The Indie Spirit:

taking on and taking out

Disney, Marvel

and the Marvel Cinematic Universe

in the twilit and allegorical

indie moving narrative art

of

Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez

 

by Gary W. Wright

 

        Curiously, famed and indomitably indie super satirical narrative artist Frolickin’ Frank Miller was implicitly not impressed with the way his Marvel Comics creation, the tall, beautiful, intelligent, deadly, and fearless assassin Elektra Natchios-implicitly linked to Kathryn Bigelow, and played by Jennifer Garner-was portrayed by Marvel, New Regency, and Twentieth Century Fox when she showed up to bewitch and team up with the implicitly Richard Kelly linked blind lawyer and man with no fear Matthew “Matt” Murdock-played by Scott Terra as a lad and by Ben Affleck as a laddish young man, respectively-and team up with him to take on and take out the deadly and straight aimed and implicitly David Lynch linked Bullseye-played by Colin Farrell-and his employer, the big, bald, muscular, intimidating, expensive suit luvin’, and implicitly Lucas linked criminal Wilson Fisk aka “the Kingpin”-played by Michael C. Duncan-at the end of the twilit, allegorical, computer generated imagery [CGI] enhanced, and Ozian themed Miraculous Mark S. Johnson indie super satirical docufeature film DAREDEVIL [2003], a film released on February 9, 2003 that was inspired by a character initially implicitly linked to John F. Kennedy jr. that was created by Beamin’ Bill Everett, Jolly Jack Kirby and Smilin’ Stan Lee for Marvel Comics.  An implicit lack of luv that probably continued two years later when Marvel Comics, New Regency, and Twentieth Century Fox teamed up to continue the adventures of the tall, beautiful, intelligent, deadly, fearless, and implicitly Bigelow linked assassin Elektra Natchios-played again by Garner-in the Marvel Cinematic Universe [MCU] with the equally blind and implicitly James Cameron linked Kimagure martial arts master Stick-played by Terence Stamp-in the twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced and Ozian themed Raucous Rob Bowman indie super satirical docufeature film ELEKTRA [2005], a film released on January 8, 2005. 

For despite implying his support for the MCU by accepting a small cameo as a biker murdered by Bullseye in DAREDEVIL, a character he wrote and drew for Marvel Comics from 1979-83, Miller implicitly responded to DAREDEVIL and ELEKTRA when he donned the writer/co-director hats and teamed up with equally indomitably indie and cowboy hat luvin’ co-director/director of photography [DOP]/editor/co-composer Rollickin’ Robert Rodriguez-by then implicitly roasted and toasted by the also indomitably indie and Towerin’ Todd McFarlane in the bitter, macabre, vengeful, and cowboy hat wearin’ indie undead superhero form of Gunslinger Spawn starting in issue #119 [August 2002] of the ongoing twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and implicitly Lucas roasting and toasting indie super satirical narrative art series SPAWN published by Image Comics-to do more than just have actors in superhero and superheroine costumes run around in a CGI enhanced docufeature film but use a green screen draped soundstage and CGI to actually transform every frame of film into a panel of indie moving narrative art with a little help from the visual effects Wizards of CGI and from Querulous Quentin Tarantino in the twilit, allegorical and CGI enhanced indie moving narrative artwork FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY [2005], released on March 28, 2005 and inspired by Miller’s twilit, allegorical and equally black and white indie narrative art series SIN CITY [1991-2000].

 

“No reason at all to play it quiet.

No reason to play it any way but my way.”

