KICK-ASS

What does it take for someone to become a superhero? A righteous determination? A rigid code of conduct? Superpowers? What about a freshly pressed cape? Well, if none of these things apply, then maybe this film has a better answer for us? It was directed by Matthew Vaughn and stars Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. It was made in 2010, and lasts for 117-minutes.


Kick-Ass


THE STORY

Hapless teenager, David Lizewski (Aaron Johnson), has always wondered what it would be like to become a superhero. In fact, he is so curious about this, that he buys himself a costume, goes out to fight crime, and then gets himself stabbed and run over for his troubles.

Ooops!

However, when David tries to do this a second time – some months later, once he has recovered from all of his injuries – things turn out rather differently for him.

For a start, after David saves a man from being mugged on the street – he hits the media spotlight, and is christened with the name ‘Kick Ass’. Next, whilst attempting to help a friend of his, Katie Deauxma (Lyndsy Fonseca), with a spot of bother she is having with a man she once knew – he meets, and is aghast by, the deviant antics of the savage duo, Hit-Girl (Chloë Grace Moretz), and her father, Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage). Then, because of this chance encounter, David comes under the watchful eye of Crime Lord, Frank D'Amico (Mark Strong) – whom goes so far as to utilise his son’s eagerness to prove his own worth, Chris D'Amico (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), to set a trap for ‘Kick Ass’, guised as the wannabe hero, Red Mist. And finally, when this trap is eventually sprung, unfortunately, things don’t really go according to plan – all because of the brutal intervention of Big Daddy.

Though, it is at this juncture of David’s odyssey that he begins to have second thoughts about why he is doing all of this, especially when he unveils to Katie his true nature. Nevertheless, due to the eventful prodding by the Red Mist, he seems to be enveloped by a battle beyond his control once more.

You see, what next transpires all begins once he and Big Daddy are both captured by Frank D'Amico’s men. As girls crash – daddy’s burn – asses are kicked – and at the end of the day, revenge is dispensed in a not-so-orderly fashion.

Please note, this is not the end – but rather, it is the beginning of a new school term, CLASS DESMIST!

THE REVIEW:

Would it be too obvious if I said that this film, ‘Kick Ass’, really kicked ass? Yes – I think so too. Still, I've said it now. So, in some way, I have to avoid being so obvious with my review. But how can I do that? Maybe I can explain to you how I feel about this film through a song? Something like...

No! I don’t think that would work. So what about a touch of trivia instead: (1) This film was based on a comic book by the same name, which was owned by its creators, John Romita, Jr., and Mark Miller. (2) Both Mark and John worked for Marvel and DC Comics in the past, and have collaborated on such titles as ‘Wolverine’ and ‘Batman’. (3) John made a cameo appearance in this film, playing the Atomic Comics barista – and he also illustrated the artwork on show as well. (4) Nicholas Cage’s depiction of ‘Big Daddy’ was based on the sixties Adam West version of Batman. (5) In the comic books, ‘Big Daddy’ was not an ex-cop, but rather an accountant. (6) Kick-Ass's costume follows a similar design principle to that of another comic book character's attire – Gecko – in a series created by the creators of 'the Mask', John Arcudi and Doug Mahnke, named ‘Major Bummer’. This series was also about a hapless superhero. (7) All of the ‘heroes’ in this film, except for Kick-Ass, have different costumes from their comic book counterparts. And (8) Believe it or not, the comic book version is more cruder and more blatant than the film.

OK, so now I have all of that out of my system, what else can I do to make this review different? Mime? Scratch my nuts? Go on Facebook and then pretend to be an aardvark? No – none of these will work. However, what will, is if I just told you what I feel about this ‘Kick Ass’ movie.

For a start, let me just say that it's a good comic book movie adaptation with only a couple of alterations made to make it a cinematic experience, rather than a true comic book experience. It's a fairly faithful version, all in all, and it does share the same spirit as the comic. It also has that Mark Miller vibe, which just tantalises, perverts, and adheres to his satirical way of writing.

Admittedly, the sight of a little girl swearing and shooting a gangster in the head may not be everybody’s cup of tea. Nevertheless, I am sure that these same naysayers cannot protest how this same facet was expertly and beautifully executed in this film, so to speak. In addition to this, let’s not forget about the actors. Aaron, class – Cage, sublime – Christopher, surprisingly good – Mark, surprisingly menacing – Chloë, surprisingly adorable – and the rest, surprisingly nice, and did help ground this film, which it genuinely needed at times.

Now I would like to end this review by saying that this film was a good film. It was a good adaptation from its original comic book source. It was a good form of entertainment to watch for those with an alternative taste. And it was a good film with a good story and good actors.

In my opinion, this is one of the best comic book to movie adaptations since Sin City. It kicked ass.

THE RATING: A