I've never read any of the "Blade" comics, so I'm reviewing this film with absolutely nothing in print to compare it to. This is a solid action film that raises the bar for other comic hero movies. Snipes is superb as "Blade" and Dorff handles the role of "Deacon Frost" exceptionally well. It's a very dark film that has a continuous techno vibe to it. The fight scenes in this film are excellent and, much like "Mortal Kombat," driven by techno music. Unlike "Mortal Kombat," this movie isn't campy. The writers and director seem to have taken "Blade" and given him an honest, well-meaning portrayal. As stated before, I don't know how the comic is, but "Blade" seems to have been taken a lot more seriously than most superhero movies. It's much more serious than the first "Batman" movie and and ten times as sophisticated as the sequels.
As an action film, this movie more than suffices. If you enjoy the violent action of "Daredevil," you'll definitely like this film. It isn't as fun as "Spiderman," but that's because this character is more about business and doesn't have time to wisecrack like the Webslinger. "Blade" will hold it's own against any of the Marvel movie adaptations, but I'm afraid the character is sort of like "Daredevil" in that he isn't as well known as Spiderman or the Incredible Hulk and therefore suffers for this reason at the box office. Don't get me wrong, I know that "Blades I & II" did exceptionally well profit-wise, but the character will never garner profits such as "Spiderman" simply because he isn't as recognizable as the wall-crawler. As a matter of fact, there are probably more obscure X-men out there who are better known than "Blade."
In closing I can only say this: "Blade" is an excellent action flick that pleases the eye and ear. It's a dead(or undead, if you please) serious movie that moves at a quick pace and satifies not only comic and action fans, but vampire fans as well.
