'Daredevil' lacks substance

"Daredevil" - chock full of attractive actors, outrageous stunts and other nifty special effects - sure is adventurous. This is yet another film that turns a comic book story into a movie, following the genre that includes "X-Men," "Spiderman" and "Batman." "Daredevil," however, is just a blockbuster wannabe. The hero is a blind Hell's Kitchen lawyer, Matt Murdock (Ben Affleck), who defends the "innocent" and underprivileged by day but is the masked crime fighter Daredevil at night, leaping from building to building without the use of webs. Affleck, however, seems more at ease as alter ego Matt Murdock than superhero Daredevil. His blindness makes him an unusual hero, especially considering his other senses are magnified. Affleck's character is definitely more mortal than other superheroes, having to take painkillers after a night of taking down the bad guys. The movie starts off with Matt as a kid, getting bullied by his peers and idolizing his father, an amateur boxer. He gets in a freak accident, involving some biohazardous material that ruins his vision. His father is killed when he is young, obviously spurring his career as a crime fighter later in life as he tries to avenge his father's death. The story becomes more interesting and personal when Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner) arrives on the scene. She too has been trained in martial arts and uses these skills later in the movie to seek revenge on her father's murderer. One of the better parts of the movie is Elektra and Matt's charming getting-to-know-you see-saw martial arts battle. (Keep in mind that Garner does her own stunts.) She is one of the bright spots in the movie, but unfortunately she does not have as much screen time as the advertising indicates. Without her, "Daredevil" has a hard time staying alive. In one scene, Matt asks Elektra to stand in the rain because the raindrops can create an image of her face from the sound he hears. This intriguing special effect is called "shadow world" and allows Murdock to "see." The New York that Daredevil lives in is obviously exaggerated (maybe even more so than Gotham City) and imaginary, but still it is pretty and sparkling. As a knife-throwing hit man, Colin Farrell's character, Bullseye, is maniacal. Farrell seems to have fun in the role, but the audience doesn't really get a chance to know his character, and he gets stuck with little dialogue. Michael Clarke Duncan's character as evil gang lord Wilson Fisk is not well-developed either. "Kingpin," as his character is called, controls most of the city's crime. And the ending involving his face-off with Daredevil is disappointing, but it does leave the door open for a sequel. Matt's law partner is Franklin "Foggy" Nelson (Jon Favreau) who doesn't know who his friend really is. Another important character is Ben Urich (Joe Pantolino), who works for the New York Post and is trying to dig up dirt on Daredevil. Affleck and Garner play their roles well, not overacting. The tension stays between the characters and is not directed at the props as it sometimes can in an action movie. The picture is better than some other superhero movies but not the best. Overall, director Mark Steven Johnson's "Daredevil" has good intentions for trying to portray his love for the comics. "Daredevil" starts off fast and snappy, but lacks the storytelling of other superhero movies. Rating: B-