Super - Shut Up, Crime!

With a recent emergence of superhero movies aiming to be grittier and more realistic, Super is arguably the most accurate portrayal of what would happen if someone without powers or insane amounts of money decided to be a superhero. It would require a strict devotion to doing what YOU believe is right. There is, of course, almost always a level of ambiguity among superhero stories. Batman is considered by some to be a menace who if ever caught would most likely be charged with assault and breaking and entering, among other offenses. But he decides to be a vigilante because he sees injustice and wishes to fight it. He believes that what he is doing is right. Similarly, Rainn Wilson's character Frank becomes tired of standing idly by after his wife Sarah, portrayed by Liv Tyler is taken away by the slick and dangerous Jacques, played by Kevin Bacon. Frank intends to get his wife back and stop crime in his neighborhood. But as soon as Frank dons a costume and a monkey wrench as his weapon of choice, his mental well-being quickly comes into question. After all, what kind of person would strike someone in the head with a wrench, thus sending him to the ICU, for cutting in line at the movies? Is he psychotic? Is he deluded? Frank argues that it's actually everyone else who is deluded. What if we're the ones with a problem. After all, most of us witness the injustices and evils of this world and simply accept them as facts of life. We tell ourselves that nothing can be done about them and continue with our lives. Frank however knows what is right, even if that truth is only in his heart. The film earns it's R rating with massive amounts of graphic violence and a particularly strange sex scene. While Kick-Ass already tackled similar subject matter, Super takes a different approach. While Hit-Girl had weapons and combat training, Frank a.k.a. The Crimson Bolt and Libby a.k.a. Boltie (Ellen Page) have no experience at all and have nothing but rage and a penchant for violence to help them stop the bad guys. Additionally, Super begs the questions: Are the protagonists defenders of justice or psychopathic killers? Can they be both? While Kick-Ass had Joan Jett's Bad Reputation playing during Hit-Girl's butchering of a group of criminals, Super doesn't always portray our heroes' actions in such a cheery light. In order to save Frank's wife, The Crimson Bolt and Boltie need to be murders. They don't have the money or skill to develop sophisticated weaponry that will incapacitate their opponents. They don't have that luxury. They will gather whatever crude weapons they have in order to exact justice on those who escape the law. And if that makes them crazy, then so be it.

Frank Darbo (Rainn Wilson) loses his wife, Sarah (Liv Tyler) to a scummy drug lord (Kevin Bacon). Rather than committing suicide, wallowing in self-pity, or simply moving on, Frank has a "vision" from God. This comes after he watches a TV character / preacher known as "The Holy Avenger" (Nathan Fillion), who is sort of Jeezuz-gone-steroidal. This apparent revelation leads Frank to assume a new identity as a not-so-super hero known as "The Crimson Bolt".

Soon, TCB is joined by his self-appointed, totally unhinged sidekick, "Boltie" (Ellen Page). Together, they set out to fight crime, and rescue Sarah from the clutches of eeevil, with decidedly mixed results.

SUPER is hilarious, exhilarating, and even poignant at times. Those looking for a straight-on, low-budget Marvel / DC clone, might not be satisfied. However, anyone who enjoys a fine black comedy that doesn't mind shaking things up a bit, will love this! All of the characters are fun, including Michael Rooker as -what else?- a thug, and Gregg Henry as a cop. Wickedly bizarre, mirthful entertainment...

This is a 'love it' or 'hate it' movie. Like this reviewer, a small fraction of the audience will find themselves in between. The general public will either love this or hate it, depending on their expectations in comparing this movie to "Kick-Ass"; and it will always be compared with "Kick-Ass". Both films are about ordinary people donning costumes to fight crime. However, this is where the comparison ends. Written and directed by James Gunn, this is not a movie for just anyone. Keeping in mind his "Dawn of the Dead" and "Slither", it becomes evident that Gunn has intended for this movie to target a specific segment of the movie going populace, specifically those who enjoy very dark humor.

A cook by profession, Frank D'Arbo (Rainn Wilson) is sad man with a depressing past and a feeble excuse of an existence. His greatest moments in life is marrying a recovering drug addict, Sarah (Liv Tyler) and helping a cop catch a purse snatcher. These events are so overwhelming that Frank even symbolizes its meaning through crayon sketches. Then things turn sour again. Sarah relapses into drug addiction and even leaves Frank for Jacques (Kevin Bacon), her drug dealer. Attempts to get his wife back results in insults and beatings, until the day Frank has an epiphany. Having realized that the only way to recuperate his wife is to punish drug pushers, Frank becomes a furious vigilante, and soon gains media attention as "The Crimson Bolt".

As an independent production, "Super" has its moments as a believable and funny film, with some good acting by the likes of some top actors. Although the plot, acting and twisted humor are the highlights of the film, it never comes together as a whole. Like Kick-Ass, the story pits average Joes as superheroes but without super powers. But unlike the aforementioned film, the vigilantes here are almost psychopathic. And yes, there is more than one. Last seen together in Juno, Ellen Page joins Frank as "Boltie", a sensuous side-kick bordering on lunacy. Together, they are more dangerous than the sleaziest of dark alley crooks. As actors, both D'Arbo and Page are scary, funny and insane. In opposing roles are Kevin Bacon and Michael Rooker as his side-kick. Bacon is the same as in all his antagonistic roles, 80% threat and 20 % deed. My biggest disappointment is the underplayed role of Liv Tyler. Gorgeous as she is, Tyler's role (and character) is a negligible two pennies worth that could have been done without.

