Monday 4 May 2015

Monster Mondays #1 - Wilson Fisk


Today I have decided to start a new tradition on my blog: Monster Mondays. Who doesn't love a good monster?
Monster Mondays posts may be fiction, film reviews, book reviews or me waxing lyrical about a particular monster. Monsters can be paranormal, sci-fi, fantasy or even simply human. So basically, anything monster goes. I also invite anyone who would like to, to join in with their own post. (See end for details).
Wilson Fisk

So today I have chosen a human monster as my subject of choice. Over the last week my husband and I have been ravenously devouring Marvel's new Daredevil series and it is utterly brilliant. I may have to rave about the whole thing in a separate post later on. Be warned, if you watch it, it is basically a 13hr movie split into parts - you will not want to stop.

One of the things that makes it so brilliant is the villain, Mr Wilson Fisk.
Wilson Fisk as portrayed by Vincent D'Onofrio
I only ever really remember Vincent D'Onofrio in Law and Order Criminal Intent even though he is a prolific and talented actor. So the two characters I associate him with now are on opposite sides of the law: Wilson Fisk, the villain, and Goren, police detective extraordinaire. What both characters have in common, however, is that D'Onofrio plays both as something a little left of normal. When he is on screen it is impossible to predict what these characters will do next. The look in their eyes says they see the world in a different way than you do.

Fisk is the bad guy who sees himself as the saviour. He loves New York city and, in his eyes, he's just trying to make it a place everyone can love and be safe when a masked nut in black shows up to put a spanner in the works. He orders death like it is nothing and claims it is a necessary evil he does not enjoy. He manipulates and plays with lives like he owns them. He knows he is not good, but he thinks what he is doing is right.

He is scarily calm and focused, on the face of it, unflappable, until that moment when he flips. Then he is violence personified, ready to kill with his own hands in the most brutal and horrific ways.

Fisk is a monster of contrasts and if you get in his way he will cut your down.

Yet, he is also a man of deep feeling. He has one friend, James Wesley, his right hand man and they have a deep connection. He loves completely; there is nothing he would not do for his mother or the woman he falls in love with. He also shows deference to those he respects, believing they deserve honour.

What I love about Marvel is so many of their villains have depth and Fisk has it in spades. At points during the series I hated him, at others I actually felt sorry for him. He is written well and Vincent D'Onofrio plays him with a skill rarely seen in TV villains. He is, undoubtedly a monster, but one with so many layers.

Have you seen Daredevil? Did you like it and Fisk? Who is your favourite villain with depths?


Monster Mondays #1 Links 

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16 comments:

  1. Now, that's a toughie, because there are so many great villains :). I always liked Jack Nicholson's Joker, but, although he was dramatic and memorable, I can't say he had great depth...so I'm going to pick Coriolanus, who played both hero and villain in his own story - a man whose convictions were too proud and snobbish for many, and who sealed his own demise when he betrayed his people.

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    1. Good choice, although I don't really think he's a villain per say, but I'll let you have it ;)

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    2. It depends who you talk to :)

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  2. I love Daredevil, we are now only a couple of episodes before the end, we took a break as we had guests this weekend!

    Love Wilson Fisk, great choice for your first Monster Monday post, he's utterly scary!

    Mars
    Curling Stones for Lego People

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    1. We were up to ep 10 last Thurs evening and we had to force ourselves to go to bed and wait to watch the last 3 eps the next evening :). It got kind of intense at the end there!

      The scene with the car and the Gideon Emery who I will always think of a Deucalion even though he's Anatoly in Daredevil :). That was just so violent and extreme.

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  3. I love Daredevil, we are now only a couple of episodes before the end, we took a break as we had guests this weekend!

    Love Wilson Fisk, great choice for your first Monster Monday post, he's utterly scary!

    Mars
    Curling Stones for Lego People

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  4. The Daredevil series is amazing. What I liked about Fisk is that aspect of him where he seems like a lost child. Such a difficult role to play, and he pulled it off so well!

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    1. He did indeed. And it helps that the rest of the cast is awesome too :)

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  5. I haven't watched Daredevil yet.... just started S.H.I.E.L.D. for the first time... and Marvel has surprised me with their budgets!! I've been hearing fantastic things about Daredevil so will obviously have to pick up that one, too.

    Alex Hurst, A Fantasy Author in Kyoto

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    1. I am so behind in SHIELD, I must catch up. I got behind after the s1 season break and have all the other eps queued up :). Daredevil is brilliant, well worth the time.

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  6. I love when villains have depth and aren't pure evil all the time. You aren't the only one raving about Daredevil! Will have to watch soon.

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    1. It is well worth watching :) I have seen that Tumblr is falling in love with the show, which is always a good sign for continuation and they've announce s2 :)

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  7. Oh, fun idea! I might hop in later on :) And yaaaay for Daredevil! I love that show, and I think the R rating did Marvel a WORLD of good. Also, Fisk pretty much carried the entire season from start to finish! So well played, and so well written. Gah, I could talk about it forever! And yet the net is strangely silent. I don't think the show has gotten the publicity it deserves. Is it Netflix?... Is it the rating? Is it the fact that Netflix is not freaking available outside the USA?... I wonder. :D

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary
    MopDog

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    1. Tumblr are starting to shout about it, so maybe it will spread. I think because it's Netflix fewer people have seen it straight off, but with s2 ordered I suspect the audience will increase. Hopefully it'll get to normal TV at some point too. I love Netflix for releasing all eps at the same time, but not that it's distribution is so limited.

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  8. Have not seen daredevil but saw him in full metal jacket and law and order. He's a really intense actor.

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    1. He's so engaging when he's on the screen. When he gets to play the odd characters he's brilliant.

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