The Shadow (1994)

In 1930s New York City, The Shadow (Alec Baldwin) battles his nemesis, Shiwan Khan (John Lone), who is building an atomic bomb.

Director:

Russell Mulcahy

Writers:

Walter B. Gibson (character The Shadow from stories), David Koepp

Stars:

Alec Baldwin, John Lone, Penelope Ann Miller

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alec Baldwin	...	Lamont Cranston / The Shadow
John Lone	...	Shiwan Khan
Penelope Ann Miller	...	Margo Lane
Peter Boyle	...	Moe Shrevnitz
Ian McKellen	...	Reinhardt Lane
Tim Curry	...	Farley Claymore
Jonathan Winters	...	Police Commissioner Wainwright Barth
Sab Shimono	...	Dr. Roy Tam
Andre Gregory	...	Burbank
Brady Tsurutani	...	Tulku
James Hong	...	Li Peng
Arsenio 'Sonny' Trinidad	...	Wu
Joseph Maher	...	Isaac Newboldt
John Kapelos	...	Duke Rollins
Max Wright	...	Berger

Storyline

Based on the 1930s pulp fiction and radio drama series, this movie pits the hero against his arch enemy, Shiwan Khan (John Lone), who plans to take over the world by holding a city ransom using an atomic bomb. Using his powers of invisibility and "The power to cloud men's minds", The Shadow (Alec Baldwin) comes blazing to the city's rescue with explosive results.

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Plot Keywords:

villain | tough guy | hero | good man | good woman | 

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Taglines:

Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Fantasy | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for fantasy action violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene in which The Shadow (Alec Baldwin) rescues Dr. Roy Tam (Sab Shimono) on the bridge is taken, though slightly altered, from the opening of "The Living Shadow", the first Shadow novel, in which The Shadow saves a man from suicide on the Brooklyn Bridge. This scene, in turn, resembles a scene from a Balzac novel with Balzac's rogue Vautrin.

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Goofs

The wire insulation on the bomb is modern day plastics not the correct cloth type for the day, and the nylon wire ties wouldn't be invented for another 30 years or so.

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Quotes

Lamont Cranston: Where are you taking me?
Tibetan Kidnapper: The Tulku wishes to see you at his temple.
Lamont Cranston: A holy man wants to see me?
[sees a small tent]
Lamont Cranston: You call that a temple?
Tibetan Kidnapper: No.
[points past tent]
Tibetan Kidnapper: There.
Lamont Cranston: [after seeing a huge temple appear from behind some clouds] Where did that come from?
Tibetan Kidnapper: The clouded mind sees nothing.

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Connections

Referenced in International Playboys' First Movie: Ghouls Gone Wild! (2004)

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Soundtracks

Remember
Written, Performed and Produced by Kenny G
Courtesy of Arista Records, Inc.

User Reviews

Pretty good and underrated

A short comment about this movie from a German point of view, which may make a difference when we're talking about radio plays/comics adapted to the silver screen:

"The Shadow" as a radio play is virtually unknown around here. (I used the opportunity to check out some old recordings on the web, and it's _awesome_ to listen to!) So, German audiences will just walk into the theatre without any proconceived ideas about how it should be, expecting just any other adventure movie.

As such, IMHO it stood up well. Baldwin is cool; of course his demi-dark side begs for a comparision to Batman, but I think Baldwin wins in terms of credibility and depth of character. The gimmicks and gadgets are neat, Tim Curry as the half-villain is entertaining to watch as always (though he overdoes it a bit at times), the script is well-paced, the action is staged superbly, the music is gripping.

But most of all: Kudos to the production design/special effects/makeup team! They did a superb job in transforming the Shadow's 'invisibility' (as well as his overall looks) from a radio idea to the screen. It was awesome to watch, and at the same time a bit chilling and frightening.

Drawback: Beside the intentional jokes ("I'm not interested in your balls..."), some takes just seemed to be unintentionally funny- perhaps they went a little too far in trying to create a gloomy atmosphere...

Along with _The Rocketeer_, this one's also one of the unfortunately widely underrated films. Certainly not a milestone in film history, but a good and entertaining flick to watch with a bag of popcorn and a girl to hold in your arms during the scary moments. But I'm pretty sure- The Shadow... knows!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 July 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Shadow

Filming Locations:

Pantages Theatre - 6233 Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,713,845, 4 July 1994

Gross USA:

$32,063,435

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$48,063,435

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Bregman/Baer Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min 93 min (edited)

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo DTS Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1