What would happen if some of the most interesting literary characters of the 19th Century united to form a sort of pre-Justice League crime-fighting unit? The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, a film loosely based on the graphic novel of the same name, gives us the answer: there would be a loud, dumb action film that ignores all the rules set forth for the characters it has bothered to include.
The plot has the team assembled at the behest of the British government, who is trying to learn the identity of someone calling himself the Fantom (sic). The Fantom has been kidnapping and using captured scientists to create a collection of superweapons and he’s using these weapons against the countries of Europe to create a state of war.
The League consists of Allan Quatermain (Sean Connery), a hunter with impeccable marksmanship; Dorian Gray (Stuart Townsend), an immortal; Mina Harker (Peta Wilson), a vampiress; Rodney Skinner (Tony Curran), who is the latest Invisible Man; Captain Nemo (Naseeruddin Shah), who commands the submarine, Nautilus; Dr. Jekyll (Jason Flemyng), who can turn into the monstrous Mr. Hyde; and Agent Tom Sawyer (Shane West), who seems to be very good at being brash and being a stereotypical American and not much else.
In a nutshell, the story takes us on a series of set pieces that attempt to showcase — at least once — the particular talents of each League member as they try to find and stop The Fantom. In doing so, the movie fails to obey the rules of these characters. In particular, Mr. Hyde, who in the original Robert Louis Stevenson story was merely a hideous man with a murderous streak, who is now a gigantic Hulk-like monster with super-strength. Mina Harker, a vampire, is allowed to walk in the sunlight without pain or injury (not even seeming to care about the daylight). The size of the massive submarine Nautilus seems to change as needed to fit a particular scene. Sometimes, it’s four city blocks long and others it’s able to fit down the narrow channels of Venice.
The fact that the movie can’t follow the rules set forth for its own characters doesn’t bode well for having much of a coherent plot either. And it doesn’t. Since the movie works so hard to create convoluted action sequences to feature the characters “doing their own thing”, the plot just sort of throws things at the viewer and expects no thought be involved in trying to figure out what’s happening or why.
It’s a shame because the movie starts out very promisingly. Sean Connery’s Allan Quatermain is an interesting take on the aging-hero and his quips to his fellow League-mates are actually very amusing. The movie falls apart shortly after the League’s first encounter with the Fantom’s men.
According to an interview I’d read, director Stephen Norrington said the film was so hard to direct, he’d never direct again. Well, if he hadn’t done such a good job with Blade, I’d say that’s not much of a loss. I think this movie was a mess from the beginning.
1.0 out of 5.0 stars
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