Superheroes

Just recently watched this HBO documentary titled properly "Superheroes" and oh boy it's neat and interesting to see just how far our love of comic books and superheroes has come. You guessed it real life ordinary people have resorted to dressing up as actual crime fighters and help the less blessed often giving food and shelters to the homeless at night. Really great access to this uncommon and feel good underworld as director Michael Barnett takes his projector all across America from coast to coast New York to California for a look at a group of unsung heroes who fight crime their own way it's really a good hearted style of vigilantism! True these fighters are not actual super people with powers like those in the comics, still they have enough determination and will to be a service to society. And true they are not law enforcement certified, yet they do a lot of good deeds and services that law enforcement does not as the film points in Orlando, Florida the police are wrongfully throwing the homeless in jail and always looking for petty little things to arrest people, yet these people of masks and caped crusaders and homemade costumes help those in need as many American cities are tired with police corruption. So we all need a new line of "Superheroes"! Overall nice little showcase by Michael Barnett I know it's unrealistic and far out still a select group of dreamers and hopeful people of good hearts rule the night in a city near you. Vigilantism needs to rock on!

It's funny, weird and at times kind of sad. A lot of these so-called real-life superheroes don't seem to have a firm grasp on reality. One claims to draw inspiration from Batman who didn't have actual powers. Never mind that Batman is not actually real.

I'm not entirely sure what I was supposed to take away from this documentary. Most of the people are well-meaning but many seem mentally ill and may be driven by delusion rather than the greater good. Worth checking out if you can manage to eye-roll your way through some of the interviews.

Hollywood has perhaps reached its saturation point with comic book and superhero movies with every film now becoming more of an event: a-list stars, groundbreaking f/x, tie-ins, lead-ins and hints at a larger universe packed with even more superheroes. Maybe it's time to take a step back. Show a real hero, totally DIY. Mike Barnett has attempted this.

The WATCHMEN Blu-ray set contains a featurette interviewing "real life" superheroes. Mostly these were young men wearing bulky costumes of sewn together sports equipment and pronounced delusions of grandeur; although one interviewee was ex-military and simply patrolled as a concerned citizen in fatigues and a buzz cut. The HBO documentary SUPERHEROES amps this idea into a feature-length spectacle.

Mike Barnett presents a typical day-in-the-life perspective of the non- typical man-in-tights. Or clunky plastic armor. With names, among others, like Mr. Xtreme, Zimmer and, ahem, Master Legend. Although their hearts are in the right place, a food-and-clothing drive conducted and distributed to and for the homeless of San Diego being a very worthy effort, their heads most definitely are not. Barnett shows these heroes as misguided - Mr. Xtreme possess no guide in life other than comicbooks, which he reads obsessively in his van – publicity-seeking – an unintentionally-hilarious Master Legend drinks and cavorts with college girls in that crime-ridden gotham of Orlando – or thrill-seeking – the NYC-based Zimmer who patrols dark streets just looking for a head to bash in.

Unfortunately, Barnett's docu never presents a clear viewpoint. Are these losers real and sympathetic, slaves to a worthy ideal? Or are they to be mocked at? Severely. Throughout the film the viewer does both. But they shouldn't. At times, the film appears to be as just as a rambling mess as Mr. Xtreme on patrol: sometimes boring, at times embarrassingly cringe-worthy. Also unfortunately, the preventing of crimes, or exacting flying fists of justice as Zimmer so obviously wants, never occurs. Giant aliens don't attack. There are no criminal masterminds' plans to foil. Not even a simple grab-and-run from the local 7-Eleven. This exacerbates the question running through the whole film: so what?

Hey, if anything, the film invites you to grab a drink with Master Legend. He has a Facebook page.

This fascinating HBO documentary follows several real life people as they dress up in superhero costumes and patrol their neighborhoods. Despite sharing this peculiar hobby, all of the people featured seemed to have different reasons for doing it. Some are misfits while some are clearly attention seekers. Others are out for vigilante justice. Some want to raise crime-prevention awareness in their communities. And some are tough to categorize, like the lovable Master Legend, who at first glance appears to be a troubled alcoholic but eventually reveals himself to be a compassionate do-gooder who passes out food and water to the homeless. He also provides much of the unintentional comedy of the movie.

And this is a funny film. Some of the lines are so perfectly ridiculous or well-timed that it has led some viewers to suspect it's a scripted performance, but assuredly these are real people. And while they may dress oddly, the filmmakers never stoop to mockery for cheap laughs. The entertainment lies in just letting these superheroes be themselves. If you are a fan of the documentary "American Movie" then you are sure to enjoy the same type of genuine human comedy in this film.

The one thing that these superheroes do share in common, though, is that most of them are struggling to overcome hard circumstances. Many had heartbreaking stories of childhood abuse. Zany as their costumes may appear, ultimately these people are victims looking to make sense of a world that hurt them and trying to make it a better place.

This is an excellent and thought-provoking documentary. I highly recommend it.

Master Legend rocks!

Superheroes is a worthy addition to this well-establish genre, arguably re-popularised by Michael Moore in the 1990s. Filmmaker Mike Barnett's piece is a straightforward portrait of some of America's real-life superheroes. Other than the nicely done cartooning that marks the film's chapters, and some shaky 'ride along' footage, it is mostly talking heads, but no worse off for that. The tendency might be towards a first reaction of 'Really?' but, while there seem to be varying degrees of 'grip on reality' among the subjects, it's hard to argue that their intentions are anything other than good. There are a surprising number of participants, with a wide geographical spread, revealing the breadth of this activity, and almost all have a sense of their own limitations, operating within those bounds, and the law - setting their sights on realistic and attainable objectives. No-one here is going to affect the spin of the Earth or fly an atomic bomb through a portal in the space-time continuum (of course!), but it would be a cold person who was not affected by the good deeds that these citizens do. Their public spirit is admirable and it's to be hoped that there are many more people out there willing to step up in their own (quieter) way when evil rears its head in our communities. Barnett's film is well worth a watch.