The Shadow (1994) Retrospective / Review 

Get The Shadow on Blu-ray here goo.gl/F1TGRf

This movie is extremely underrated. Plus, the f***ing music... it is, even amongst Goldsmith´s outstanding number of great scores, a masterpiece, and still gives me goosebumps everytime i hear it. So epic. Who´s Hans Zimmer?! Jerry is the man.

Imagine a team up movie of The Rocketeer, The Shadow and The Phantom. I think that would've been a great serial as a team up movie.

I'm a sucker for 40's-set pulp movies.

I've loved "The Shadow", ever since seeing it in theaters at age 14. Its a little hokey in certain parts, but that's the intent due to the style.

Maybe there's an alternative universe out there when back in '89, Alec Baldwin played Bruce Wayne/Batman & Tim Curry played the Joker.

It's strange how when Alec Baldwin is wearing The Shadow prosthetics he looks identical to his brother William Baldwin.

The Shadow NOSE!

The shadow and the rocketeer have the best 1930s 1940s production design. Both movies make me want to live in their worlds.

I'd love for The Shadow to make a resurgence. Of course it would have be well-timed and skillful, but I refuse to believe this is impossible.

I saw this in the theatre waaaay back in 94, and I still love it! The look, sets, costumes, props and actors did an excellent retro superhero film, too bad it never found an audience. Looking back, it has aged beautifully, it, and The Rocketeer, are great throw backs to Sunday Matinee fare, great teview!

Another underrated masterpiece from the 90's. I loved this film back in the 90's, I adore it now. Unique story line! They don't make deep superhero movies like this anymore. Amazing soundtrack and the score too. Taylor Dayne recorded an fantastic song.

John lone and Tim curry are what stayed me all these years. Theres something about the way John lone speaks. "Put the gun to your temple." Here and in that ninja movie "the hunted" with Christopher Lambert.

I remember my first introduction to The Shadow was in the form of cassette tapes of the old Radio shows that I found in the gift shop of Crackle Barrel. I was 6 at the time and I was instantly hooked and then a few years later I discovered the movie and rented it on VHS from my local video store.

This is one of my favorite movies. I have watched it so much that i can quote the whole movie. It truly is one movie that deserves an update because the lore is interesting. Alex Bawldwin did such a great job. heck i think i will watch it again now. lol

Favorite dialogue exchange: "Am I in Hell?" "Not yet..."

"A-Bomb...hey, that's catchy." One of my all time favorite films, period. I own every radio show of The Shadow, and was wary of a film adaption, but man did this thing deliver. Baldwin was pitch prefect as Cranston/The Shadow (he is also a massive fan of the radio serials, and knew the characters well) and the direction, design, music...hell, even the costumes were all better than I could have hoped for as a life long Shadow fan...a nearly perfect adaption of the radio series, to learn that the screenwriter was also a fan doesn't surprise me (but it brought a smile to my face... The soundtrack, in particular, is outstanding, I listen to it while working (I draw comics for a living) all the time... Your comments regarding the two dimensional characters and the use of exposition are understandable, given that you knew nothing of the character prior to seeing the film, but in all honesty, this paid perfect homage to the classic radio dramas, which played out using these exact same elements in just the same way...your point is well taken, however, that those who did NOT know of the classic shows or the character would likely not receive these attributes favorably... I found it interesting that you felt the ending was rushed, I always thought it played out very well, and was tense and interesting...tho the inclusion of Khan using the mirrors in an attempt to show The Shadow his troubled past, in order to psych him out/confuse him would have been a welcome extension to that sequence. I watched this only a few years ago with my dad, who is also a huge fan of the radio shows (listened to them as a kid and read the pulp magazines) and although he doesn't usually care for Baldwin, he had to admit he was amazing and played the role to perfection Two big thumbs up from both father and son. GREAT review, I learned many new details about the production and how it made it to the big screen...well done, as always, Mr. Harper.

