KICK-ASS

I enjoyed the movie KICK-ASS, for what should be obvious reasons, assuming it's a given that we all know what this movie is about. It's about the simple idea a lot of us have invariably had, and has caused us to ponder, when will they make a movie involving people who dress up like comic book "superheroes" and fight crime...in a manner which accounts for a bit more realism? I'm sure most comic-book, action-movie fans such as myself have long wished for a more realistic exploration of the pros and cons, the benefits and consequences, of actually going out there and, as McGruff once put it, "taking a bite out of crime". Well, the wait is over: KICK-ASS is here.

And yes--it arrives not without its controversy. A friend of mine who normally is "gung ho" about this sort of flick, has expressed zero interest in seeing it-(!!)-presumably on account of its characterization of an 11-yr old girl who swears up a storm and kills a lot of people in it. I have to admit, the movie is indeed quite disturbing, really, in that respect. (The actress, Chloe Moretz, is thirteen now, I believe, and yes, she steals the show.)

The very fact Hollywood dared to go through with this mostly (in the comic, Hit Girl is 8; in the movie, she's 11) is pretty sweet, if you ask me. (Although I'm not entirely sure what, exactly, making her 3 yrs older achieves.) 11 is still pre-teen, and it's a good thing they stuck with that premise--of a preteen girl trained to be an assassin by her Dad--otherwise, the over-arching point the premise is trying to make would've been compromised. So I have to hand it to Hollywood, or, should I say, to the moviemakers that brought us KICK-ASS, for having the guts to keep Hit Girl a preteen, and to stay true to her filthy, corrupted mouth. It's a necessary "slap in the face" which must accompany this movie's "wake up call" about the problem of how to properly tackle crime in our society.

That said, I'm afraid the movie falls short of thoroughly following through with the complex and mature question of morality vs. violence in modern society. That said, this flaw did not even come close to ruining what turned out to be a flat-out entertaining spin on the superhero comic movie, to me.

It has far too much going for it to bankrupt its overall charm and small achievements. Namely, you've got a really likeable protagonist in the actor who portrays KICK-ASS, Aaron Johnson. He is a natural at capturing your typical brainy, grade-A student that most gum-chewing chicks would overlook in their high school halls, despite not being a bad-looking guy, really. Him and his two chums provided an entertaining and more-realistic-than-not crew of normal, bright high schoolers. I always enjoy movies that depict high school in a certain light, and KICK-ASS is no exception. There are some rich rewards to be had, insofar as the various high school relationships depicted. And when our soon-to-be hero actually orders his dorky costume and heads out into the street for some real action, the tension is palpable and you can feel the excitement as if you were really there. This movie also features some real twists and turns which play with audience expectations, in a very satisfying manner. (To say more would be to venture into "spoiler" territory; so don't worry, I won't got there.)

But the movie really picks up when it becomes evident that there is a "superhero" duo that has actually been actively killing mobsters long before KICK-ASS decided to don the suit. And this is where the real heart of the story forms itself: Nicholas Cage portrays Big Daddy--the true crime-fighter of the city, who has committed himself to having trained his pre-adolescent daughter Mindy into becoming a stone-cold killer and martial arts/weapons expert: Hit Girl. Hit Girl is the very soul of this movie; hence, if the idea of a little girl swearing like a sailor and viciously murdering thugs by the dozen turns you off--well, you are going to have a real problem with this movie. Because, like I said, Hit Girl is the soul of KICK-ASS.

If she's the movie's soul, then the high school dude who becomes the street-hero KICK-ASS, is its heart; and, naturally, the Nic Cage character Big Daddy--is the brains.

Because what you have here, is nothing less than a pretty wry commentary on society's tolerance, and presupposed intolerance of, crime and violence. *mild set-up spoilers to follow, nothing to really ruin it for you though*: It quite cleverly presents Big Daddy as an ex-cop with a vendetta against a local NYC mobster (played with chilling realism by Mark Strong, the actor who played the bad guy in Sherlock Holmes recently). Big Daddy's yearning for the vengeance of his slain wife (Hit Girl's Mom) is so passionate that he has extended it, obviously, into his own young daughter, and forged of the shattered remains of their once-happy nuclear unit, a cold-blooded killing machine, a "superhero duo" whose lives are dedicated to taking out this one mobster, by starting at the fringes of his mob, and gunning down and/or stabbing to death all his men, virtually carving their way towards his door, to ultimately take him down for the murder of their matriarch. i.e, I say "cleverly" because, obviously, it takes the pretense of waging violence against such criminal scum seriously: if one's dedication to such a premise as that is strong enough to withstand the indoctrination of their own daughter, then you know they mean business.

Whether its right or wrong is partially left up to the audience to decide. It's presented as a thorny problem with no clear black or white throughout most of this movie. (To reveal what happens would be to really spoil it for you, so I won't do that.) All I can do is suggest that the movie KICK-ASS follows through with its premise, and even if it does so predictably, one cannot deny that it is a hell of an entertaining ride, from start to finish. It's at once campy and realistic, hilarious and tragic, as well as incisive and clumsy. The acting is good from most of the cast, with the possible exception of Nic Cage--I think he should try something different than his "mannered speech" which seems an attempt to pass for acting; but I personally didn't let this questionable acting tactic ruin what otherwise was a spectacular and fun time at the movies. Besides--I happen to have a soft spot for Nic Cage, based on his old days as a cool movie star (see: Wild At Heart, etc)--and furthermore, the character Big Daddy kinda grows on you by the time things get heated up. I couldn't help but be charmed, ultimately, by the interplay between Big Daddy and Hit Girl, and the legacy they help forge together.

As a clear and well-thought out statement about vigilantism, I personally recommend the movie KICK-ASS as mandatory viewing. It escalates the premises set formerly by such movies (DEATH WISH, THE DARK KNIGHT, etc) and, in combining the controversy of vigilantism with comic book superhero conventions, KICK-ASS offers a delightful escapism that collides against a reinforced, brick wall of confrontation with the reality of organized crime. As such, I consider this movie to be among the most important installments in exploring this territory, regardless of its (very few) flaws.

This is one of the best movies I've seen in a while, because it's humorous, shocking, actually disturbing--and wildly entertaining. The fact it is (obviously) being "down-played" even now while I type this out and it continues its (sure to be limited) run in theaters, lends me the confidence to suggest that it certainly outdoes WATCHMEN insofar as driving home its point.

Whereas WATCHMEN (the movie) failed largely due to a "by numbers" approach at grandiosity (not to mention having failed at the box-office, its major fault insofar as having unintentinally set a precedent for blacklisting R-rated superhero movies in the future), KICK-ASS hits the bull's-eye by cutting through such pretensiousness, and presenting likeable and believable characters (I admit the premise of an 11-yr old girl posing a threat to organized mobsters seems ludicrous on the surface; but I have to say the movie pulls it off beautifully, if only by a hair's breadth) in a realistic setting that provides many pleasing and shocking moments, as well as a general sense of excitement while we identify with most of the characters and situations. And quite significantly (assuming KICK-ASS breaks through the profit margin, something that seems inevitable at this point), director Matthew Vaughn will have one-upped Zack Snyder by reinstating the case for Hollywood to consider, that R-rated superhero movies just might not be such a bad idea, after all. In short, here is the bottom line:

KICK-ASS kicks ass.