1990s Dark Comic Book Blockbuster Gets Gorgeous Upgrade
Before Sam Raimi took on one of the biggest superheroes of all time with his Spider-Man trilogy, he made a much lesser-known superhero film with Darkman. Raimi’s underrated first Hollywood studio film is a cult classic gem, and now you can get the best version of the film possible thanks to Shout Factory. Shout Factory is offering a Collector’s Edition of the film that has been restored in glorious 4K UHD.
The Unstable Hero
Darkman stars Liam Neeson as the titular anti-hero, who becomes severely burned after his lab is blown up by gangsters. This accident gives him supernatural powers but also makes him mentally unstable. He then becomes hellbent on seeking revenge. Along with Neeson, the film stars Frances McDormand, Colin Friels, Larry Drake, Danny Hicks, and Nicholas Worth.
Raimi’s Homegrown Hero
Darkman was Liam Neeson’s first lead role in an action film, which is a genre that was obviously the right fit for him. As for Raimi, he hadn’t made a big Hollywood studio film before and he was having trouble securing the rights for characters like the Shadow and Batman. So, Raimi decided to make his own superhero instead, and the results were great.
Raimi And Neeson Had Big Futures Waiting
Of course, both Liam Neeson and Sam Raimi would go on to do much bigger budget films in the same genre, with Raimi creating one of the best cinematic superhero trilogies of all time: the Spider-Man trilogy. He would also end up doing an MCU film with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Of course, both of these ended up making quite a bit more money than Darkman.
Liam Neeson would go on to do huge action roles in franchise films like Batman Begins and Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace. Of course, he would also cement his badass action legacy with Taken. But Darkman is definitely an underrated entry to both Neeson and Raimi’s filmographies.
New Interviews
The Darkman Collector’s Edition also includes new interviews with Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand, Danny Hicks, Dan Bell, and Larry Drake. A discussion with makeup designer Tony Gardner provides some cool insight into the production process. There are likewise interviews with production designer Randy Ser and art director Philip Dagort for even more revelations into how Darkman came together.
Other Features
If you’re going to watch Darkman, you might as well do it in 4K UHD, which is just the tip of the iceberg of what you’ll get in the Collector’s Edition from Shout Factory. Along with the 4K restored version of the film, you can also watch new the film with audio commentary from Josh Ruben and Bill Pope, as well as some new deleted scenes.
Along with all of the new material, there are also vintage features like a Making-Of featurette and older interviews with the cast and crew
Finally, there’s the theatrical trailer, TV spots, still galleries, and storyboards for Darkman superfans to enjoy. In short, this Blu-ray Collector’s Edition is pretty much the definitive way to revisit this Sam Raimi classic. You can pick up your copy from Shout Factory if you want a throwback to 90s Hollywood superhero movies.
Source: Shout Factory