A retro pulp masterpiece! Love it the day I saw it in the theatres and just recently bought it on blu ray. A classic, indeed!

Great review. It's somewhat a shame, though I'm a huge Batman fan, that Bats gets all the credit when Shadow was the spiritual predecessor. This movie was decent, if not perfect but I do agree that the visuals and cityscape were probably the best parts - plus his outfit! You are also correct that The Rocketeer's heart element was its crown jewel; that movie's a whole ton of fun.

I grew up on this movie. I love it as a kid, and still love it now! Especially the score.

Batman Begins seems to have borrowed a lot

its funny that Alec Bladwin's make up work for when he's The Shadow looks slightly like his brother Billy lol

Another good one. 1994 was a great year for film.

John Lone is outstanding in Michael Ciminos Year of the dragon alongside Mickey Rourke. Year of the dragon is definitely worth checking out.

The Shadow in book form could not go invisible. In the radio form he was only invisible. In the film they mixed the two to suit the scene and give the character more depth to the story.

Pretty funny how multiple super villains are the last decendent of Gengis Khan who was famous for having 20,000 acknowleged children which in our world results in tens of millions of decendents.

One of the most underrated movies I've seen. Christian Bale take note as to how to do a sinister superhero voice. Good review although I prefer your original review of this film Oliver as it had the Taylor Dane song over the end of the review ending into the Jerry Goldsmith Shadow theme.

Jerry Goldsmith's music for this movie is god tier.

Fallout 4 has a fantastic reference to The Shadow in it

Great movie very underrated. I was in the test audience in Santa Ana. I still like this movie. When I saw the "test" movie, there was a lot of Danny Elfman Batman Score as a temp score. Very good movie.

rewatched it last night in anticipation for this retrospective. Forgot how much I enjoyed it

I'm so bummed that the U.S blu-ray collectors edition doesn't have behind the scenes featurettes and on-set interviews

The original Shadow retrospective you did was the video that introduced me to your channel, Oliver. I'm so damn glad it did! This is a favorite of mine. Essentially a great precursor to Batman Begins; similar plot outline of Nolan's film with an aesthetic more akin to Burton. Tim Curry is deliciously over the top!

Funny enough, after Orson Welles had finished Citizen Kane. He had wanted to film a Shadow adaptation. Showing that he indeed loved the character

I hope The Shadow gets a better movie. There's so much potential with the character. I mean, those .45s look so cool.

Can I just say that all your retrospectives reviews are top notch... Every time I watch one I always come away with an extra bit of knowledge about the respective production. Very enjoyable to watch, and always look forward to the next one. Def appreciate the effort you put into them... Keep them coming. 👍😄

Despite its poor box office performance, I agree that it really is a great movie. You also have to remember that 1994 was sort of the rise of the indie film-maker -- Tarantino was starting to hit his stride and inspire a few others. Superhero movies were in something of a lull at the time -- it was two years after Batman Returns, and studios were trying to get their hands on anything they thought was marketable, and at the same time throw anything at a wall to see what would stick. I appreciated Jerry Goldsmith's use of Tibetan-sounding instruments to emphasize Cranston's Eastern mysticism training as a component of The Shadow's power.

The way you organized that intro was genius and so well done. Great video and breakdown as well. Subscribed!

I remember watching this during school holidays in Australia of early 1995. Being only 10 years old at the time, this film blew my mind and to this day, I still very much enjoy The Shadow. I consider it a forgotten classic superhero story like the Phantom and Rocketeer. Great review like always.

You are the only one on RU-vid that did a proper review on this underrated movie. Thank you!

After Thought: You are right Oliver. Alec Baldwin would have been perfect for the role of Bruce Wayne.

The Shadow I would say its a pulp movie culture and I dressed up as him for Halloween 20 years ago.

Great video, loved it! The Shadow is one of my childhood all time favorites and always will be... I even love all its flaws, cheesiness and how clumsy Lamont sometimes is. The Shadow knows

I always loved that movie, and thought so many times to myself " Why they never cast Alec Baldwin as Bruce Wayne?" He would have been amazing...

