Scantily clad action heroine with a sexy-tough pout? Check. Supernatural bad-guy gang of tattooed, Goth-punk clowns? Check. Hard-to-follow kung-fu fight scenes Flash-edited to disguise actors' martial arts deficiencies? Check. A complete lack of adherence to its own internal logic? Double-check. Elektra is the latest Marvel Comics superhero flick to roll off the assembly line, and it's such a halfhearted, prefabricated effort that even the normally charismatic Jennifer Garner can't save it. Reprising her role from 2003's disastrous Daredevil (which she almost did save), Garner plays a stereotypically brooding, ninja-trained super-assassin with a conscience who gives up her killer ways to protect a man and his teenage daughter from a generic, mystical army of evil that's out to get them. The characters are frequently devoid of common sense and the movie lacks any hint of comic book creator Frank Miller's creativity--or even a single surprise, save that our anti-heroine isn't smart enough to realize there's more to her new charges than meets the eye. Not recommended. [Note: Available in either widescreen or full screen, DVD extras include a 13-minute “making-of” featurette, an “Inside the Editing Room” featurette (7 min.), three deleted scenes (5 min.), a Comic-Con presentation (2 min.) featuring star Jennifer Garner, and trailers. Bottom line: half-hearted extras for a half-hearted action film.] (R. Blackwelder)[DVD Review—Nov. 1, 2005—Fox, 2 discs, 99 min., not rated, $26.98—Making its second appearance on DVD, 2005's Elektra: Director's Cut boasts a nice transfer and DTS or Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks. Weighing in at about two minutes longer (though no better) than the original, DVD extras here include an audio commentary by director Rob Bowman and film editor Kevin Stitt on the first disc. Disc two features a long pair of “making-of” documentaries titled “Relentless: The Making of Elektra, Part 1” on production (88 min.) and “Relentless: The Making of Elektra, Part 2” on postproduction (53 min.), an “Incarnations” documentary on the history of the comic (53 min.), a 16-minute “Elektra in Greek Mythology” featurette, six alternate/extended scenes with optional commentary (14 min.), a brief “Showdown at the Well” segment featuring multi-angle dailies, five art and photo galleries, and trailers. Bottom line: like Daredevil's “director's cut, Elektra is another double-dipper of a bad film—lots of extras, but the film is still a kind of a dud.][Blu-ray Review—May 25, 2010—Fox, 100 min., not rated, $29.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 2005's Elektra features a nice transfer and a 5.1 DTS-HD soundtrack. Blu-ray extras are almost identical to the previous DVD release, including audio commentary by director Rob Bowman and film editor Kevin Stitt, the “making-of” documentaries “Relentless: The Making of Elektra, Part 1” on production (88 min.) and “Relentless: The Making of Elektra, Part 2” on postproduction (53 min.), an “Incarnations” featurette on the history of the comic (53 min.), an “Elektra in Greek Mythology” featurette (16 min.), alternate/extended scenes with optional commentary (14 min.), a brief “Showdown at the Well” segment featuring multi-angle dailies, and trailers. Missing from the Blu-ray release are the art and photo galleries. Bottom line: Better looking? Yes. Better film? No.]
Elektra
Fox, 97 min., PG-13, VHS: $41.98, DVD: $29.98, Apr. 5 Volume 20, Issue 2
Elektra
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: