Spirited Away

10 months ago 03rd Jan 08:15

Dashing across snow laden rooftops, a silhouette of a man is visible, his bright red tie flapping in the breeze. He speaks of the city as his source of energy as he jumps like a cat between the ties, chimneys and narrow lines between buildings. This man is The Spirit, on another crime fighting swoop.

One of the founding characters in US comic book history, The Spirit has been newly adapted into a new film (imaginatively titled 'The Spirit'). Although you may not have heard of him - he has hardly appeared in new stories since 1952 - his reputation and legacy precede him.

He says: I re-wrote Silken completely to reflect something I saw in Scarlett, which was blindingly obvious but I hadn't see many directors use - which was her sense of comic timing, her rye humour

The Spirit is a suave, daring and sophisticated character - almost irresistible to ladies, a key part of many of his stories - the most recognised work by comic pioneer Will Eisner.

He is a masked crime fighter with a hidden identity who avenges his city against mobsters and criminals. His disguise is scant, only wearing a small mask around his eyes with a dark suit, fedora hat and red tie.

While the character may sound familiar (The Spirit debuted around the same time as Batman), there are a subtle differences in tone, character and style between the two masked crimefighters which set them apart from each other.

The film adaptation of 'The Spirit' is also a solo directorial debut from comic book artist Frank Miller - who gained experience in film craft through his input on the 2005 adaptation of his comic series 'Sin City' - which is, to date, the most faithfully styled and revered comic adaptation in celluloid.

The move from drawing to directing is a big leap for Frank. He previously got a taste for film direction on 'Sin City', which he created with veteran filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, but 'The Spirit' sees him helm the entire project for the first time - a brave move.