Trailer
Plot summary
Denny Colt, once an ambitious young cop in Central City, is killed in the line of duty and comes back as the Spirit, a masked figure who works with the police from the shadows. Dr. Ellen Dolan, a surgeon, and her father, Commissioner Eustace Dolan, are close to him. The Octopus, who kills anyone unlucky enough to see his face, hunts the Blood of Heracles, the key to the immortality he wants, and plans to bring the city down. Sand Saref, the Spirit's childhood sweetheart, now a jewel thief, is after the same prize, with her husband Mahmoud at her side. Silken Floss is the Octopus's accomplice.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Spirit (2008)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Samuel L. Jackson, Frank Miller and the costume designer developed elaborate costumes for the Octopus to wear, different for each of his scenes, including a samurai robe with a wig, a full Nazi Schutzstaffel uniform, and a blaxploitation-pimp outfit of karakul hat and fur-lined coat.
- In the 1970s, director William Friedkin obtained the film rights to The Spirit and asked Will Eisner to write a script; Eisner declined and recommended Harlan Ellison, who wrote a two-hour live-action script for him. Friedkin and Ellison then had an unrelated argument and the project was abandoned.
- Producer Michael Uslan approached Frank Miller about adapting The Spirit at Will Eisner's memorial service in New York City. Miller doubted his skill and hesitated, but embraced the film as his first solo project as writer-director.
- Christina Aguilera sings a cover of "Falling in Love Again" in the closing credits of The Spirit; the song dates to 1930, was popularized by Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel, and had been covered by Billie Holiday, Doris Day and Sammy Davis Jr.
- The film's eerie, wordless soprano for Lorelei, the Angel of Death played by Jaime King, was performed by composer David Newman's 19-year-old daughter, a vocal major at the University of Southern California.
