Just what I expected

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

It feels strange that currently we are amidst a massive Superhero binge. Hollywood has managed to saturate the superhero genre but there was a time once when a Superhero film was a lifetime event. The Shadow belongs to that era- based on the pulp character from the 30s this is a polarizing film. I loved it for the most part especially the low key feel and tone. The casting is good and Alec Baldwin is more than adequate. Say what you will about the guy and his temper, he was a dashing man(and still is) and plays both The shadow and his alias Lamont Cranston quite well. Reviewers thought otherwise and even the box office was tepid but this film has developed a cult following ever since.

After Tim Burton's Batman, producers scrambled to get a comic book movie - any comic book movie - up on the screen. So why not the hero who directly inspired the Caped Crusader (Batman's first appearance in Detective Comics #27 is a tale that's directly influenced by The Shadow story "Partners of Peril")?The trouble is that The Shadow hadn't really appeared in anything pop culture related since 1958's The Invisible Avenger, two episodes of an unaired TV series that were edited together as a movie (it was also re-released with additional footage in 1962 as Bourbon Street Shadows). And explaining to audiences why a character was popular 60 years ago isn't always easy.In Tibet, Lamont Cranston (Alex Baldwin, Glengarry Glen Ross) has become the opium dealer known as Yin-Ko. But Tulku, a mystic in the body of a young boy, takes him away from his dissolute life and uses the Phurba, a talking dagger, to begin redeeming the man. For seven years, Cranston learns the physical and mental skills that he'll need to stop evil - including the power to cloud men's minds.It's a rough conceit to start your film with your hero killing his own men and basically being the villain of the story. It's why in so many stories of The Shadow, they start with the good side first before revealing his origin.In New York City, Cranston is a wealthy playboy who is really The Shadow, a vigilante who has created a network of agents to help him battle the forces of evil. He meets Margo Lane (Penelope Ann Miller, Adventures in Babysitting), a woman who gets through his defenses, possibly because she's telepathic.Shiwan Khan (John Lone, Rush Hour 2) is Tulku's fallen student who claims to have murdered the holy man. His powers are beyond The Shadow's and he claims to be the descendant of Genghis Khan. He's amassed a large army and has kidnapped Margo's father Reinhardt (Ian McKellen, Lord of the Rings) to create an atomic bomb for him.Khan hypnotizes Margo into killing The Shadow, but he stops her as Cranston. She realizes they are one and the same, but there's no time to reflect. The Shadow has to rescue her father from Khan's men, who now include Reinhardt's treacherous assistant Farley (Tim Curry, Legend), who The Shadow hypnotizes into jumping off a balcony to his death.Inside the Hotel Monolith, Khan and The Shadow have a final battle involving the Phurba, which demands a peaceful mind. Overcoming his past, The Shadow masters the weapon, frees Reinhardt from his brainwashing and defeats Khan inside a hall of mirrors by telekinetically using a shard of a mirror to give him a lobotomy.Oh yeah - Jonathan Winters shows up as Barth and Peter Boyle plays Moe Shrevnitz, one of our heroes many lieutenants.Sam Raimi originally wanted to adapt and direct this film, but was supposedly denied the rights to it. You can see echoes of the character in his 1990's film Darkman.Russell Mulcahy ended up directing the film. He came from the world of music videos, where his directorial efforts for Duran Duran helped create the image for the band. His first work that got noticed in the U.S. was the Australian horror film Razorback, followed by his work in the first Highlander (we shouldn't discuss Highlander 2: The Quickening). Today, he's known for the MTV series Teen Wolf.The film does a good job getting plenty of references in to past tales of The Shadow, but again, it's a rough character to sell to modern audiences without explaining why he's so awesome before you show where he came from.The original DVD of the film was out of print for some time (indeed, it goes for around $12 in most used stores, a lofty price) but was re-released on blu-ray in 2013. It's worth looking for, especially if you're someone like me that stayed awake late at night to listen to the 1970's re-airings on the syndicated program Golden Age of Radio.

Enjoyed the stylish setting, clothes and period details of this well-made film. Alec B. and Penelope M. are at their best here in this period thriller. So much fun, even with an over-the-top plot. Great attention to detail--wish I could visit 1930s NYC and go to the Cobalt Club and wear such swanky gowns... We first saw this when it came out in 1994 and I enjoyed it even more recently. The original radio shows were before our time so I don't know how accurate or faithful it was to the series, but I felt the concept and characters were conveyed in an original, entertaining way. The tension between the leads was believable and subtle, and their chemistry was wonderful. What a treat--a feast for the eyes and still GREAT after 20 years!

Well, this film was on in the background on New Year's Eve 1997 in Copenhagen, when I took a phone call from what at that point I knew would be my future wife, I love old comic books, (although I'm not familiar with this particular character), like any other (relatively) young person in the 80's I've enjoyed a number of director Russell Mulcahy's music videos, heck, I even like the old Coasters hit "The Shadow Knows", so do you know what, I'm not going to be too harsh with my judgement.Yes, there are things not quite right with it, for one thing the title character's powers or their sources are never fully explained, he himself makes only fitful and to be honest rather underwhelming appearances when he does show up, plus most of all, John Lone as the Shadow's nemesis Khan is physically too small and cherubic-looking to impart any kind of old-fashioned dread. One scene where you see him from the back brushing past the NYC hordes in full war-attire had me tittering behind him. The main characters too, have little depth either, with none of the angst which fuels the more popular Batman or Spider Man characters.Better then to concentrate on the backgrounds, which are excellent, recreating the heady days of 1930's New York in all its glory and the special effects which are fine and entertaining. Director Mulcahy gives us some imaginative set-ups especially when his cameras go airborne. Lone apart, his Iead actors serve him well, Alec Baldwin and Penelope Ann Miller, playing their wonderful clothes well enough whilst Jerry Goldsmith's heavyweight score gives the movie some added grandeur.Slightly overlong and with too many gaps between stunts, nevertheless, the film is always good to look at even if the drama on screen occasionally slips shadow-like into the background.