| | | "HD-DVD, The Look and Sound of Perfect."
Features: DVD, Widescreen, English, French, Dolby, Dolby Digital (5.1), Digital Audio
Dr. Peyton Westlake is on the verge of realizing a major breakthrough in synthetic skin when a gang, led by the sadistic Robert G. Durant, obliterates his laboratory.Burned beyond recognition and altered by an experimental medical procedure, Westlake attempts to rebuild his laboratory and reestablish ties with his former girlfriend Julie. But his most challenging task lies within himelf. Torn between his desire to create a new life with Julie and his quest for revenge, the man known as Darkman begins to assume alternate identities in this stunning, fast-paced action thriller from director Sam Raimi.
"A fast and entertaining slice of fantasy." BBC Film Review
"A brilliant, wildly entertaining spectacular!" Mike Cidoni, Gannett Newspapers
"...high-camp hoot of a horror film..." Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Editor's Note
A scientist on the verge of a major discovery in synthetic skin is burned beyond recognition when his laboratory is demolished by a sadistic gang. Altered by an experimental medical procedure, the man known as Darkman begins to assume alternate identities and seeks revenge against his assailants.
Plot Summary
A scientist disfigured by a gang of sadistic criminals develops a mask-like second skin which allows him to change identities. Peyton Westlake, his face hidden behind bandages, is transformed into the Darkman, a lonely psycho who prowls the streets of Los Angeles by night. Disguised as different characters, the Darkman seeks out the men who ruined him and exacts brutal revenge.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital TrueHD 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround Sound | | Audio: French Dolby Digital Plus Stereo | | Dubbed: French | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French | | This Is An HD-DVD Made For HD-DVD Format Players Which Produce Higher Quality Picture & Sound |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Universal |
| Release Date: 7/31/2007 |
| Running Time: 113 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1990 | | Catalog ID: 61032834 | | UPC: 00025193283429 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Available Subtitles: English, French | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 1.85:1 |
| Cast & Crew | Colin Friels | | Frances McDormand | | Larry Drake | | Liam Neeson | | Bill Pope - Cinematographer | | Bud S. Smith - Editor | | Chuck Pfarrer, et. al. - Screenplay | | Danny Elfman - Original Music By | | Daryl Kass - Producer | | David Stiven - Editor | | Phil Dagort - Art Director | | Randy Ser - Production Designer | | Robert G. Tapert - Producer | | Sam Raimi - Director | | Sam Raimi - Based On Story By |
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| | Professional Reviews | New York Times
"...An ambitious and self-consciously old-fashioned film....Terrific effects..." 08/24/1990 p.C15Entertainment Weekly
"...A hilarious homage to comic-book superheroes..." -- Rating: B 07/14/1995 p.64 Los Angeles Times
"...[The film] successfully captures the graphic look, rhythm and style of the super-hero books....DARKMAN somehow stays in a comic-book universe: a world of satire and swoony self-caricature..." 08/24/1990 p.F10 Wall Street Journal
"An elegant admixture of horror and humor, it stars Liam Neeson as Peyton Westlake, a disfigured scientific genius who becomes the tormented antihero of the title." 05/29/2009 Variety 8 of 10
Despite occasional silliness, Sam Raimi's Darkman has more wit, pathos and visual flamboyance than is usual in contemporary shockers. Universal, studio that first brought the Phantom of the Opera to the screen, returns to its hallowed horror-film traditions with this tale of a hideously disfigured scientist (Liam Neeson) seeking revenge on LA mobsters...Drake's expertly vicious and campy villain is after an incriminating document left in Neeson's lab by the scientist's lawyer/g.f. (Frances McDormand) who has caught a client, real estate developer Colin Friels, in corrupt practices...Director Raimi, lenser Bill Pope and production designer Randy Ser conjure up a flamboyantly expressionistic world out of downtown LA's bizarre architectural mix of gleaming skyscrapers and decaying warehouses.
FilmCritic.com 7 of 10
One of the lamer superheroes in comic book and movie history, Darkman is formed from massive burns over 40 percent of his body, his home-made synthetic skin which degrades after exposure to light, and an inability to feel pain. After girlfriend Frances McDormand nearly gets our scientist friend (Liam Neeson) killed, he goes all vigilante on the bad bad drug dealers in town. While Darkman has become something of a cult classic, it's also something of a dud. "Darkman" himself isn't very interesting as a hero, as a person, or as a movie. Director Sam Raimi is obviously just getting ready for his superior work in Spider-Man here. - Christopher Null
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