I loved this movie! I saw it twice in the theater! I bought the soundtrack immediately as well as the lazer disc. I enjoyed this review especially the music review as I didn't realize that there was a special edition 2 CD version available. However in addressing the music I'm surprised that you didn't mention the classic club scene featuring that wonderful track Some Kind of Mystery. Great review nonetheless!

I own this movie on VHS and have always liked it. I used to hear about this character on TV when I lived in San Francisco in the 80's. Another great retrospective work from you.

This movie is one of our family favorites. We probably watched it 100 times - I'd hate to see the shape the tape is in. Great job on the retrospective!

Gotta say that I REALLY enjoy your review's! Extremely in depth and well put together! Bravo, Sir!

I love this movie! The production, the sets, the clothes, the music, and, even the occasional dialog highlight ( from Jonathan Winters or Tim Curry). Penelope Ann Miller is captivating! she was born to wear these clothes!

One of my favorite movies still. This inspired me to read countless books about ESP and trying to develop my abilities. 😂😂 You are right about this being for an older audience. But at the time, this movie was gem. It had an unbelievable amount of presence, and the story captivated me as a youngster.

Criminally underrated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Still my favourite super-hero movie; I thought the characterization was solid, the acting solid, and the clear film noir elements very well done. I don't really understand the lack of popularity that the film experienced; I watch new super-hero movies, and its mostly just CGI explosions... The Shadow felt like a 'proper' film, with comic/pulp elements. The Shadow felt like a 'real person', with flaws and strengths, which I think makes him a more interesting character than most superheros - he's not just 'good' or 'evil', or trying too hard to be a 'badass' (like the recent Batman films). The film deserves a much better rep than it had.

This movie was pure Pulp Goodness 😮 with some psychological twists

I remember really enjoying your first review but this redux is excellent! Fantastic job!

One of my Top Ten Favorite films along with The Phantom (1996)

Loved your quick analysis of those three 90s pulp films. Spot on!

The music!

How can Shiwan Khan be Ghingis Khan's last descendant? Doesn't he have like 1 billion descendants?

love these retrospective you do--- I haven't seen this film since it first came out and thought little of it at the time, but, like many of your youtube homages, I now wish to revisit this film and see if maybe I missed out on it the first time! Well done, and keep up the good work. Always look forward to your next video.

I understood and loved this movie just fine as a young teen and apparently ''critics'' couldn't wrap their brains around it. One of my most favorite superhero movies of all time, yes I see it as a superhero movie.

This was a really good retrospective review. Great job sir!

I like Russell Mulcahy, despite not enjoining his movies terribly. He's one of those directors with a signature style that's hard to recognize/find elsewhere, and even if it's not very calculated or intended, I can appreciate it. I would love to hear your take on Tale of the Mummy. Another interesting entry by Mulcahy.

Another great retrospective. I'm really enjoying the longer videos.

I love serial/ period movies like this

I love your videos! they are so truthful and they are the best! thanks again for making great content!

‘ for memo ‘ always makes me chuckle…

I've been enjoying your videos. Great insights and very entertaining.

Ann Miller is an amazing actress. She should have had more roles.

Loved this film as kid.

I like the 'Muted Colour Palette' Idea. It would give any new film a huge visual boost...

Brilliant review. Love the detail. Always interesting.

an ideal format for this would be a premium streaming series, tell basically this same story over the course of 10-15 episodes where all the thin backstory and character development could be fleshed out, more action included, and a degree more worldbuilding. Amazon, HBOMax, or Paramount+ (who has or can get the rights?) - lets do this!

The pinball table was REALLY fun. It got me to see the movie, and I wasn't disappointed. The likeness between him and Batman stops as far as a nocturnal anti-hero, which is the alter ego of a rich man. Unlike Batman, who works alone, short of the likes of Robin, he has a network of agents, who are in good places for him to get information. Plus, he didn't rely on gadgets. He had guns!

