A Dame to Kill For is misanthropic, ugly, dark and gritty. These are things expected when going in. That's the style of this film, and it's what almost all of the creative energy is poured into. The writing is uneven, the characters are weak, and there isn't a lot of substance to behold. However, I'd be lying if I didn't say I enjoyed watching it.
This film is an anthology of three stories, each driven by a different character, though all three having connections to each other. The first story involves Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) beating Senator Roark (Powers Boothe) in a poker game, and facing the consequences. The second has Dwight (Josh Brolin) encountering Ava (Eva Green), a woman he had previously been in a relationship of some sort with. But not all is as it seems with her. The final story is Nancy (Jessica Alba) attempting to take revenge on Roark for murdering her lover.
As said, A Dame to Kill For is ugly. It has ugly views of just about everything. This is part of the style. Almost every character is sinful in some way (the title IS Sin City, after all), though Frank Miller won't let you know that. The writing attempts to give the characters emotion, and while this does establish their motivations more strongly, the protagonists aren't very compelling in and of themselves, only being interesting through sheer force of charisma. In addition, the protagonists are too often given a heart of gold, with their sinfulness taken for granted more than anything. As a result, the style is partially diluted.
The visual style is very striking, boasting a black and white style that attempts to mimic Frank Miller's usage of negative space in his Sin City graphic novels. It's a unique, dark palette that allows the franchise to stand out, and it's a major identifier for this film. There are splashes of colour about, though they generally don't seem to indicate much. In addition, some of the most visually striking scenes bear a resemblance to a metaphor, but don't appear to indicate much. It's a textbook example of style over substance. Meanwhile, action scenes are filled with very nice visual flourishes. Occasionally it's difficult to understand what's going on, but when everything's coherent it's very entertaining.
While the film boasts dialogue, another peculiar element of its style is graphic novel-style monologues that narrate what's going on. These, in typical noir fashion, describe the scene with choice descriptive words, and occasionally allow for a glance into the characters' minds. However, the descriptions are often pretentious, attempting to invoke imagery that doesn't serve much purpose. In addition, the gritty style of the film feels far from fresh at this point, as the first Sin City has been iconic for almost a decade now and the pulp noirs that preceded it have been long immortalized in film history. In addition, the dialogue itself succumbs at times to cliches. The quality of the writing tends to vary wildly over the course of a monologue or conversation, going from densely atmospheric to repetitive, cliched, or pretentious. Writer Frank Miller has notoriously passed his prime, and while this is nowhere near as awful as his more infamous works, the writing is the film's biggest flaw.
Each of the male actors speaks in some form of harsh growl, most likely a directorial decision rather than the fault of the actors. It's a bit irritating, sure, but the actors do what they can with it. The female characters have more variety in their performances, even if it just comes down to a choice of "sultry vixen" and "badass prostitute". Eva Green easily has the best performance, going through various different personas, perhaps slightly overacting, but in a way that just makes her more entertaining to watch.
However, in spite of everything, A Dame to Kill For remains charismatic. Some may describe it as "badass", and that is no misnomer. The action is entertaining, filled with violence, stylized blood, and impressive choreography. The visuals are still striking, and the dark, misanthropic style is intriguing. Co-directors Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller certainly keep a good pace going for the majority of the film, with only occasional hiccups, most notably at the beginning of the final story. Meanwhile, while the lead characters are ultimately forgettable, most of their time on screen is entertaining, as they manage to command attention from the audience.
Ultimately, it comes down to a film that will blend into the season of summer movies. That said, it is entertaining enough, and boasts enough stylized violence, charismatic performances, and compelling scenes that it's entertaining enough. All that said, however, it's a film that's dreadfully short on substance, and that really prevents it from being a top contender in the crowded field of summer blockbusters.
6/10
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