Directed by: Daniel Espinosa
Starring: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Jared Harris, Adria Arjona, Tyrese Gibson, Al Madrigal, Michael Keaton
Morbius is a hybrid of more interesting Marvel heroes such as Blade and other literary icons as The Werewolf and Bat Boy from the old Weekly World News. The photo above is not from Morbius, but of Bat Boy and there are times watching Morbius that I wished I was watching a Bat Boy origin story.
Morbius gives us a blah hero and a blah villain in an ultimately blah story. A highlight is that it runs under two hours, which these days gives us cause for celebration and adds a half-star to the review. It's a shame because Morbius gives us a more subdued Jared Leto than we're used to. He plays Dr. Michael Morbius straight as a doctor working on a cure for a blood disease which has plagued him and his best friend Milo (Smith) since birth. Milo's real name isn't Milo, but Michael calls him Milo for reasons I think were briefly explained.
Dr. Morbius has already invented a blood product which has cured others of fatal diseases but hasn't worked for him. He rejects the Nobel Prize for this discovery (again, I think he explained why but I'm not sure) and sets out to capture South American vampire bats in hopes of intertwining his DNA with that of the bats to cure himself and Milo. The cure works in restoring Morbius' physical health, but also has a nasty side effect of turning him into a human vampire bat (complete with sonar) capable of draining all of the blood out of his victims' bodies. Morbius is frightened by this power and as he attempts to create an antidote to curb his bloodlust, Milo steals the cure and happens to enjoy his newfound powers. This results in supernatural clashes and confusing fight sequences with CGI run amok and an inability on the viewer's part to discern what is happening.
A better film would explore the inner conflict between Milo and Morbius as lifelong friends forced to battle each other. A better film would also make it harder for Morbius, who is now a multiple murder suspect, to slink around New York concealing his identity by flipping up the hood on his hoodie. He sits in restaurants with the hood down as if no one is looking for him. Two detectives (Gibson and Madrigal) are on Morbius' trail, but don't realize they are dealing with forces beyond their comprehension. And ours.
The post-credit sequences are bewildering as well. They are intended to enter Morbius into the Spider-Man universe with appearances by Vulture/Adrian Toomes (Keaton), who is released from prison for reasons not clear to us. That keeps in lockstep with the rest of Morbius.
No comments:
Post a Comment