PFC Ricardo's Elektra movie Review

The last appearance of Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner) in the "Daredevil" movie saw her get killed off rather quickly, which reduced Daredevil to a brooding mess that resulted in the Kingpin’s eventual downfall. We, the audience, cried in outrage and were rewarded with a spin-off film starring the sultry Garner. One problem arose really early in the script though: how do you bring back someone from the dead? Directors these days will find themselves backed into a corner trying to solve the problem of resurrecting a dead hero, or anti-heroine in this case. The result is a gamble of blending realism and fantasy in having Elektra brought back from the dead by ancient resurrecting techniques courtesy of a blind man (Stick). After being resurrected, Elektra gets taught martial arts by Stick and then goes into overdrive enhancing her deadly combat skills. Becoming too deadly in her training, Elektra eventually gets let-off from Stick’s tutelage and becomes a free agent. Soon taking contracts for money with no questions asked, Elektra becomes an assassin for hire.

Like any killer with super-powers, contract hit-woman Elektra doesn’t bother boring us with hopes and dreams of a better tomorrow. She makes a pretty good living killing people and minding her own business. Unfortunately Elektra is bitter and killing people isn’t the balm she hoped it would be. With the superpowers of strength, as well as the ability to see in the near future, Elektra is morose, suspicious and prone to living in the past. She cannot get over the death of her mother. The excitement then builds as Elektra gets into a predicament of sorts when she accidentally meets her "targets," single dad Mark Miller and his teenage daughter Abby.

 After accepting their invitation for Christmas dinner, she decides she cannot kill them. She suddenly becomes a killer with a conscience after relating to Abby, who also lost her mother. Now hunted by her former employers, Elektra unleashes a whirlwind of destruction on those unfortunate enough to get in her way. The recent craze of comic book-based films by major industrial giants has produced numerous hits and misses, by box office numbers anyway. Some, like "The Incredible Hulk," have tanked hard, while others, notably "Spiderman," have caused movie fans to scream for more. Trying to fill that void, "Elektra" ends up sitting right in the middle. It’s got enough action to keep me asking "what happens next?" It’s one of those movies that I categorize as a "popcorn movie;" it’s got enough questions and holes to make me sit through with my sack of popcorn wondering where the story is going, but it gets soggy by the end of the bag. As for the casting, Garner was indeed a perfect fit for the role of Elektra. She knows karate, does her own stunts, as seen in her television hit "ALIAS," and looks tough without losing that touch that makes her so appealing. This movie is no hack job either, dominated by wire works and special effects.

There is not a happy ending, a love story, or personal redemption. Like real life, nothing gets cleaned up and neatly wrapped in plastic. Instead, it’s a film about a woman trying to survive with what she was given and someway find acceptance with the inner demons plaguing her mind. With that in mind if a femme fatale that kicks butt and is endearing to you, watch "Elektra." But if plot holes give you spasms, I’d take the advice of Monty Python and "Run away! run away!" This movie started out elektrafying but falls slightly short in the end to just all right.

Review by Pfc. Ricardo Branch, 3rd Inf. Div. journalist