Darkman

Directed by Chris R. Notarile, "Darkman" (2012) is an interesting little project running at about seven minutes. Essentially more of a style- experiment than a full-fledged and developed story, this film was intended (at least according to its YouTube description) to be a pitch for director Notarile to attempt to get the rights to Sam Raimi's "Darkman" character.

It's somewhat successful, albeit quite flawed.

The short is a somewhat out-of-context scene that appears to have been ripped from a much larger story, as two criminals (one of whom I have to comment looks almost exactly like an older Neal Patrick Harris) are involved in a short conversation that takes an interesting turn near the end.

According to the description, the intent was to give a harder, more realistic take on the "Darkman" character and mythos, which is where a big part of my issue with this short comes from. By very intent of the original film, the character and story are melodramatic, operatic and off-beat. (Heck, there were sequences in the original film that were forcibly cut by the studio that were far more out-there than anything in the final theatrical version.) In trying to be more grounded and realistic by comparison, this just stuck me as not really working all too well. I admire the intent, and definitely will give the cast and crew respect for putting this together, but it has that feeling of... being generic. It lacks any sort-of identity outside of "dark and realistic." Which is a problem. "Dark and realistic" is too overdone these days, and as a result, this can't really find its footing as something special or unique. I almost hate to say this, but it sort-of reminded me of those dopey "dark and violent" Jet Li movies from the 90's and early 2000's. (Like "Kiss of the Dragon" or "Romeo Must Die") Those sorts of films that tried to be "dark" and "hard-hitting", yet just felt "plain" and "blah."

That being said, this isn't without some good. The acting is decent. I admire the dedication of those involved quite a bit. The short does have an interesting little "story" to it, even if it does feel like a scene chopped out of a much larger film. And I did get a kick out of a few references to the original film. (The opening line is pure gold, and is a great callback to the opening line of the original film.)

All-in-all, I have to say the 2012 "Darkman" fan-film by Directed by Chris R. Notarile is a decent enough watch for fans of the franchise. While I disagree that a more realistic tone is the way to go with the character, it's a fun experiment to watch. I give it an average 5 out of 10. Respect to those involved, but for my money, the quirky, off- beat Raimi "Darkman" works better.