Coming back to Gunn and his attempt in making an off-beat, albeit, dark comedy, I can say his approach is acceptable in starting an offshoot in the superhero genre. By his words, there are thousands of bank heist movies, so why not a few movies about superheroes without super powers.

If you haven't seen "Kick-Ass", I would suggest you watch that film first. If by then you are ready for some in-your-face violence (literally), a twisted and absurdly dark plot with a questionable conclusion, then, and only then would I suggest you try this movie. But don't say you weren't warned. In not calling it tasteless, this film does have a certain odd taste to it. It's like curiously savoring a medium-rare steak and then wondering halfway "what if the meat is human flesh!?!"

Despite enjoying other films like it, I was never a fan of James Gunn's Slither. It just came off as being average to me, and despite multiple tries, I have never ventured back to give it a second chance. Keeping that in mind, I ventured into a screening of Super at the Toronto International Film Festival hoping to be surprised, and not to come away disappointed. Thankfully, it turned out to be quite the awesome surprise.

Frank D'Arbo (Rainn Wilson) lives a pretty miserable existence. He has just two happy memories in his entire life – marrying his wife Sarah (Liv Tyler) and pointing a police officer in the right direction of a suspect. So when Sarah, a stripper and former junkie, leaves him for her boss Jacques (Kevin Bacon), he loses all faith. But during a chance epiphany, he realizes his true calling is to be a superhero – the Crimson Bolt – and fight against those committing any sort of crime, whether it be drug dealing, underage rape or even butting in-line at the movies.

While I figured the film would have a hurdle to face making it feel different than any other movie about ordinary people donning costumes and fighting crime (in the past few years alone, see Special, Defendor, Kick-Ass and to a point, even Batman Begins and The Dark Knight), but Super is a much different beast. From the epilogue through the totally ridiculous (in a good way) animated song and dance credit sequence on, you know you are in for something different. This is a film that embraces the absurd and the full-blown psychopathic, and delivers a twistedly hilarious comic gem that lacks the seriousness (mostly) that plagues the other films previously mentioned. And any movie about someone using a pipewrench to wreak havoc on crime is immediately enough to make me forget Defendor even existed.

I think the element that sets Gunn's twisted fantasy apart from other films is that it is decidedly not mainstream. D'Arbo truly becomes the superhero we all wish we were by taking out anyone who is committing crimes. He has the vendetta against Jacques taking his wife hanging over his head throughout the movie, but in the meantime, he ensures that no crime goes unpunished – in increasingly graphically violent ways. I knew that using a pipewrench could only lead to a bloody mess, but I did not expect the movie to become the nasty bloodbath it quickly does. If you remember being disappointed at how much blood got cut between the conversion of Kick-Ass from a comic to a film, you will be delighted at just how much is spilt here. I knew Gunn was a graduate of the Troma film academy (Lloyd Kaufman makes a cameo late in the film), but I never expected to see just as much violence as I did. Thankfully, every injury and blood spurt is more hilarious and ridiculous than the last.

Wilson is amazing from start to finish as D'Arbo. I have never been a fan of his zany humour, but it fits this role perfectly. He jumps from being the pathetic loser to being the invigorated crime fighter with ease. And despite playing the role seriously, you never once think he is descending into parody. The film is a parody, but he never hams it up in the role deliberately looking for laughs. He has a very strong comic presence that he maintains throughout the film, and brings a rather poignant touch to more than a few scenes. If he sticks to more roles like these, and stays away from being the best thing in downright awful movies like The Rocker and My Super Ex-Girlfriend, he might have quite the career ahead of him.

The supporting cast is all very good and very funny in their smaller roles. Bacon is just as good as he always is, injecting the right amount of style and finesse into his scumbag of a character. Tyler could have done a bit more as the damsel in distress, but she remains quite memorable in her role. Smaller turns by Gregg Henry, Michael Rooker and especially Nathan Fillion all pay off wonderfully within the film. But if anyone can even stand close to Wilson's performance, it is Ellen Page as the off-the-rails comic nerd Libby. While she has found fame playing Juno and derivatives of the same character in the majority of her roles, she actually is quite different here. She alternates between being anxiety-ridden and being a complete psychopath, often in the same scene, and practically steals the film from Wilson. And when she finally becomes his sidekick Boltie, she truly is able to embrace the absurd.

If I have any problem with the film (outside of a rather bizarre and horrendous looking CGI sequence early in the film), it is that it never stays consistent with its tones. The humour remains intact throughout, but its absurdity starts to waver as the film goes on. It remains ridiculous, but it becomes a bit too serious in some sections. It feels more like Gunn did not want to truly push the film into the realm of comic fantasy, and still wanted some semblance of realism to stay within the film. He explained his tonal shift choices to the audience, but it still is not enough to make up for the film never knowing which way it wants to go. I loved its unpredictability of what D'Arbo would do next, but loathed never knowing what the next shift would be. It never destroys the film, but it weakens the film cohesively.

Super is an awesome film, and one whose dark humour never truly overtakes it. Wilson and Page are amazing in their roles, and the rest of the supporting cast does a great job backing them up. I just hope everyone can experience and have as much fun as I did.

9/10.

As stated, dark and twisted. Good cast and great work. I really liked it and it was what I expected. Give it a go.