I love this movie and great score.

Funny he mentions seeing Alec as playing Batman... when Batman's creation was plagiarism of The Shadow

Loved the pulp films of the 90s. Can't lie that I am highly into 1920s style ladies as well. Great stuff!

There's something kind of cool about a movie you saw one time decades ago. Major flashbacks for sure.

Oliver H. Once again, many thanks for a job well done. The Shadow is definitely one of my favorite movies. I saw the movie at the cinema. Your review of the film is as always super entertainment and information rich.

I remember really liking the effects when it came out.

saw it on VHS, one of my favorites to this day!!!

One of the best chilhood memories. I even had a Shadow costume as a kid, with hat, mask, cape, two kid-piston guns 😀👍

This is such a good movie. Too bad that it doesn't get more love.

John Lone was the lead in Madame Butterfly in 1993 opposite Jeremy Irons. And also played the villain in the 1995 Martial Arts / suspense film The Hunted with Christopher Lambert.

Also, Original Sin is a badass song.

Excellent review, I've just rewatched this again for the first time in years and largely agree with what you've said, particularly that a younger audience will find it a bit dull but an older audience will really appreciate the storyline, dialogue and overall visuals more....that's certainly where I am, I like it more now than I did back then. As for the unreleased SNES game?.....it's good but as it only exists in prototype form, a fair bit of it is still unfinished despite all the levels and ending being in place.....the hit detection on a lot of the enemies feels a bit off making it much more difficult than it would have been if officially released, and it's also a bit too long for what it is...a full playthrough can take up to 2 hours. But it does incorporate a lot of good ideas for the stages and bosses and the gunplay is an interesting element.

Really good retrospective review Mister Harper! I was fortunate enough to see this picture when it came out in the theaters in summer of '94 and I have never forgotten it. It made me a Shadow fan for life, if not necessarily a Hollywood movie fan for life. There were many factors working against its box office success, as your review eloquently detailed, but as a critic myself I think that a lot of what went wrong had to do with the lack of attention to detailed scenes that Mulcahy put into his direction. For example, I haven't read any other critics who have mentioned the mistakes in perspective throughout the film; i.e., the scene in which the Mongol warrior is trailing Lamont through the shadowy streets of Chinatown. I have heard other critics say attack the film because they say that The Shadow "can't turn invisible," but the movie doesn't show that he can. It's merely a mistake in the camera's perspective, which doesn't help a viewer figure out what is going on. As Lamont is ducking into the alleyway and the Mongol warrior can't see him, Lamont appears to turn invisible. But in the reality of the film he actually didn't--it was just the fact that the Mongol's weak mind couldn't spot him (even though he was looking right at him). Had Mulcahy given the proper camera perspective for this shot, it (and many other scenes) would not have appeared as silly as they do in the theatrical cut of the film. I also agree with you about the ending. The ending is a non-ending (very anti-climactic) in my opinion. The major problem with it is that the filmmakers did a very competent job of making Shiwan Khan look like a very threatening and serious villain, only to be undermined at the story's finish by the joking psychiatrist who makes Khan look like a kook in the psych ward. The threat that was so prominent at the film's beginning winds up feeling very silly and not all that worrisome by the end, as the dedicated and psychotic Khan was easily defeated by Lamont's sense of humor and (apparently) weaker mind! I can see why audiences didn't buy it. (But I saw it when I was nine years old, so my soft spot for the film is pretty soft indeed.) Anyway, though, the film is a visual marvel and it should be a keepsake for this reason alone. I'm still jealous of Baldwin's suits in this movie. I love this nostalgic style of dress going on here. And Penelope Ann Miller is gorgeous in this, I had an instant crush on her after seeing the film. It's a classy picture in so many ways, despite all of the things that are working to undercut its success. Also, I must mention that I too found the Shout! Factory Blu-Ray release to be rather slapdash. Penelope's lipstick really stands out in a way that I don't think it should have, and the colors are a bit off in other places. The extra about the making of the film was the biggest let down. Talk about a film that needed an audio commentary track AND a deleted scenes selection, right?! Shout! Factory couldn't even include the original music video by Taylor, and I thought that the song was quite effective for a throwback film such as this one.

