Darkman (1990, dir. Sam Raimi)

Darkman (1990, dir. Sam Raimi)

What Is It?: A superhero B-movie made by the (future) maker of the Spider-Man series.

What About It?: Though Sam Raimi is not the Lost Classic's favorite, he sure did know how to liven up the superhero genre. This was his first mainstream flick after great cult success making Evil Dead I and II: Dead by Dawn. It's a fast-paced, visually restless comic book flick about a brilliant scientist way unfairly dipped into acid by evil real estate magnates, exacting his revenge as he slowly loses his mind.

Why Should I See It?: The DP Bill Pope and Raimi have a singular feel for camera placement that many of his generation lack. It's enjoyable all by itself and neat to see a once cult filmmaker make his first steps into the mainstream juggernaut that he's become. Interesting that two of the most successful filmmakers of the last decade, -- both critically and financially -- Raimi and Peter Jackson both were initially splatter-horror underground shooters before moving on to the Main of the

What Else Is It Like?: RoboCop, Face/Off, The Crow.

Reserve it at the Multnomah County Library.

--ddt/pdx