Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

Darkman
1990
**
Director: Sam Raimi
Cast: Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand, Colin Friels, Larry Drake, Nelson Mashita, Ted Raimi, Nicholas Worth, Dan Hicks

Just when Dr. Peyton Westlake is about to perfect synthetic skin, a crime boss and his henchmen blow up his lab. The disfigured but superstrong scientist uses his invention to inflict revenge. Although Sam Raimi's low budget superhero film is sympathetic and lovingly made, it is let down by a nonsensical script and awful performances. The story starts well, but it stops making any sense in the final 30 minutes. The synthetic skin disintegrates after 99 minutes, yet Westlake has a massive arsenal of prefabricated faces towards the end, even after his makeshift lab blows up. The climax at the top of an unfinished skyscraper is one of the stupidest I can remember.