ELEKTRA (2005)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Watching Jennifer Garner in a billowing red dress wielding two dagger weapons might endear the prepubescent set but not me. Nevertheless, despite shortcomings in the script and character department, "Elektra" is not as bad as reputed to be and gets marginally better as it rolls along. It is not a Marvel adaptation to marvel home about, but it is no disaster either.
Garner plays the titled character, last seen in "Daredevil" where she was killed during combat. Now she is resurrected from the dead by her blind mentor, Stick (Terence Stamp), who had also trained Daredevil once upon a time in Marvel comic-book land. But instead of being a noble superheroine, Elektra is an assassin-for-hire, I think, though she seems to work exclusively for one agent. I also think she is hired to kill her enemies who mostly work for the Order of the Hand, a Japanese organization. The Hand is after the Treasure, and it is up to Elektra to prevent anyone from grabbing the Treasured Treasure. Prior to this underwhelmingly flimsy plot, Elektra is commissioned for a hit on her neighbors, a single father and his effusively smart daughter (played by Goran Visnjic and Kirsten Prout). Naturally, she has a Nikita conscience and chooses to save them from ninja assassins who are about to kill them as well. Whatever.
"Elektra" has its share of mediocre fight scenes, all edited with chainsaw ferocity rather than any real Zhang Zimou or Ang Lee flair. The movie has far too many plot holes (including a bare mention of Elektra's OCD) and a risible romantic subplot, though the special-effects and the supervillains are occasionally nifty. Still, the movie is all about intense close-ups of that angular face of Jennifer Garner's. I never bought her as an assassin, however, if nothing else, Garner has an electric presence on screen - she always seems adrift in her own thoughts and you can't help but wonder what she is thinking. Her face is the only thing that sizzles in "Elektra."
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