Geraldine Lee“How come nobody’s ever tried to be a superhero?”
Thus begins the story of Dave Lizewski, an ordinary teenager who dons a green-and-yellow wetsuit and becomes Kick-Ass.
Yearning to be a superhero, however, isn’t the same thing as being one. With no special skills except for his invisibility to girls, Dave, played by Aaron Johnson, gets stabbed and run over by a car on his first day on the job. He convinces the medic to hide his costume on the way to the hospital, and comes back no less determined to be a superhero with his greater capacity for pain (due to dulled nerve endings) and metal plate insertions in his back.
Johnson, seen most recently for his role as John Lennon in Sam Taylor-Wood’s Nowhere Boy, plays the typical high school student. He isn’t particularly blessed with either brains or brawn. And he isn’t very funny either. However, the one thing that Lizewski does have in abundance is his naïve belief that anyone can be a superhero – and that is what spurs him on in his self-appointed role as a superhero vigilante.
Kick-Ass fighting off gang members
Despite his shortcomings, Kick-Ass gains a rep when a video of him fighting off a bunch of thugs goes viral on YouTube thanks to a nearby crowd filming the fight. From there on, his adventures become increasingly bizarre as he gains the attention of Frank D’Amico (Mark Strong), a mob boss who blames Kick-Ass for the damage on his organisation.
Dave finally meets Damon Macready (Nicholas Cage) and Mindy (Chloë Grace Moretz), a formidable father-daughter team who are responsible for the attacks on the D’Amico’s thug crew.
Damon and Mindy Macready holding mugs of hot chocolate
Mindy, unlike Dave, has been trained by her father since young to be a ruthless killer. In fact, when Hit Girl, the costumed alternate ego of Mindy, makes an appearance, she assumes a battle pose and delivers the line, “Alright, c*nts… let’s see what you can do now!” While this is sure to provoke the ire of many a parent with a young girl uttering such profanities, the sparky little force of nature sure as hell makes a smashing entrance.
Despite being only 11 when production first began, Chloë pulls off the hard-as-nails attitude with her potty mouth and her death-dealing butterfly knives, taking down grown men in climatic showdowns with barely a flinch.
Big Daddy and Hit Girl looking… incredibly terrifying
The fearsome duo is as insane as they are skilled, and Big Daddy barely breaks a sweat while taking down a warehouse full of goons. When the costumes come off, however, you can tell that Damon and Mindy are truly devoted to one another. They have bonding moments over hot chocolate and learning how to take gunshots in the chest, and you can see that Damon cares for his daughter very much… even if their relationship would most certainly scare off any family counsellor.
Red Mist standing on top of a dumpster trying to act cool
Besides Big Daddy and Hit Girl, Kick-Ass also makes friends with another superhero, Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse who played Mc’Lovin in Superbad), the son of D’Amico, Kick-Ass’s one true bad guy. Chris D’Amico desperately wants to gain his father’s affection and approval, but his father despairs of him ever becoming evil enough to take over the family business. It’s easy enough to see from Frank’s point of view, especially when Red Mist nearly breaks his ankle jumping off a dumpster.
Kick-Ass is also bursting at the seams with references to comic books and other superhero movies. Cage does an excellent job impersonating Adam West, who famously played Batman in the 60s eponymous TV Show, with his lilting, lurching tones. On a side note, it’s interesting to note that Big Daddy’s costume is modeled after that of Batman’s. There’s also a rather notable quote, “With no power comes no responsibility”, which is a play on Spider-Man’s catch phrase, “With great power comes great responsibility.”
Not only that, the script is well written with amusing scenes like the one below:
Damon Macready: So… Have you thought a little more about what you might want for your birthday?
Mindy Macready: Can I get a puppy?
Damon Macready: You wanna get a dog?
Mindy Macready: Yeah, a cuddly fluffy one, and a Bratz movie-star make over Sasha!
[laughs]
Mindy Macready: I’m just f**king with you, Daddy… I’d love a bench made model 42 butterfly knife!
Damon Macready: [relieved] Oh, child… You always knock me for a loop!
There is little chance for the audience to shift in their seats, as Matthew Vaughn, the director, keeps the movie well paced as the plot gradually escalates from teenage high school comedy into full-out brutal, sadistic blood fest reminiscent of Superbad meeting Kill Bill. However, there is room for improvement, as there were certain scenes in which the emotion changes unnaturally from grief to laughter.
Kick-Ass is filled to the brim with a mix of dark, hyper real violence and high-school laughs. It’ll leave you wincing in your seat as you watch Kick-Ass getting his ass kicked; it’ll make you laugh out loud when the characters come up insanely witty one-liners; and in short, it’ll leave you remembering the awesomely ass-kicking good time you had.
Release Details:
Title: Kick-Ass
Opens: Apr 15
Duration: 117 min
Language: English
Rating: M-18
Genre: Action | Comedy | Drama
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Cast: Aaron Johnson, Chloë Grace Moretz, Nicholas Cage
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars