Although Frank Miller was also involved in the film adaptations of “300” and “Sin City,” “The Spirit,” which marks Mr. Miller’s first solo effort as a director is not well served by his clumsiness as a cinematic storyteller.

The film is based on one of the lesser-known comic-book heroes of the 1940s, created by Will Eisner. "The Spirit" ran in the Sunday sections of newspapers through 1952, and it's revered (for good reason) by comic book fans to this day.

In the back story laboriously laid out in the movie, Officer Denny Colt (Gabriel Macht) is killed in action, and then injected by his future enemy the Octopus (Samuel L. Jackson) with an experimental serum that renders him resistant to death. Donning the slightest of masks, Denny goes about Central City as the Spirit, fighting evil.

The Spirit is haunted by the specter of Death - and what a lovely specter she is as evoked by Jaime King’s Lorelei. The Spirit also is filled with regret and longing for his lost childhood love Sand Saref (Eva Mendes) - and sepia-tinted flashbacks show how Sand was more enamored of a life with diamonds than with remaining poor with a poor soul.

Samuel L. Jackson doesn’t quite get the right measure of things while pplaying his character. Octopus likes to change outfits to annihilate and assassinate, depending on his mood. He’s assisted by the lovely Silken Floss (Scarlett Johansson) who matches Octopus outfit for outfit.

Even though Miller certainly has a strong visual sense due to his being a comic book artist, thus knowing how to compose beautifully within the frame, his experience regarding his working with his actors lacks. Unfortunately it was not very clear for them what exactly they were playing and the actual evolution of their character. Apart from it all, the most surprising thing is the fact that even visually, the movie suffers. Aside from a few stylish computer-generated chase scenes, Miller has chosen to film the movie in a muddy palette between color and black and white, with the pleasures of neither.

Gabriel Macht ("A Love Song for Bobby Long," "The Good Shepherd") plays the Spirit, reciting his lines in a Jack Webb monotone that ought to suit the style of the enterprise but just comes off as lifeless. We cannot go along with his throughout the whole story. Moreover, for someone who supposedly inspires insatiable lust in the world's most beautiful women, Macht is awfully pallid.

As a screenwriter, Miller assumes that the audience won't be able to pick up on the story without being told what's going on, repeatedly. Much of the movie is devoted to scenes of the Spirit parceling out his history to a stray cat, which looks as if it's more in the mood for a fish tail. The film is somewhat disappointing, as one can feel and understand what Miller’s intention was, and the contrast between what he had in his mind and what he succeeded in fulfilling.