“Frank who?”

By Sunday night, if not sooner, any Hollywood executives who might’ve been in the Frank Miller Business will be quickly back pedaling after The Spirit hits theaters Christmas Day.
The adaptation of Will Eisner’s classic comic raised fan’s suspicions when early scenes were screened this summer at the San Diego Comic Con and they looked fucking terrible. As much as I’ve grown up admiring Miller’s work, this looks like a painful movie to sit through let alone pay to see.

Variety: “Frank Miller’s solo writing-directing debut plunges into a watery grave early on and spends roughly the next 100 minutes gasping for air. Pushing well past the point of self-parody” … “There’s a lot going on here, but none of it sticks — not the shopworn plotting nor the arch, stilted dialogue. The actors often seem to be delivering their lines in ironic quote marks, suggesting a straight-faced sendup of noir and comicbook conventions that, whatever the intended effect, falls mostly flat.”

AICN: “I’ve seen something that has taken the top prize from “Battlefield Earth.” … “Okay, Mr. Miller. Let’s get it on.” … “Seriously, it’s not. You clearly don’t have any idea what you’re doing. Someone, ANYONE, over at Lionsgate should have known this. Fuck, it’s their JOB to know this. But they didn’t.” … “Folks, this movie is that bad. I heartily recommend it if you have a strong stomach and an even stronger sense of Bad-Movie-Love. Otherwise, steer clear.”

Miller’s first foray into Hollywood came in the early 90s with his work scripting the two Robocop sequels. Unsatisfied with the experience, Miller rejected opportunities to bring his work to the big screen until Robert Rodriguez offered him the opportunity to have equal creative input. Transitioning Sin City from page to screen did accomplish bringing the specifics of Miller’s noir soaked world to life. After seeing panel after panel faithfully rendered on screen, the overwrought characters and stilted dialogue made made it hard to over look the flaws in Miller’s work. His participation in Sin City was a gesture of respect, yet it yielded the opportunity for Miller to have sole ownership of the director’s chair. Creating comics, while similar in some capacities, is not the same as directing a movie. Each requires different skills, and while it will be interesting to see what becomes of Miller’s directing career—comics has always been a better fit for Miller’s sensibilities.