 

        Indeed, Miller and Rodriguez immediately and implicitly affirmed in the film that on one level they were responding to and not fond of DAREDEVIL.  For FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY began with a short prologue that saw a suave, handsome and implicitly Johnson linked lady killer-played by Josh Hartnett-use a silencer equipped gun to shoot a beautiful, green eyed and either implicitly Hollywood or Sarah Polley linked blonde-wearing a red dress that evoked the red ninja suit of the equally green eyed Natchios in ELEKTRA, and played by Marley Shelton-through the heart with one silenced shot after kissing her as the pair stood high in the sky on a skyscraper balcony while a light rain fell on them, a deadly prologue that evoked a similar and more luving scene that saw Murdock and Natchios enjoy their first and only kiss standing high in the air on another skyscraper balcony as a light rain fell on them that allowed Murdock to see Natchios without seeing her using his bat-like echo location radar “sight” in DAREDEVIL.  Thus, the deadly prologue implied that Miller and Rodriguez believed that Johnson had killed DAREDEVIL by not trying to transform the indie super satirical docufeature film into a work of indie super satirical moving narrative art as they were doing in SIN CITY. 

This implicit interest in DAREDEVIL was reaffirmed when the camera point of view [POV] drifted away from the deadly duo and through a CGI cityscape and then pulled up into the air above the city before the shape of the city coalesced into the words FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY, for the CGI realized cityscape of Basin City aka Sin City evoked the CGI realized and opening title filled vista of New York that kicked off DAREDEVIL that initially gave hope that an indie moving narrative artwork was on its way before disappearing and being replaced by a CGI enhanced New York, a new hope that did not disappear here for it was the signal that Miller and Rodriguez were transforming SIN CITY into an indie moving narrative artwork.  And so, with that implicit Johnson and DAREDEVIL addressing point affirmed, FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY branched off into a twilit trio of stories. 

 

“Real credit to the force,

you are.”

 

Curiously, the first story revolved around the last day on the Force of the old, tired, angina sufferin’, but still idealistic and dedicated, and implicitly Lucas linked Basin City Police [BCP] Detective John Hartigan-played by Bruce Willis-doing his best to protect the pretty and implicitly Natalie Portman linked brunette girl Nancy Callahan-played by Makenzie Vega-and prevent her from becoming the Forceful fourth victim of the insidious and implicitly Terry Gilliam linked serial pedophile/murderer Ethan Roark jr.-played by Nick Stahl-whose implicit link to Gilliam was affirmed by allusions to such brilliant, madcap, twilit and allegorical Gilliam animaction films as TIME BANDITS [1981] and 12 MONKEYS [1995], a fitting evocation of the latter in which Willis played the implicitly Lucas linked future time traveller James “Jim” Cole, and that also reminded us that Liam Neeson played the implicitly Gilliam linked rebel indie Jedi Knight Qui Gon Jinn in the twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced and Ozian themed and implicitly Cameron and Steven Spielberg roasting Lucas indie animaction film STAR WARS EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE [1999].  Alas for Det. Hartigan, he was prevented from succeeding in his last mission by being shot dead by his implicitly Rick McCallum linked BCP Det. partner Bob-reminding us that McCallum produced the STAR WARS Tragic Trilogy that starred Portman as Padme Amidala, and played by Michael Madsen.  Thus, Miller and Rodriguez implied that they felt, like most audiences of that time, that Lucas had failed to succeed with McCallum, Portman and the STAR WARS Tragic Trilogy.

 

“Worth dying for.

Worth killing for.

Worth going to hell for.”

 

        The second story began ten years later and saw the big, tough, indie, indomitable, cigarette and women luvin’, implicitly Clint Eastwood linked and ironically named Marv-played by Mickey Rourke-waking up to find a beautiful and bewitching goldilocked woman named Goldie-played by Jaime King, who also played Goldie’s equally beautiful and bewitching but blonde twin sister Wendy-lying dead in his red heart shaped bed.  Leaping out of bed, Marv tracked down and, with the unexpected vengeful help of Goldie’s equally beautiful but blonde twin sister Wendy-also played by King-took on and took out her killer, the bespectacled, creepy, wiry, unusually strong and agile, cannibalistic and perhaps David Cronenberg linked serial killer Kevin Roark-played by Elijah Wood-who resembled Tobey Maguire and evoked Maguire’s implicitly Cronenberg linked Peter Parker aka “Spider-Man”-inspired by a character created by and originally implicitly linked to Wacky Wally Wood by Kirby, Lee and Steely Steve Ditko for Marvel Comics-in Columbia, Marvel and Sony’s daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced and Ozian themed Swingin’ Sam Raimi indie super satirical animaction films SPIDER-MAN [2002] and SPIDER-MAN 2 [2004].  Significantly, Marv also killed Kevin’s protector and older brother the coincidentally surnamed Cardinal Patrick Henry Roark-played by Rutger Hauer-who was as bald as Kingpin in DAREDEVIL. 

