A revenant who was long believed to be dead rises from its grave to claim vengeance over those who destroyed its legacy. It’s a familiar story, but, as the timer ticks down to the next big-screen appearance, theSpawnfranchise is ready to take on the same charge as its eponymous anti-hero.
The late-90s weren’tthe heyday of comic book movies that we live in today. They were less frequent, less respected, and frequently less good. The standouts from that era live fondly in the memory of comic book fans, but the failures have gone on to define later attempts.
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In the early-90s,Todd McFarlane made aninteresting decision. He took his clout as an in-demand comic book artist and a handful of his peers and he started his own publishing company. McFarlane attained fame working for both Marvel and DC. His best-known work came inThe Amazing Spider-Man, wherein he was the first artist to draw the beloved character Venom. McFarlane leveraged his fame into an artist-owned collective called Image Comics. Image served as an umbrella corporation, allowing each of the seven founders to run their own publishing outfit. The flagship property, however, quicklybecame McFarlane’s opusSpawn.
Spawnhas been enduringly popular among a very particular type of edgy teenager.The story follows Al Simmons, a CIA-funded assassin who is betrayed and murdered while on a mission. Thanks to his long history of efficient and ruthless violence, the devil Malebolgia offers him another chance at life. He’ll get to see his wife again if he agrees to become a “Hellspawn” in the devil’s service. Simmons is returned to Earth, but his body remains nightmarishly burned, his memories are incomplete, and he’s only allowed to stick around until he overdraws his power budget. Spawn resolves to become an anti-hero as he attempts to reclaim his life and destroy those who betrayed him. The franchise has inspired tons of spin-offs, five video games,a well-respected animated series, and one feature film.
Spawnwas the directorial debut of Mark A. Z. Dippé, who has gone on to create a lot of questionable kid’s content. The film depicts the aforementioned origin story of the title character with a couple of slight changes to account for rights issues. Michael Jai White portrays Al Simmons, and he’s excellent in the role. White was the first African American actor to play a comic book superhero in a live-action film, and his performance is one of the highlights of the film. The cast is pretty good in general.John Leguizamo dons afat suit and plenty of makeup to play Violator, the villainous demon who keeps an eye on Spawn, and he’s also the perfect casting choice for his character. The film is heavily effects-driven, and the CGI is pretty good for the time. They look rough today, but, they were innovative and unique when they came out. The comic and the film were accurately accused of borrowing from other comic book superheroes, but at least it typically steals good stuff. Fans of the comics generally liked the film, while newcomers were much harsher.
There’s quite a bit to criticize in this late-90s epic. Paradoxically, New Line Cinema demanded that the notoriously vulgar and violent comic’s film adaptation come down with a PG-13 rating. This was a Herculean task, reportedly requiring five submissions and over 200 edits. The film would be better with a hard R-rating and elements feel visibly pared down toplease the insufferable MPAA. The R-rated “director’s cut” iteration of the film adds 45 minutes of finished content, somewhat proving the problem. That cut is better, but it doesn’t fix the film. The writing is arch to the point of sounding stupid. A ton of the dialogue is dominated by pseudo-biblical exposition and little time is given to any character-building or emotional growth. Admittedly, the film inherited that issue from the source material.Spawnhas always felt like the result of a sullen teen combining all the gun, demon, and superhero content they love to create the perfect lab-grown edgelord. The film doesn’t fix that issue, but it doesn’t totally fall prey to it either.
Depending on the audience, the 1997Spawnmovie is either a solid B-tier superhero action movie or a hilarious mess of VFX and violence. McFarlane and company have been hard at work trying to get a sequel or areboot to the screen for years. The problems of the original film would be easy to fix for a modern team, and a new project in the franchise could recapture its glory. On the other hand, now that superhero movies are both more likely to be taken seriously and practically a dime a dozen,Spawnmight not feel as special as it used to. 1997’sSpawnis a time capsule that’s still well worth a watch today if only to revel in the era that birthed it. Fans will have to wait and see how a new take on Todd McFarlane’s baby could turn out if it ever makes it out of development Hell.
