy over pulp for its story. Perhaps they thought it would appeal to more people that way.

Making Lamont Cranston The Shadow's true alias instead of Kent Allard did make sense. It would be to confusing for the audience in that story. They'd need a Begins style movie to make the Kent secret identity that work IMO.

At least it introduced the franchise to more people so Hollywood might one day relaunch it.

very true major

 

[KingOfMars]

I prefer the look of the shadow, but phantom is my favorite for nostalgic reasons.

 

[Secret Fawful]

You know, after watching the new The Spirit trailer, it makes me wish Frank Miller was going to do the Shadow.

 

[Nepenthes]

someone needs to make a new Flash Gordon TV show

 

[3dman27]

inthink the curent ones makers still have flash's rights and wouldn't change their format

 

[p.marlowe]

You know, after watching the new The Spirit trailer, it makes me wish Frank Miller was going to do the Shadow.

Frank Miller should never take on The Shadow in film or comics.