Closing out the Summer.

Good morning Consumers. This is Please Consume, the movie newsletter that knows that ohana does indeed mean family.

Blade(1998)

There are many films we just didn’t have the time to discuss this week like Can’t Hardly Wait, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (previously covered), and Buffalo 66 which we will most likely never cover (because life's too short to go too in-depth on Vincent Gallo)

So to close out this week we are covering the quintessential 90s action movie. Let’s talk about the daywalker himself… BLADE!

Superhero Casting

To discuss the Blade franchise is actually impossible to do without talking about Wesley Snipes. Snipes is a one of a kind talent with a very specific tone that he brings to every project.

He’s an A-List star who made his fair share of B-Grade products, always bringing pathos to everything he does and elevating the material. When you look into his eyes you see the confidence of a man who fully believes in this project and so you’re willing to go on this ride with him. And Blade is no exception.

The character of Blade is ridiculous and the world he lives in is ridiculous. But Snipes is so committed to the badassery (a generally lazy term that feels apt here) and his impossibly gravely voice is a perfect blend of goofiness and dedication, much like the Blade comics themselves.

Snipes loves playing Blade, arguably too much. He fought for the role when Kevin Feige announced the MCU was doing Blade. He also went method on Blade: Trinity.

Actor Patton Oswalt tells incredible stories of his experience working on the third film in the Blade trilogy, namely that Snipes would only communicate with his director through post-it notes that he would SIGN AS BLADE!

If that’s not commitment I don’t know what is.

Blade Walked So the Matrix Could Run

At times it’s odd to watch this film because much of the effects we see here are done and praised in the Wachowski’s Matrix just a year later: black leather, thumpin techno, and slo mo gunshots.

Honestly it feels like a hokier version of what’s to come. If The Matrix is the height of what people considered cool at the time, then Blade is that guy's older brother who moved away and hasn’t made anything of himself but you know has it in him.

Blade has tons of potential, and sometimes it realizes that potential, but it really just works as a companion piece to that first Matrix; stepping stone into the future rather than the feet themselves.

Today’s Scene

Today’s clip is equal parts gnarly and a great representation of what I’m talking about. It’s badass but corny as hell, it’s such a great concept but feels dated, it feels like a precursor to The Matrix but is missing the magic that made that film move at such a clip.

All that to say, it’s about as impressive of an opening as movie openings get.