Along the brutal and bloody way, Marv sent a Judas priest played by Miller straight to hell with a bullet blasting benediction after, ironically, listening to the priest’s crooked confession in a church confessional.  Curiously, however, given that despite killing Kevin and Cardinal Roark, Marv was still framed for the murder of Goldie and sent to the electric chair, in the end, Miller and Rodriguez implied their fear that Eastwood and his indie docufeature artbusters were doomed to be defeated by beastly and CGI enhanced blockbusters like DAREDEVIL, SPIDER-MAN, and SPIDER-MAN 2, an implicit allegorical intent that was affirmed by the violence of this story, which evoked the violence in the films of Eastwood.  Curiously, this story also alluded to the eerily and presciently twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed Sir Ridley Scott indie docufeature artbuster BLADE RUNNER [1982], the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster GLADIATOR [2000], and the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed, and implicitly Cronenberg toasting Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster HANNIBAL [2001], affirming an implicit interest in Sir Scott as well, an implicit interest affirmed by the return of Rutger, who played Replicant leader Roy Batty in BLADE RUNNER, as Cardinal Roark.

 

“The big fat kill.”

 

Last but not least, the third story saw the Raimi resembling and implicitly linked Dwight McCarthy-played by Clive Owen-take on and take out the corrupt, long black haired, and implicitly Tim Burton linked undercover BCP Detective Lieutenant “Iron” Jack Rafferty aka “Jackie Boy”-played by Benicio Del Toro-and his gang, and the big, strong, and intimidating gang leader Manute-played by Duncan, who openly linked the film to DAREDEVIL via Kingpin to implicitly affirm that Miller and Rodriguez were responding to that film on one level in FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY-and his gang with the help of the bold, brash, buxom and bitchin’ ladies of the night of Old Town led by his favourite whore, gorgeous Gail-played by Rosario Dawson-and with the indie aid of the mysterious, short, silent, sweet, pretty, deadly, Elektra evoking, and implicitly Sofia Carmina [SCC] Coppola linked ninjette assassin Miho-played by Devon Aoki.  Thus, Miller and Rodriguez implied their fondness for SCC, their implicit hope that Raimi would not destroy his indie film art career by making beastly CGI enhanced blockbusters like SPIDER-MAN, and their implicit belief that Burton had destroyed himself with his films, an implication affirmed by the story’s allusions to the twilit and allegorical Burton animaction film PEE WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE [1985], the twilit and allegorical Burton indie animaction film BEETLEJUICE [1988], the twilit, allegorical, Ozian themed, and implicitly Lucas toasting and Jean-Luc Godard roasting Burton super satirical animaction film BATMAN [1989], the twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed, and implicitly Lucas toasting and Sir Peter Jackson roasting Burton animaction artbuster BATMAN RETURNS [1992], and the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed Burton animaction artbuster !MARS ATTACKS! [1996]. 

 

“Here it comes.”

 

        Surprisingly, then the film came full triangular circle with Det. Hartigan waking up to find that doctors had saved his life and that he was now under the control of the father of Roark jr., the Evil, cigar luvin’, and implicitly Sir Scott linked Senator Ethan Roark sr.-played by Powers Boothe-affirming the implicit interest in Sir Scott in the story of Marv.  Finally freed after eight years imprisonment filled with brutal beatings by the bald and implicitly Tony Scott linked BCP Commissioner Liebowitz-played by Jude Ciccolella-Hartigan tracked down Callahan, now a beautiful, sweet, and sexy young woman and exotic dancer with the hottest buns in town-played by Jessica Alba-at Kadie’s Club, thus continuing an affection for seamy clubs filled with beautiful, bitchin’, buxom babes with the hottest buns in town already seen and heard in the twilit, allegorical, slightly CGI enhanced, Tarantino written/co-starred/co-executive produced and implicitly Stanley Kubrick and John Landis roasting Rodriguez indie docufeature film FROM DUSK TO DAWN [1996]. 

