Poor producer Jerry Wentraub. In the late 90's the guy must have secured a line of funding for some high profile, big budget blockbusters. One was Soldier, starring Kurt Russell, which originally had an acclaimed script. Alas Jerry hired Paul W S Anderson, the script was rewritten, and the movie was a dog. There was also The Avengers, a major theatrical interpretation of the cult, British, 1960's, fantasy/spy series. Critically savaged and abandoned by audiences at the box office, it was one of the biggest flops...well, ever.
Revisiting The Avengers, it's not a complete write off (it's not Battlefield Earth bad, as we say in the trade) but it is crippled by monumental misjudgements and terrible miscasting...of nearly everyone involved. It's a cool concept, and has a great basic story to base a summer movie on...it's just that the house built on top of it is completely rotten.
The culprits are many. Jerimiah Chechik should never have been hired to direct. Avengers is a quirky concoction the exists in a silly, heightened reality version of England when lap-tops, sixties fashions and 1920's motor-cars co-exist...and Chechik doesn't have a clue how to make it work. You need a director with a vision like Burton, Gilliam or Sonnenfeld to pull it off. John Landis is another helmer whose appreciation for the surreal and humorous would have been suitable.
The pace is plodding and cold. For what is supposed to be shallow, entertainment for the masses it's a cold joyless experience. The visuals are littered with daft, oddball humour and the dialogue is light and frothy...but it's filmed with leaden enthuisiasm you'd be forgiven for giving up 10 minutes in. And many have.
Ralph Fiennes, trying his hand at blockbuster fare, is stunningly miscast as hero, Steed, having not of the presense, charisma, charm or energy the role requires (even original TV Steed, Patrick MacNee, has more impact in 1 scene...as an invisible man than Fiennes). Thurman is better, but overplays the plumminess of her English accent and the cartooniness of her character. Since the audience is completly unable to empathise with either of the leads, we're unable to care about what goes on (as shown in the chemistry free attempts to convince us they're flirting). Connery, as the baddy, hams it up like never before but it's ill thought out attempt to fit into this bizzare onscreen world.
The score is bland (apart from when the brilliant 60's theme kicks in) and the photography, especially in the exteriors, is flat beyond comprehension. The effects are variable, with an inventive but horribly unconvincing mechaical giant wasp attack on the heroes being a lowpoint. At least the production designers have had some success with a snow bound Trafalgar Square, Escher like mazes and deserted London streets. But they needed to push it further to capture our imagination.
Still, it is watchable in a car crash kind of way. The story hangs together ok and there some strangley surreal svenes to keep the attention; the lone, red phonebox in the forrest, the opening English village field-agent test, and the insane sight of Connery hosting a board room of his teddy bear associates.
Like most car crashes you don't want to look at the carnage. But, every now and again, you're compelled to take a peak.
1 comment:
I hate this film. Horrible.
Even Uma in a leather catsuit can't save it.
"Avengers dis-assemble!"
Post a Comment