Daredevil (Film)

***Daredevil*** is a 2003 American superhero film written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson. Based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, the film stars Ben Affleck as Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer who fights for justice in the courtroom and out of the courtroom as the masked vigilante Daredevil. Jennifer Garner plays his love interest Elektra Natchios; Colin Farrell plays the merciless assassin Bullseye; David Keith plays Jack "The Devil" Murdock, a washed up fighter who is Matt's father; and Michael Clarke Duncan plays Wilson Fisk, also known as the crime lord Kingpin.

The film began development in 1997 at 20th Century Fox and Columbia Pictures, before New Regency acquired the rights in 2000. Johnson shot the film primarily in Downtown Los Angeles despite the Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan setting of the film and comics. Rhythm and Hues Studios were hired to handle the film's CGI.Graeme Revell composed the *Daredevil* score which was released on CD in March 2003, whereas the various artists soundtrack album, *Daredevil: The Album*, was released in February.

Reviews of the film were mixed, praising the performances of Affleck, Garner, Farrell, and Duncan, but criticizing the unoriginality and lack of character development. The film was still a profitable theatrical run and became February's second biggest release: it was successful enough for a spin-off film, *Elektra*, which was released in 2005. In 2004, an R-rated director's cut of *Daredevil* was released, reincorporating approximately 30 minutes of the film, including an entire sub-plot involving a character played by Coolio. The director's cut was intended as an improvement over the theatrical version.

## Plot

Matt Murdock is a blind lawyer in New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, where he runs a firm with best friend Franklin "Foggy" Nelson. As a child, Matt was blinded by a toxic waste spill while walking home from school after discovering that his father, former boxer Jack "The Devil" Murdock, had become an enforcer for a local mobster. The accident enhanced Matt's other senses and gave him sonar to "see" via sonic vibrations. Matt trained himself in martial arts. Blaming himself for Matt's disability, Jack stopped being an enforcer, returned to boxing, and was killed after refusing to turn in a fixed fight for the mobster who had employed him earlier. After his Fathers death, Young Matthew promised to stop all crime that controlled Hell's Kitchen, New York as the vigilante crime-fighter "Daredevil".

In the present day, Matt meets Elektra Natchios, daughter of Nikolas Natchios, a businessman who has dealings with Wilson Fisk, a rich executive who is also the criminal leader known as the Kingpin. When Nikolas tries to bail on his dealings with Fisk, the mobster hires the Irish hitman Bullseye, who has preternatural aim, to kill him. Matt tries to stop Bullseye, but Bullseye ultimately succeeds in killing Nikolas and framing Matt in the process. Elektra vows to exact revenge, while reporter Ben Urich discovers his secret identity. Believing Matt to have done good things for Hell's Kitchen, Urich tells Matt that Bullseye is going after Elektra next.

Matt tracks Bullseye, but is attacked by Elektra, who plans to use her own extensive training in martial arts to avenge her father's death. After wounding him, she removes his mask, and discovers Matt's secret identity and innocence. Forced to fight Bullseye alone, Elektra is overpowered and killed by the hitman. A wounded Matt makes his way to a church, where he is looked after by his confidante, Father Everett, who knows his secret identity. After recovering slightly, Matt fights Bullseye, who had followed him to the church. Bullseye discovers that loud noise is Matt's weakness and prepares to kill him with a spiked piece of wood after incapacitating him. Matt blocks the attack and hears an FBI sniper stationed on the neighboring building preparing to fire. As the bullet is fired, Matt moves out of the bullet's path and pulls Bullseye's hands into it. When Bullseye pleads for mercy, Matt throws him from the church's top floor. Bullseye lands on the hood of Urich's car, wounded but alive.

Upon discovering Fisk is the Kingpin and Bullseye's employer, Matt makes his way to Fisk's office. Fisk proves to be a surprisingly powerful combatant due to his size and brute strength, overwhelming Matt for most of the fight. Lying on the floor, Matt questions Fisk as to why he killed the people Murdock loved, including Jack Murdock years before; Fisk replies it was just business. Angered, Matt regains his strength and breaks Fisk's legs, but refrains from killing him, instead allowing him to be arrested by the police, who have discovered his criminal connections. Before being taken away, Fisk — who had also discovered Matt's secret identity after overpowering him — swears revenge on Matt, who points out that Fisk cannot reveal Matt's secret identity because he will be humiliated by being beaten by a blind man.

Having gained closure over his father's murder, Matt returns to his day-to-day routine, though brokenhearted over the loss of Elektra. He learns she might still be alive after he goes to the rooftop where they had their first kiss and finds a necklace like the one her mother gave her, except with a Braille inscription. Matt meets Urich one last time, in which Urich assures him he will not publish his article about Matt's true identity.

In a mid-credits scene, Bullseye, having been moved to a prison hospital and severely bandaged after his confrontation with Matt, is shown to still have his perfect aim after he impales a fly with a syringe needle.

