When we think of “comic book movies”, we typically think of big colorful PG-13 adaptations of DC and Marvel Comics superheroes. Of course, the world of comic book movie adaptations is infinitely more complex than that. Comics can inhabit any genre and exist far beyond just those two American companies. Thus, comic book movies also entail Road to Perdition, Oldboy, Monkeybone, 300, and so many others. You can find anything on a comic book rack at your local comics shop, creating endless versatility for film adaptations.
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In October 2020, an especially sublime example of this phenomenon dropped into theaters. It’s not a title that caught on like wildfire during its release, since Disney/20th Century Studios dropped it when a COVID-19 vaccine was still months away and moviegoers were staying away from theaters in droves. However, The Empty Man still stands as one of the decade’s best comic book movies, not to mention an exciting demonstration of how varied this cinematic space can be.
What Is The Empty Man About?
Based on the Cullen Book comic series of the same name, and published by Boom! Comics, writer/director David Prior’s The Empty Man was put into motion by 20th Century Fox back in the early weeks of 2016, nearly two years before Disney would first announce its intent to purchase this film studio. The Empty Man reflected Fox’s desire to carve out more space in the world of comic book movies; thus, the studio was eagerly adapting various Boom! Comics properties, including The Empty Man. What the studio got, though, was far from an easy crowdpleaser, one that never could’ve been the next Deadpool, even if COVID-19 hadn’t disrupted its release.
This 137-minute odyssey sees former cop James Lasombra (James Badge Dale) investigating a missing girl, but stumbling onto more malicious, dangerous forces along the way. Turns out there’s some supernatural happenings with the case that involves a cult and a figure known as The Empty Man. The power of the latter figure is established in a lengthy prologue, immediately establishing David Prior’s unique creative sensibilities. This 1995-set sequence follows four mountain climbers on a routine adventure that eventually involves one member of the group stumbling on and succumbing to the power of The Empty Man.
This whole prologue doesn’t directly involve any of the principal Empty Man characters, yet it goes on for 20+ minutes in its screentime. It’s like a standalone campfire story establishing the bleak tone of the ensuing movie. The fact that the whole saga ends with possessed climber Paul delivering what amounts to a dark punchline just makes this unusual way of kicking off a modern horror film all the more fascinating. It’s an appropriately audacious kick-off for a feature that refuses to play things cozily.
The Fascinatingly Grim Tone of The Empty Man
Late 2010s horror began getting the genre back into the good graces of the public (after the 2000s and early 2010s saw scary films attracting a more limited audience) through embracing more concrete, upbeat endings. While 2012’s The Devil Inside concluded mid-scene by advertising a website to viewers, outstanding late 2010s productions like The Babadook and Get Out offered firm, satisfying resolutions to their respective stories. Those Conjuring movies, meanwhile, consistently showed that Ed and Lorraine Warren could handle any supernatural threat terrorizing normal people.
The Empty Man is an interesting contrast to this phenomenon. From its prologue on, Prior imbues the proceedings with an unshakeable sense of woe. Lasombra’s pursuit of the truth is framed as an inherently doomed, tragic enterprise, not something that will offer tidy character growth. This is a bleak world devoid of self-referential quips. Instead, Prior’s writing and directing focus on the grim things human beings are capable of when tremendous power is at stake. Who will we sell out or compromise to obtain a higher place in the world’s hierarchical structure? It isn’t just a supernatural Empty Man audiences need to fear.
Striking visuals and a dedication to unfurling such an oppressively downbeat tone for 137 minutes make The Empty Man an especially fascinating exercise in miserable horror. It’s also genuinely scary, particularly with the realistically unhinged behavior of the various cultists Lasombra encounters in his hunt for the truth. Plus, Prior even throws in a brief supporting turn from the always welcome Stephen Root. Though far from a standard manifestation of “a comic book movie,” that’s precisely the kind of subversiveness making The Empty Man such an artistic accomplishment.
The Empty Man is now streaming on Hulu.
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