After an emotional reunion at the club that attracted the attention of Marv, already seen admiring Callahan at Kadie’s in his story and just as surprisingly and curiously still alive as Hartigan as it was still two years before Marv’s full throttle and vengeful killing spree that led to his execution, Callahan and Hartigan left the club to hunt down and kill Roark jr., now transformed into the sickly and luridly Yellow Creep, driving away in a sequence that evoked the allegorical and implicitly Ralph Bakshi roastin’ and Walt Disney toastin’ Lucas indie docufeature film AMERICAN GRAFFITI [1973].  Significantly, shortly after the brutal and righteously furious murder of the Yellow Creep and allowing Callahan to drive off to safety, Hartigan killed himself so as to prevent Sen. Roark from tracking him down and torturing him to get the name and location of Callahan out of him, implying not only that Miller and Rodriguez felt that Lucas had not only failed to succeed with the STAR WARS Tragic Trilogy, but had also killed what little was left of his tarnished reputation with that second trilogy.  Then the film wrapped up with an epilogue that saw the suave and handsome killer from the prologue returning to kill a duplicitous Old Town girl named Becky-played by Alexis Bledel-implicitly reaffirming that Miller and Rodriguez thought that Johnson had killed indie super satirical moving narrative artwork with DAREDEVIL-and that Sin City was an unforgiving place, indeed.

        Luckily for Miller and Rodriguez, however, while Sin City may have been unforgiving, audiences proved to be more welcoming of the dynamic duo, for FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY was a success.  However, Steven Soderbergh also implied that he agreed that beastly super satirical animaction blockbusters like DAREDEVIL and SPIDER-MAN would not be stopped by indomitably indie film artists like Rodriguez and Sir Scott as implied in Marv’s tale or equally indomitably indie narrative artists like Miller, for the cigarette and dress shirt luvin’ and implicitly Lynch linked American NEW REPUBLIC writer Captain Jacob “Jake” Geismer-played by George Clooney-and the crippled and implicitly Miller linked pawn broker Levi-played by Dominic Comperatore-were unable to prevent the implicitly Lee and SPIDER-MAN 2 co-executive producer Kevin Feige linked U.S. Congressman Breimer and U.S. Colonel Muller-played by Jack Thompson and Beau Bridges, respectively-from killing the implicitly Robert Crumb linked ex-SS secretary Emil Brandt-played by Christian Oliver-in order to ensure that the blockbuster bomb luvin’ and implicitly Ditko linked ex-SS German rocket scientist Franz Bettman-played by David Willis-was smuggled out of the real life dangerous, treacherous, violent, deadly and Casablanca evoking sin city of post-World War II Berlin to the United States to help build Cold War transcontinental missiles for the Americans in the twilit, allegorical and CGI enhanced docufeature film THE GOOD GERMAN [2006], a film released on November 12, 2006 that was inspired by the twilit and allegorical Joseph Kanon indie docufiction novel The Good German [2001]; that affirmed its implicit allegorical intent with allusions to FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY, SPIDER-MAN 2, the allegorical and implicitly Stanley Kubrick addressing Lynch indie moving painting ERASERHEAD [1977], the allegorical and implicitly Cronenberg and Sir Ridley Scott addressing Lynch indie moving painting THE ELEPHANT MAN [1980], the twilit and allegorical Lynch indie moving painting DUNE [1984], the twilit, allegorical and implicitly Burton addressing Lynch indie moving painting BLUE VELVET [1986], the twilit, allegorical, and implicitly Spielberg roasting Lynch indie moving painting TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME [1992], the daylit, allegorical and implicitly John Landis and Vic Morrow addressing Lynch indie moving painting THE STRAIGHT STORY [1999], and the twilit and allegorical Lynch indie moving painting MULHOLLAND DRIVE [2001]; and reaffirmed its implicit allegorical intent with the appearance of Maguire as Capt. Geismer’s illicit loot obsessed and implicitly Tarantino linked U.S. Army driver Corporal Patrick Tully affirmed its implicit allegorical intent.