## Cast

* Ben Affleck as Matt Murdock / Daredevil: An attorney-at-law with a disability who was blinded as a youth in an accident with bio-waste that drastically heightened his remaining senses and gave him a "sonar-sense", which allowed him to perceive his surroundings, and makes a silent promise with his father to "stick up for the long shots". His father is killed not long after and at that moment, he vows to seek justice. At night, he becomes a devil-modeled vigilante who takes justice into his hands. Affleck was cast in October 2001. Vin Diesel was considered to portray Daredevil before him, but he opted to take a role in another film.[1] In a February 2011 interview, Guy Pearce said that he was offered the role but turned it down, stating that "comic-strip stuff isn’t really my cup of tea, really."[2] Matt Damon also revealed that he was offered the role. He claimed that he and Ben "loved that comic book but I just didn't quite believe in the script or the director at the time."[3] Colin Farrellwas also considered until Affleck signed.[4] As a fan, Affleck made sure he had read every single issue of *Daredevil*, commenting that it was about taking what he knew as a fan and faithfully getting it on the screen. Joe Quesada considered it "serendipity in action" that Affleck is the lead role, as when he and Kevin Smith did the *Guardian Devil* series, they had modeled it on Affleck.[5] Affleck said Daredevil was his favorite comic book as a kid,[6] and explained why he took the role by saying "Everybody has that one thing from childhood that they remember and that sticks with them. This story was that for me."[7] Additionally, he said, "I didn't want someone else to do it, because I was afraid that they would go out and do it different from the comic and screw it up."[8]
	+ Scott Terra as Young Matt Murdock: As a youth, he has trouble with local bullies and a close bond with his father. This changes in different ways after the accident. Terra was officially announced as a part of the cast in March 2002.[9]
* Jennifer Garner as Elektra Natchios: Daughter of billionaire Nikolas Natchios and the love interest of Matt Murdock. At a very young age, she witnessed the murder of her mother, and since then her father has had her become highly trained inmartial arts. For the role of Elektra, many actresses were looked into with considerations including Penélope Cruz, Salma Hayek, Natalie Portman, Lucy Liu, Jessica Alba, and Katie Holmes.[10] A short-list was eventually made, giving the choices of Jennifer Garner, Jolene Blalock, Mía Maestro and Rhona Mitra,[11] with Garner finally becoming the actress to land the role.[10] Garner said of the character, "I think she's strong and cool and beautiful and smart. She'd be a good role model."[12] Garner noted the costume would be different, as Elektra in comics often wears red satin but in the film wears black leather. Garner explained, "[T]he red would never have worked for hiding a harness, and I know this sounds ridiculous, but you have to protect your skin a little bit. They throw me around so much on the rooftop [that] I got cut through the leather, so imagine if I hadn't had anything."[8]
* Colin Farrell as Lester Poindexter / Bullseye: An assassin with perfect accuracy and deep-rooted pride of it who is hired by Kingpin to kill Nikolas and Elektra Natchios, but when Daredevil gets involved and causes him to miss his target, he makes it his own personal vendetta to take Daredevil down. Farrell was attached to the role in December 2001.[4] Mark Steven Johnson credits Joe Quesada with talking him out of using the traditional Bullseye costume for the film,[5] and Farrell was encouraged to keep his Irish accent as this version of Bullseye is from Ireland.[8] Farrell had to read Frank Miller's *Daredevil*comics to understand Bullseye "because the expression on the character's faces in the comic books, and just the way they move sometimes, and the exaggerations of the character I'm playing […] he's so over-the-top that you do draw from that. But it's not exactly a character you can do method acting for... you know, running around New York killing people with paper clips."[13]
* Michael Clarke Duncan as WIlson Fisk, a.k.a. the Kingpin: By appearance, he is an overweight corporate head that takes the name Wilson Fisk, but in fact he is the sole person running organized crime, under the moniker of Kingpin. Kingpin is the murderer of Matt's father, and the man responsible for the hiring of Bullseye, with intention of having the Natchios family murdered. Michael Clarke Duncan signed on for the role in January 2002, though he had been attached far earlier.[14]When Duncan was cast, he weighed 290 pounds. He was asked to gain 40 pounds for the role in order to fit the physique of Kingpin. In order to do this, he would lift weights for 30 minutes a day, and power-lifted with one or two reps a day, as well as eating whatever he wanted. Despite this, Duncan's biggest concern was that he is black, while Kingpin has always been portrayed as white. Also, Duncan provided the voice for Kingpin in *Spider-Man: The New Animated Series*.[15] He spoke on the fan's loyalty to the source material by saying "they watch movies to say, 'Hey, that's not like the comic book.' But I want them to get past that and just see the movie for what it is and see me for what I am—an actor."[8]
* Jon Favreau as Franklin "Foggy" Nelson: Matt Murdock's legal partner and best friend, he is also used as a form of comic relief. Favreau joined the cast in February 2002.[16] Favreau would later go on to direct the Marvel-produced *Iron Man* and its sequel, *Iron Man 2* while also appearing as Happy Hogan.
* Joe Pantoliano as Ben Urich: An investigative journalist whose articles notably relate to Daredevil, and the Kingpin. During the film, he goes on to uncover a lot of information about the two. Pantoliano was cast in March 2002.[17]
* David Keith as Jack Murdock: Father of Matt Murdock and a boxer, he is murdered by the Kingpin when he does not take a fall for a fight. Keith was officially announced as a part of the cast in March 2002.[9]
* Leland Orser as Wesley Owen Welch: The number two of Wilson Fisk, but he does not like to be involved in the activities of the Kingpin. Orser previously co-starred with Jon Favreau in 1998 in *Very Bad Things*.
* Lennie Loftin as Detective Nick Manolis: A NYPD cop who considers Daredevil an urban legend.
* Erick Avari as Nikolas Natchios: The father of Elektra, who is murdered by Bullseye on behalf of the Kingpin.
* Ellen Pompeo as Karen Page: The secretary at Matt Murdock and Franklin Nelson's law firm.
* Derrick O'Connor as Father Everett: A priest of Matt Murdock's local church, where he sometimes goes to find solace.

Stan Lee, Frank Miller, and Kevin Smith, each notable for their work on the *Daredevil* comics, also have cameo roles throughout the film.[8] The director's cut version also features Jude Ciccolella and Coolio in a sub-plot removed from the theatrical version. Tanoai Reed appears uncredited as a thug in Josie's Bar.