THIS WAS AMAZING!!!! I loved this movie when I finally seen it earlier this year. I almost want to pick up a copy after rewatching this retrospective...I might... lol

What a review, can't add nor say how great it is fully. My respects Mr. Oliver, as for the movie itself. I knew the character just in a similar manner as i did with Darkman. They're both great, Darkman's creation is quite funny on a ironic way. Considering Raimi directed the Spider-Man trilogy just a decade after Evil Dead and Darkman, (Which i like the latter more) but The Shadow sure spawned a whole lot more. Aside from the inherent legacy upon it's name, my direct relation with the character it's pretty straightforward after i figured from where in the world he came from. Played the prototype of the SNES game quite a lot of times, had a grand time with it. Went to comics, and started in a otherworldy way. The Shadow - Over Innsmouth oneshot. Loved it, specially the fourth wall-breaking cameo at the end. Then read a bit of Year One, and the regular series. Same opinion, and looking to have a hold on the full series. To finish off, this movie looks like a treat. After all, I'm a 15 year old that loves things like this. (And also both versions of The Blob, the original Tron and such) And i don't mind the "reverse batman in movies" problem, Cranston is a deep, and rich mind to explore after all. With that said, waiting to make a Shadow collection of my own sooner or later. Might add the movie soundtrack too, not too big on that stuff. But a try wouldn't kill me. Great video, review and commentary

They did a crossover comic series between The Shadow and Batman here recently, it was pretty good

I already grew up with the radio series it was based on (thank you, SiriusXM), and I ended up watching this movie when I found the dvd as an adult. It is different yet similar to the radio show. It is pretty underrated.

Loved this movie and this retrospective. I remembered reading an interview about the film that Ian Mckellen did. He said he regretted he never got to do any scenes with Alec Baldwin (yep they never had a scene together) but he enjoyed working with John Lone tremendously

Remember that when this movie came out, Batman was only a few years old! I loved The Shadow! It was different, gorgeous effects, beautiful music, and Alec Baldwin brought this character to life. Very underrated movie.

Loved this movie as a kid. Stylish and captivating. Still love it.

funny, i did see this in the theater - and was really looking forward to it! i thought it was so bad it was good. like you, i've come to appreciate the hard work that went into this movie over the years. it is a beautiful movie, and you've pointed out a ton of stuff i never knew or noticed

Alec would make a great Thomas Wayne

I wanted to see this in cinemas when it came out but I wasn't allowed by my parents, lol. I've tried to watch it a couple of times now that im older but I could never finish it for some reason. The way you edited the intro makes it look very intriguing, lol more than it actually is maybe. Great work. oh and i had a friend with that action figure of the Shadow, that thing was cool

I used to work at the ice rank in the city of Syracuse in upstate New York several years ago. Alec Baldwin's mom lives in Syracuse, and one year he and his daughter came to ice skate during the holidays. Me and a coworker, who was a bit of a joker, were just sitting alongside the ice rink that day. Alec's daughter must've slipped and fell, because a few moments later Alec skated up to us and asked if the rink had a first-aid kit or some band-aids. My friend enthusiastically said, "anything for the Shadow"! Alec just shook his head and skated away. Still makes me laugh to this day.

I watched this movie when I was a kid and I liked it very much. It has many interesting and philosophical dialogues. Some of those are very instructive and usefull for life, mainly this one: "The clouded mind sees nothing". A solid 10/10 for me.

Rocketeer - Shadow - Phantom : I want a team-up movie of these three. I am a fan of all three movies.

The epic handful shots of him as as the Shadow and Goldsmiths theme was worth it alone, beautiful film.