The success of Miller continued the following year when Exactin’ Zack Snyder donned the co-writer/director hats, teamed up with co-executive producer Miller and had the fearless and implicitly Lucas linked Spartan King Leonidas-played by Eli Snyder as a boy, Tyler Neitzel as a teen, and Gerard Butler as an adult, respectively-and his equally fearless three hundred Spartan warriors die fighting the epic onslaught of the blockbuster and CGI enhanced armies of the implicitly Cameron linked Persian God-King Xerxes-played by Rodrigo Santoro-implying that Snyder agreed with Miller that Lucas had killed himself implicitly trying to defeat Cameron with the STAR WARS Tragic Trilogy in the twilit, allegorical and CGI enhanced indie moving narrative artwork 300 [2006], which arrived in the Temple Theatre on December 9, 2006 and was inspired by the twilit and allegorical Miller and Laughin’ Lynn Varley indie narrative artwork 300 [1998].  Making it fitting that 300 was created the same way as FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY, with the cast and crew in a green screen draped soundstage that allowed the digital visual effects wizards to create the world of ancient Sparta and Persia with CGI.  And so an irrepressible Miller indie narrative art spirit filled theatres, and another experience transforming indie film art into indie moving narrative art filled Miller, inspiring him to go solo and implicitly affirm his own commitment to the indie spirit by creating his own spirited indie moving narrative art.  For he soon donned the writer/director hats and returned with King to the Temple Theatre to again use CGI to transform every frame of a film into a work of super satirical narrative art and to also pay tribute to a good friend and mentor with the exuberant, affectionate and mostly black and white twilit, allegorical and CGI enhanced super satirical indie moving narrative artwork THE SPIRIT [2008], released on December 25, 2008 and inspired by the equally exuberant and spirited character created by Miller’s inspiring mentor and friend, the equally indomitable and innovative indie narrative artist Wily Will Eisner.

 

“That’s the Spirit.”

 

        Significantly, no sooner did the film begin than an urgent phone call to the resurrected from the dead, indestructible, irrepressible, cat and women luving, handsome, heart breaking, exuberant and implicitly Lynch linked Dennis “Denny” Colt aka “the Spirit”-played by Johnny Simmons as a teen and Gabriel Macht as an adult, respectively, and resembling and constantly evoking Kyle MacLachlan’s equally dark haired, handsome, exuberant, Good hearted and pure spirited FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper in TWIN PEAKS and TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME to affirm his implicit link to Lynch-roused him from his graveyard digs and sent him off on a determined dash across the beautifully rendered rooftops of Central City as the opening titles flashed across the screen, immediately affirming that Miller had mastered the art of using CGI to create indie moving narrative art in general and the art of recreating the panels of the narrative art of Eisner in particular from the creation of FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY and 300.  Just as significantly, the Spirit’s determined rooftop dash soon led him down to the streets where he caught a ride with the surprised Officer Liebowitz-played by Miller-through the city to Iger Street and a lonely marsh located behind a hole in a chain link fence.

        Here the first of a film long series of fittingly spirited fisticuffs broke out with the exuberantly insidious Octopus-his name evoking Alfred Molina’s implicitly Lynch linked Doctor Octopus in SPIDER-MAN 2 to implicitly affirm that Miller was still brooding over that film, and played by Samuel L. Jackson-who, given that he was met so close to Iger Street, reminded us that Bob Iger was the Disney CEO who had overseen Disney’s purchase of Pixar in 2006, soon led Disney’s negotiations to buy Marvel in 2009, and in time would also oversee Disney’s purchases of Lucasfilm/ILM in 2012 and 21st Century Fox in 2019, memorable purchases that caused the Mouse House to grow multiple company arms like an octopus, implicitly linking the Octopus to Disney.  Indeed, to affirm that implication, sizzlin’ Silken Floss-played by Scarlett Johansson-the most beautiful woman ever and the partner in crime of the Octopus, soon showed up in a Ditko’s Speedy Delivery truck that evoked legendary Marvel narrative artist/writer Sweet Steve Ditko, openly linking Floss and the Octopus to Marvel and affirming the implicit link of the Octopus to the multi-armed Dis.

