Mystery Men

This was different, that's for sure. Just look at the cast! Talk about oddballs.

William H. Macy and Ben Stiller were the stars, although a bunch of actors almost share the spotlight, in this farce about superhero-wannabees. The most outrageous was played by Paul Reubens of "Pee Wee Herman" fame.

There is lots of humor, garish colors and no lulls. It's a pretty entertaining, lightweight comedy with nothing but goofy characters, all of whom want to be heroes a la Superman, Batman, Spiderman, you name. They have talents in strange areas, however, that the real heroes don't (and don't want to!). It's silly, but you know that going on.

It's also a film you can watch in installments and not really miss any continuity. It's a long movie for one so hectic, so taking a break here and there is okay. The language was tame so kids could enjoy this, too. In fact, I don't recall any swearing in here, except the guy in the theater next to me who kept uttering, "What a dumb, f---ing movie." I thought it was fun two hours but I'd rather watch it on DVD and take a few breaks.

Forget depth of meaning, leave your logic at the door, and have a great time with this maniacally funny, totally absurdist, ultra-campy live-action "cartoon". MYSTERY MEN is a send-up of every superhero flick you've ever seen, but its unlikely super-wannabes are so interesting, varied, and well-cast that they are memorable characters in their own right. Dark humor, downright silliness, bona fide action, and even a touching moment or two, combine to make this comic fantasy about lovable losers a true winner. The comedic talents of the actors playing the Mystery Men -- including one Mystery Woman -- are a perfect foil for Wes Studi as what can only be described as a bargain-basement Yoda, and Geoffrey Rush as one of the most off-the-wall (and bizarrely charming) villains ever to walk off the pages of a Dark Horse comic book and onto the big screen. Get ready to laugh, cheer, and say "huh?" more than once.... enjoy!

With all of the Marvel and DC movies coming out these days, this film should have been a monster success. The only problem is, it came out when superhero movies were just getting started. Had this been released in 2009 instead of 1999, after X-Men, Spider-Man, Superman Returns, and Iron Man all came out, audiences would have gone crazy over this lovable group of wannabe superheroes who have to save the day when real superhero, Captain Amazing, is captured.

Certainly few movies boast a murder's row of actors such as this movie did. William H. Macy was hysterical as family man The Shoveler, Hank Azaria's Blue Raja was a master of throwing forks (never knives), Janeane Garofalo (back when she was likable) was The Bowler, Kel Mitchell as Invisible Boy (who can only turn invisible if no one is watching), and even Paul "Pee Wee Herman" Reubens was a riot as The Spleen, who took passing gas to a whole new level.

The ringleader of the group is Mr. Furious (Ben Stiller) who seems to become the focal point of the movie more than anyone else. I thought it a bit ironic Stiller would trash this film given most of the scenes that annoyed me involved him, although he does redeem his role by movie's end.

The group of supervillians is impressive as well, led by Geoffrey Rush as Casanova Frankenstein and Eddie Izzard and Pras as the two Tonys. Even Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear) isn't much in the way of a superhero to the Mystery Men, given how condescending he acts towards them and how full of himself he is. Kinnear did provide a great performance there, no question.

If you're a fan of what Marvel is putting out these days, this movie will make you laugh and cheer for the good guys.

This movie puts the hero in superhero. A trio of friends have, for years, taken up crime fighting under the guises of The Shoveler, Captain Furious and The Blue Rajah. This, despite the fact that there is a resident superhero known as Captain Amazing. With the release of Casanova Frankenstein, the cities most feared super villain, and the subsequent disappearance of Amazing, it is up to this rag-tag trio to put together a group of people to defeat Frankenstein.

This movie has so many great actors in it, I find it utterly crazy that it was not bigger. This is a great movie based off a comic before Marvel stuck up their giant tent pole. Not that I am mad at Marvel, not in the least. If you are looking for a movie with superheros, humor and so many quotable lines, then look no further.

With a different director, this coulda been a contender. It is a flawed masterpiece (that's right, I said the word 'masterpiece' in conjunction with this film). Despite some dodgy editing alongside a director known for making commercials (and it shows!), it actually has many ingenious concepts. The idea that Champion City's most successful superhero is obsessed with his own celebrity and is therefore portrayed as a bad guy ties in perfectly with the anti-capitalist themes in the film. The problems arise when the style of comedy reaches juvenile level, and though at times that brand of humour is funny there is perhaps a little too much of it. There are, however, many hilarious moments, some of which are incredibly subtle for such an 'in your face' production. For example, when Captain Amazing is complaining to his agent about losing his pepsi endorsement he talks about what it means to him, in his heart, and he promptly hits his chest where his heart would be only to hear the hollow sound of his suit's exterior. Pure anti-capitalism! Finally, a mention of the cast. The film has a wonderful cast: Ben Stiller, Bill Macy, Hank Azaria, Greg Kinnear, Geoffrey Rush, Jeanne Garofalo, Eddie Izzard, Paul (Pee-wee Herman) Reubens and, best of all, the deep-voiced singing legend that is Tom Waits. So, a masterpiece? a silly but funny superhero spoof? or a superhero spoof that is unsure what it really wants to be? It is rather open to interpretation but one thing is for sure, it's funny!