SXSW Opening Night Film Review: Kick-Ass
Zombieland was candied greatness; Kick-Ass steps it up with a weightier story and Fight Club-ruthless violence. The film originated in comic book form by Scottish writer Mark Millar, but the rights were sold before the first issue hit the stands. That's a pretty cool thing for Millar since the story comes straight from rural Scotland where, at fifteen, he actually started going to the gym and designing costumes with friends to make superheroes an undisputed reality. He informed the SxSW audience that he came to his senses at the last moment, but also mentioned that there are about 250 "superheroes" online that create virtual gangs and...um...sign up for Neighborhood Watch?
That's where Kick-Ass starts. Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) discovers he has just the right mix of naiveté, good intentions, and general dissatisfaction with life to actually purchase a scuba suit and create a superhero that will help out fellow humans (or cats) in dire situations. After mixed results and lots of brutality, Dave becomes a viral hit and attracts the attention of a drug tycoon (Mark Strong) and his ambitious son (Christopher Mintz-Plasse of Superbad fame). Way in over his awkwardly masked head, he becomes involved with offbeat (but extremely affective) vigilante father/daughter team Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and Hit Girl (Chloe Moretz).
The film is extremely well cast, but we have to point out the stand out: Nic Freakin' Cage. If you've had any reason to be annoyed with the actor recently, this performance will restore your faith. The way he switches from the well-meaning yet eerie father role to the choppy Adam West speech (Cage's personal choice, according to the Q&A) of his superhero alter ego is hilarious and, honestly, pretty bad ass. It made us feel guilty for doubting his heroic abilities in Ghost Rider. Also of note: his daughter, Hit Girl. Her fight scenes are thrilling to watch, which might be due to the fact that you don't see little girls flipping around and slicing throats that often. The duo makes the film.
Director Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake, Stardust) mixed an impressive array of shooting styles and managed to give the film a crisp sheen that somehow seemed like the perfect meeting ground of the comic book realm and the world we actually exist in. An audience member described Vaughn's action shots as "video game cool" and asked whether that was purposeful and political. The answer? Purposeful, not political. That's something to keep in mind when you buy your ticket. If you think about what you're actually seeing, you will most likely be offended; PC this film is not. But, come on, settle down and admit that the purple-haired, brainwashed, vengeful killing machine is awesome. Age expectations be damned.
On our way out of these opening night films, we feel that we must find the programmers and tip our hats. Films like Kick-Ass and Zombieland are festival geek blow and they set the mood perfectly. The energy these films inspire make us want to share our Maker's Mark with the strangers around us and do a jig with an usher. Kick-Ass charged the sense of community in the packed theater and started things off with a brutal and lovely bazooka blow to all of our chests. Thanks for that.
Kick-Ass is slated for an April 16th theatrical release.
