Darkman Movie Information

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Movie Information

Overall Rank: 8398

Average Rating: 2.4/4

# of Ratings: 120

Theatrical Release Date: 08/24/1990

Language: English

Genre: Action, Crime

MPAA Rating: R

Director: Sam Raimi

Actors: Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand, Colin Friels, Larry Drake, Nelson Mashita, Jessie Lawrence Ferguson

Plot: Horribly burned by criminals, a scientist makes his revenge by going after evil-doers. -- sapien

Logan D. McCoy - wrote on 08/29/2024

A real delight that packs together a vigilante superhero origin and a Universal monster movie into a wholly satisfying, pulpy, and stylish creation that is all its own thing.

Chris Kavan - wrote on 01/09/2012

Sam Raimi tries his hand at a superhero origin story and while it isn't without fault, it's not exactly the most compelling film, either. Still, it game him good practice for Spider-Man and it turned out better than Spawn or Punisher. So kudos for that.

Unknown - wrote on 06/26/2011

Plays out exactly like a comic-book origin movie, but it's actually not based on one. A fun take on this sub-genre of movies. Raimi delivers.

Indyfreak
Movie God

Liam Neeson's 1st action movie was not Taken!

Indyfreak - wrote on 12/07/2014

Back in 1990, "Spider-Man trilogy" director Sam Raimi gave curious audiences a superhero movie featuring a protagonist much more similar to the mad scientists of classic monster movies. Economically made at a time when comic-book films were rare (and rarely successful) "Darkman" is less interested in showing a hero rescue cats from trees or send criminals to jail but rather murder them in cold blood out of vengeance instead of justice. Again, harkening back to those monster movies, the hero is less concerned about others but more so for himself a good chunk of the movie. It is this and the gruesome manner he is transformed that would make Darkman a melancholy if not downright bleak film for some.
Still, there is an appropriately campy approach to the proceedings and Liam Neeson devotes …

MovieAddict
Producer

An Under-Rated Favorite!

MovieAddict - wrote on 02/11/2012

Peyton Westlake (Liam Neeson) is a scientist who has it all; a loving girlfriend, a good life and the chance to make a difference with his synthetic skin experiments which could revolutionize skin grafting, except for one minor glitch; the synthetic skin degrades after 100 minutes of exposure to light.

That is until Robert Durant (Larry Drake) and his thugs break into his lab one night and savagely beat him, leaving him for dead and blowing up his lab in the process. But Westlake does not die; somehow he survives being dunked in a vat of bubbling acid which turns him into a horribly deformed freak. As such he is afraid to face his girlfriend, Julie Hastings (Frances McDormand) and retreats into the shadows as a creature of the night, as the Darkman. He begins to seek vengeance against …

Yojimbo
Movie God

"Darkman" by Yojimbo

Yojimbo - wrote on 02/09/2012

A scientist hideously disfigured during an attack on his lab utilises the synthetic skin he was working on to wreak bloody vengeance on the criminals responsible. Batman meets The Phantom Of The Opera in this superhero-horror hybrid from Sam Raimi that can be seen as the stepping stone from Evil Dead 2 to Spider Man. This is clearly where he learned the ropes of making the modern superhero film and although lacking the slickness exhibited by the Marvel franchise, Darkman still has plenty to commend it. It has a rather blacker heart than the usual masked avenger movie, Raimi exploring the idea of a "hero" that is more borderline psychotic than a brooding loner and far more interested in pure revenge than justice. It's a little rough around the edges and Liam Neeson was a slightly odd …