        Thus, Miller also implied that the Spirit’s frantic film long battle to defeat the Octopus, Floss and their tragicomic gang of exuberantly witless clones-all as exuberantly witless and lookalike as the films of the MCU, and all gamely and memorably played by Louis Lombardi-and to prevent the Octopus from becoming the ruler of the world by drinking deep from the blood of Heracles [?] symbolized Lynch’s life long battle to defeat the blockbuster loot lustin’ Hollywood studios in general and the newfound, insidious and multi-armed Disney corporate machine and its Marvel puppet and their endless MCU clones in particular, an implicit allegorical intent affirmed by the film’s allusions to BLUE VELVET, DUNE, FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY, MULHOLLAND DRIVE, THE ELEPHANT MAN, TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME, and the twilit and allegorical Lynch moving telepainting series TWIN PEAKS [1990-1].  And so the Octopus was scythed down on the relentless streets of Central City with the same implacable, indomitable and righteous fury and irrepressible indie spirit that scythed down the most dark, diseased and doomed denizens of the sinful streets of Basin City, implicitly defeating the multi-armed Mouse House and Marvel and allowing Lynch and his indie moving paintings over them to triumph. 

Curiously, along the way, Colt, his sweetheart Doctor Ellen Dolan-played by Sarah Paulson-and her father, Central City Police Commissioner Eustace Dolan-played by Dan Lauria, who resembled and was implicitly linked to three time Lynch DOP Freddie Francis-also came to grips with and released the implicitly SCC linked Sand Saref-played by Seychelle Gabriel as a teen and by Eva Mendes as an adult, respectively-who suffered from an “Electra” complex due to the death of her police officer father-played by David Wiegand-reminding us that SCC’s father, Francis, had been symbolically killed by adversity in the Eighties, affirming the implicit link of Saref to SCC.  And so after the release of indomitably indie THE SPIRIT, it was ironic and tragicomic that Jackson and Johansson, whose hilarious scenes together were priceless, would soon abandon the indie spirit by appearing as the tall, one-eyed, gruff, intimidating but Good and implicitly Spike Lee linked SHIELD Director Nicholas J. “Nick” Fury and the sleek, sexy, smart, red haired and implicitly SCC linked ex-Russian assassin and SHIELD Agent Natasha Romanoff aka “Black Widow”, respectively, in the twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced and Ozian themed Jon Favreau indie super satirical animaction film IRON MAN 2 [2010], thus falling into the slimy and suctioning grip of the multi-armed, vainglorious and unctuous Disney octopus.  Ironic and tragicomic, indeed.

Curiously, soon after creating his own indie moving narrative artwork masterpiece that turned every frame of THE SPIRIT into an Eisner panel, Miller donned the co-executive producer hat and collaborated with co-writer/co-producer Snyder on the twilit, allegorical, and CGI enhanced Noble Noam Murro indie moving narrative artwork 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE [2014], presciently inspired by the Miller indie narrative artwork Xerxes [2018], released on March 4, 2014.  Perhaps inspiring Miller to don the writer/co-director/co-executive producer hats and team up again with co-director/co-producer/DOP/editor/co-composer Rodriguez, Dimension Films, Troublemaker Studios, and Alba, Boothe, Ciccolella, Dawson, King, Rourke, Willis, and Eva Green-who played the fearless, beautiful, commanding, brilliant and implicitly Bigelow linked Persian naval commander Artemisia in 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE-on the mostly black and white, twilit, allegorical and CGI enhanced indie moving narrative artwork FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR [2014], released on August 19, 2014 and inspired again by Miller’s equally black and white twilit and allegorical indie narrative artwork series SIN CITY and by FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY.

