Kick-Ass Review

Just got back from seeing Kick-Ass. I thought it was pretty good but there are some minor problems I had with it. One article I read claimed that the movie was a "ebullient blend of the best bits from Spider-Man, Watchmen and Superbad." It does definitely feel like an amalgamation of those with a whole lot of other stuff that Quinton Terrintino would love to see on the big screen (if you had no problem stomaching Kill Bill Volume I, then you will have no qualms with this film). I would say, however, that it is not as fun as Spider-Man, which was a whole lot of fun from beginning to end and had plenty of action along the way. Kick-Ass started out presenting violence and masked heroism as something that is realistically painful with real life consequences. There are bruises and broken bones and trips to the hospital. This makes the action scenes, specifically involving the inexperienced Kick-Ass (yes, that is his superhero name) to be a little more stressful. Peter Parker was, in the audiences eyes, never in any real danger. Watchmen had some strong themes and very human characters. Despite being a little lengthy, it carried a lot of the same literary ideals that made the original comic so popular (and the only graphic novel to make it on Time Magazine's list of 100 greatest novels of all time. Quite an achievement). One of the bigger problems in a lot of the reviews that I have been reading of the film, especially Roger Ebert's, is how the film is not morally grounded and could leave the viewer with a warped perception of violence. I do agree with this although it is, at it's core, just a "cool", "badass" movie. It isn't trying to be anything that it's not. Also, it is not as funny as Superbad. There are a few exchanges that are pretty funny but there are a lot of points where it does miss the mark. Overall I would say if you like Kill Bill, Watchmen, Sin City, or other films of that ilk, I would say this is worth a watch. If you are easily offended or could never dream of sitting through difficult to watch films like as Hostel or Saw, then don't see this. You will probably hate it.

The only reason I did a more in-depth review for Kick-Ass, as opposed to some of the other films I've seen recently, is because after seeing it I was sort of torn on whether I liked it or not. It wasn't a straight up dud like Dear John and it wasn't an undeniable delight like How To Train Your Dragon.