League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

Let me present my biases up front: I am a huge fan of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comics. I found them by accident. My friend, Rob Taylor, gave me a bunch to read. I did not know who Alan Moore was -- never realized, in fact, that I had enjoyed so much of his work in other comics and stories. I was instantly hooked.

I have also heard just how much of a car crash this movie is supposed to be. So I was prepared for something really awful.

I'm happy to report that it's really not that awful.

The movie takes place in Victorian-era London. Well, it starts there anyway. The League is gathered together to fight a new, despicable evil -- in short, a new technology that threatens to ignite a World War. You know, THE World War that's supposed to happen a few decades later.

Anyway, a bunch of public domain characters are gathered together: Mina Harker (of Dracula fame), Alan Quartermain (of Diamond Mine fame), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the Invisible Man (sorta), Dorian Gray (the fellow with that portrait), Captain Nemo (that whole thing with the Nautilus) and...Tom Sawyer.

In short, superheroes for a different century. Neat idea. It works better in the comics, because Moore is insane and has such attention to detail that he immerses the characters in the era. And in that comic, Mina's not a vampire, she's a modern woman -- which is a pretty cool superpower in Victorian times.

I digress. Let me go over the characters and their differences, for those who are fans of the comic.

• Mina is cooler as a vampire. She just is. But she flips over from repressed gentlewoman to sexy, black-corset-wearing vamp a little too quickly and casually. It felt like they took a lot out of her character for the sake of shortening the film. She had great potential, but she doesn't realize it here. Still, Mina's fight scenes kick ass. And she is much more interesting as a semi-vampire. She also retains the scarf. Rating: 4
• Alan Quartermain is not the opium addict of the comics. He's just an old guy who lost his son and two wives to adventuring. Sort of like a retired Indiana Jones. Sean Connery brings some dignity to him, but not much. His "super power" is that he's a crack shot with a rifle. When he's wearing his glasses. It's a cute, Dark Knight-esque, damn-these-old-bones sort of character that made him more endearing than the frail whiner of the comics. I liked him. Rating: 3
• The Invisible Man is Rodney Skinner, not...well whoever that other psychopath was in the comics. I'm happy to say he's NOT a villain in this movie (although they want you to think he is). He's got the best lines and his matter-of-fact nature makes him a welcome addition. He's coolest when wearing his hat and trench coat (and nothing else, making him quite pervy) but alas, Rodney doesn't get much play here. Cool character, underdeveloped like Mina. Rating: 5
• Nemo is quite similar to his character in the comic, except he has an inexplicable fondness for the English that's very out of character for someone who has spent much of his life fighting British tyranny. The Nautilus is sleek, white, and marvelous -- his Indian crewmen are just plain cool. The whole thing is about presentation and it's really quite lovely. Unfortunately, Nemo loses points for having a very fake-looking beard. Visually, he's a mirror image of the comic. To make him more interesting, they gave him weirdo martial arts. And for some reason, Nemo never fires a gun, he always charges at guys wielding machine guns (!) with his saber. But you've gotta admire his moxie. Rating: 4
• Dorian Gray. Damn, I liked him so much I wish he was in the comics. Dorian can't be killed, so he's an immortal of sorts. Of course, that's a bit like Mina (in her vampire incarnation), which makes him redundant. But he fights with a walking stick. And he's a bored immortal. Imagine the Highlander without all that angst. Rating: 5
• I was really ready to dislike Tom Sawyer. But once I realized his entire existence was to show Quartermain's grief over his lost son, I got over it. That, and everyone else is so mopey and depressing that it's refreshing to have someone else in the movie who likes to blow crap up. And he does it with two pistols. Sort of like in the Mummy, only with no mummy. Rating: 2
• And last, but not least...Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Oh, the agony! Jekyll is suitably uptight. Hyde is...Hyde is...a freaky-looking gorilla. Visually, he looks like the character from the comics. But he moves with a weird, muppet-like quality. Somebody made a mistake somewhere in the visual effects department. You get the impression Hyde has no feeling in his arms. Indeed, his hands don't even seem capable of doing much. The transformation is also cheesy (flash transformations went out with the wolfman in the 1950s). Everything about Hyde is cheesy. Despite the fact he's one of the most interesting characters in the comic, here Hyde just sucks. And oh yeah, Jekyll has to drink a potion to cause the transformation (unlike the comics). Rating: 1
  

For fans of the comics, I'm happy to say the plot from the first series is reasonably intact. Indeed, the whole idea of the turn of the century bringing on terrible new technology is nothing new. It's been done before in movies like Sleepy Hollow. What is neat is the juxtaposition of these characters with change -- it's almost like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny getting together to lament the changes in the holidays.

Even better, the movie has the strength of its convictions. Some characters die -- and they SHOULD die. Yay!

The plot even makes more sense. The unique nature of the anti-heroes is what the plot is really about. So the plot of the story is not as much of a coincidence as it may first seem.

That said, there's so many inconsistencies that the movie threatens to unravel itself. How can the massive Nautilus sail through the canals of Venice? Did Nemo actually invent a launchable missile? As my wife pointed out -- why does Hyde always appear with his clothing torn when Jekyll intentionally swallows a potion to cause the transformation? How about taking your shirt off, doctor -- not to mention the pants. OOOOCH! If Dorian Gray dies upon seeing his painting (not true, by the way, it was destruction of the painting), then why was it HANGING OVER THE STAIRWAY, CLEARLY VISIBLE TO ANYONE ENTERING HIS HOME?

If you haven't read any of the books that detail these characters, LXG will either horrify you with the liberties it takes or amuse you with its daring. If you've read the comics, you'll be put off by some changes and delighted by others. If you haven't read either, this movie isn't going to make a whole lot of sense.

My wife though this movie was utter crap. I liked it. But I wanted to like it so much more.