 

“I beat you forever.”

 

        Indeed, the film kicked off with a prologue that saw the big, tough, indomitably indie, and cigarette and women luvin’ and implicitly Eastwood linked Marv-played again by Rourke-implicitly having not yet set off on the full throttle and vengeful killing spree that led to his execution, returning to survive a car accident straight out of the prologue of MULHOLLAND DRIVE, and then taking on and taking out some spoiled frat boy punks who dared to mock him, returning us to the brutal and uncompromising streets of Basin City aka Sin City. 

 

“This boy’s good.”

 

Then the film segued into the story of the young, brash, cocky, confident, and implicitly Jason Reitman linked Johnny-played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  With his lucky and full colour charm sweetie, the sweet and beautiful young waitress Marcie-implicitly linked to Diablo Cody, the favourite screenwriter of Reitman, and played by Julia Garner-beside him, he soon cooly and convincingly beat the Evil, steely, cigar luvin’, and implicitly Sir Scott linked Sen. Roark-played again by Boothe-in a high stakes game of poker in the back room of Kadie’s Club, where the beautiful, sweet, sexy, and implicitly Portman linked Nancy Callahan-played again by Alba-still danced with the hottest buns in town to the delight of Marv, though now literally haunted eight years after his suicide by the ghost of the implicitly Lucas linked BCP Det. John Hartigan-played again by Willis-who evoked the shimmering Force ghosts of dead Jedi Knights and of Jedi Masters in the STAR WARS Classic and Tragic Trilogies to affirm the implicit link of Det. Hartigan to Lucas.  Alas for Johnny, his brash and confident victory led to Sen. Roark getting some thugs to break two fingers of his right hand in the back of a limo before taking his winnings and tossing him out onto the street and shooting him in the right thigh in a segment that evoked GLADIATOR to reaffirm the implicit link of Sen. Roark to Sir Scott and to affirm its implicit interest in Cody by allusions to the twilit, allegorical, and slightly CGI enhanced Cody indie docufeature film PARADISE [2013].

 

“Never let the monster out.”

 

        Curiously, the story then shifted back to Kadie’s and the story of the implicitly Raimi linked Dwight McCarthy-now played by Josh Brolin-whose rendezvous at Kadie’s with the beautiful, bewitching, sexy, statuesque, and implicitly Angelina Jolie linked femme fatale Ava Lord-played by Green-soon had him hurrying out to the Lord place to find out why she was so unhappy.  After being beaten badly by the younger but equally big, strong, and intimidating Manute, bodyguard/chauffeur for Lord-now played by Dennis Haysbert-McCarthy went back to Kadie’s, teamed up with Marv and returned to Lord’s place to get into even more trouble, including killing her ambiguously linked husband Damien Lord-played by Martin Csokas-which led McCarthy to be framed for his murder.  This infuriating frame caused McCarthy to team up again with his favourite whore, gorgeous Gail-played again by Dawson-and the mysterious, short, sweet, silent, pretty, deadly, Elektra evoking, and implicitly SCC linked ninjette assassin Miho-now played by Jamie Chung-and, after she manipulated and destroyed the life of the weak willed and implicitly Soderbergh linked Lt. Mort-played by Christopher Meloni-returning again to kill Lord, implying again that Miller and Rodriguez were fond of SCC and her indie docufeature film art, and their implicit hope that Raimi would break free from Columbia, Disney and Marvel and return to indomitable indie film art, an ironic implication given that Brolin teamed up with Dis and Marv for the first time that year as the towering, vainglorious, power mad, universal balance and harmony obsessed, and all CGI Titan Thanos in the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed James Gunn indie super satirical animaction film GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY [2014].

 

“Look who decided to show up.”

