So after many years of hearing how vastly superior the director's cut of Daredevil was to the theatrical release, I finally saw it for myself. My verdict is that it is better overall, but is still a flawed film, just for different reasons.
The most obvious improvement is the love story between Matt Murdock and Elektra. Instead of bulldozing the main plot like in the theatrical release, here it is treated as the sub plot it actually is. And the chemistry between Affleck and Garner is actually pretty good (not surprising, considering their marriage afterwards) and the story is treated more as two people who have a very strong connection but are just unable to consummate and are eventually torn apart. So really, just your standard Daredevil love story, without the sex.
Also an improvement, as is mentioned everywhere, is the restored subplot of Nelson and Murdock's defense of Coolio. One of the biggest problems of the original release was that the film forgot that Murdock was a lawyer. That an essential part of the main character was so carelessly disregarded is part of why that film has such the awful reputation that it does. So it was nice to see that side of Murdock restored, trying to find justice in the system instead of going outside of it.
All that being said, the film still has its problems. For one thing, the tone of the film is widely uneven. It seems as if the writer/director Mark Steven Johnson never quite grasped what Daredevil was all about. To me, he has been the closet Marvel equivalent of Batman; the main difference being Murdock tries to make the system work the way it should and instead uses Daredevil to clean up and fix problems the system can't for whatever reason. And Johnson either understands this dichotomy or if he does, how to effectively communicate it.
There is also the problem of how this film portrays Elektra. Like I said earlier, Garner has a rapport with Affleck and the attraction between the characters isn't an issue in either version. But what is an issue is that neither version ever shows Elektra fighting at the level she is capable of. This is really just bad writing and just adds on to the whole "not understanding the characters you're working with"; but even they had managed to do Elektra justice, there is a ruthlessness about her that Garner is just incapable of portraying.
Aside from that, the acting is on the whole pretty decent. Affleck does what he can given the script, Jon Favreau has Foggy Nelson gets an expanded role here and while he is supposed to be the comic relief his whole "bumbling everyman" routine is more the result of sub-par acting than any sense of comedic timing. Micheal Clarke Duncan does well as the Kingpin and Joe Pantoliano does a good job as a reporter who isn't really necessary to the movie.
I honestly think that this cut of the film has the reputation it does because of how botched the original cut was. And while this is an improvement and I wish was what made theaters the first time around, I wouldn't go so far to say this film is actually good. It fails more for being a movie that has ambition but isn't exactly sure how to realize it. In the end, I do think it's worth seeing for what could have been, but not really something worth keeping.
Grade: B-
The most obvious improvement is the love story between Matt Murdock and Elektra. Instead of bulldozing the main plot like in the theatrical release, here it is treated as the sub plot it actually is. And the chemistry between Affleck and Garner is actually pretty good (not surprising, considering their marriage afterwards) and the story is treated more as two people who have a very strong connection but are just unable to consummate and are eventually torn apart. So really, just your standard Daredevil love story, without the sex.
Also an improvement, as is mentioned everywhere, is the restored subplot of Nelson and Murdock's defense of Coolio. One of the biggest problems of the original release was that the film forgot that Murdock was a lawyer. That an essential part of the main character was so carelessly disregarded is part of why that film has such the awful reputation that it does. So it was nice to see that side of Murdock restored, trying to find justice in the system instead of going outside of it.
All that being said, the film still has its problems. For one thing, the tone of the film is widely uneven. It seems as if the writer/director Mark Steven Johnson never quite grasped what Daredevil was all about. To me, he has been the closet Marvel equivalent of Batman; the main difference being Murdock tries to make the system work the way it should and instead uses Daredevil to clean up and fix problems the system can't for whatever reason. And Johnson either understands this dichotomy or if he does, how to effectively communicate it.
There is also the problem of how this film portrays Elektra. Like I said earlier, Garner has a rapport with Affleck and the attraction between the characters isn't an issue in either version. But what is an issue is that neither version ever shows Elektra fighting at the level she is capable of. This is really just bad writing and just adds on to the whole "not understanding the characters you're working with"; but even they had managed to do Elektra justice, there is a ruthlessness about her that Garner is just incapable of portraying.
Aside from that, the acting is on the whole pretty decent. Affleck does what he can given the script, Jon Favreau has Foggy Nelson gets an expanded role here and while he is supposed to be the comic relief his whole "bumbling everyman" routine is more the result of sub-par acting than any sense of comedic timing. Micheal Clarke Duncan does well as the Kingpin and Joe Pantoliano does a good job as a reporter who isn't really necessary to the movie.
I honestly think that this cut of the film has the reputation it does because of how botched the original cut was. And while this is an improvement and I wish was what made theaters the first time around, I wouldn't go so far to say this film is actually good. It fails more for being a movie that has ambition but isn't exactly sure how to realize it. In the end, I do think it's worth seeing for what could have been, but not really something worth keeping.
Grade: B-