 

        At which point the story returned to Johnny, who, after getting a perhaps Cronenberg linked black market doctor named Kroenig-played by Christopher Lloyd-to dig the bullet out of his right thigh and set his broken right fingers, soon found out that Roark had killed and dismembered Marcie.  And so Johnny struck back by defeating Roark in another high stakes game of poker in the back room of Kadie’s, only to be killed by a shot through the head from Roark.  Thus, Miller and Rodriguez implied that they thought that Cody and Reitman and their then brash and confident but small, intimate, daylit, allegorical, slightly CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed indie docufeature film art would be destroyed by the bigger indie docufeature artbusters created by Sir Scott and by Bigelow, Burton, Cameron, and Kubrick. 

 

“Lt. Hartigan,

you just gave me a great idea.”

 

However, given that the film ended with Marv and Callahan teaming up with the ghost of Det. Hartigan-a ghost that also reminded us that Lucas had sold the drought stricken moisture farm and the used speeder lot of Lucasfilm/ILM to Disney and retired in 2012, reaffirming the implicit link of Det. Hartigan to Lucas-to hunt down and kill Sen. Roark with the help of a memorable and Hartigan ghost haunted Dark Side mirrorworld reflection straight out of the films of Sir Scott so that the brutal and uncompromising indie spirit of Sin City once again prevailed, Miller and Rodriguez again implied their hope that Eastwood and his indie moving painting film art would ultimately triumph over that of Sir Scott, in the end, an implicit interest in Sir Scott affirmed by allusions to BLADE RUNNER, GLADIATOR, HANNIBAL, the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed and implicitly Tarantino roasting and Francis Coppola toasting Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster AMERICAN GANGSTER [2007], the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed and implicitly Lucas toasting and Spielberg roasting Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster BODY OF LIES, and the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed and implicitly Cameron and Suzy Amis toasting Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster ROBIN HOOD [2012], and by the appearance of Green, who played the young, beautiful, bewitching and implicitly Mila Jovovich and Glinda linked wife Sibylla in the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, Ozian themed, and implicitly Cronenberg, Landis, Lucas, Reitmans, and Luc Besson addressing Sir Scott indie docufeature artbuster KINGDOM OF HEAVEN [2005], and by the appearance of Ray Liotta, who played United States Justice Department official Paul Krendler in HANNIBAL, as the tragicomic Joey. 

An ironic denouement, indeed, given that Alba had by this time been linked to Lee, Marvel and the MCU forever via her role as the implicitly SCC linked Susan Storm aka “the Invisible Girl” in the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed Tenacious Tim Story indie super satirical animaction films FANTASTIC 4 [2005] and FANTASTIC 4: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER [2007].  An irony increased when Rodriguez was also implicitly linked to the young, handsome and Scarab enhanced Mexican-American law school graduate Jaime Reyes aka “Blue Beetle”-also implicitly linked to the Scarecrow, and played by Xolo Mariduena-who battled and triumphed over the red haired, fortune and glory lustin’, and implicitly Kathleen Kennedy and Wicked Witch of the West linked Kord Industries CEO Victoria Kord-played by Susan Sarandon-at the healing, harmonizing and eucatastrophic end of the daylit, allegorical, CGI enhanced, and Ozian themed Warner Brothers and Angelic Angel M. Soto super satirical animaction film BLUE BEETLE [2023], a film released on August 16, 2023 that was yet another super satirical film that made no attempt to be a truly moving work of narrative art. 

Curiously, later that year, Miller was implicitly roasted and toasted by McFarlane in the form of the mysterious, nasty, black cowboy hat wearin’, and indomitably indie cyborg assassin Carl in issue #26 [November 2023] of the twilit, allegorical, CGI enhanced and implicitly Rodriguez roasting and toasting indie super satirical narrative art series GUNSLINGER SPAWN published by Image Comics.  Perfect inspiration for another memorable trip back to the grim and uncompromising but luvin’ and justice metin’ streets of Sin City where Miller and Rodriguez would reaffirm that when it came to transforming indie narrative art into equally indie moving narrative artwork, break could no one the exuberant and indomitable commitment of Miller and Rodriguez to…the Indie Spirit.

 

 

 

Bibliography

 

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Wolk, Douglas.  Reading Comics.  Cambridge, MA: Da Capo

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