Thursday 1 April 2010

Kick-Ass is kick ass

(And candy is dandy)
Just an hour back from the cinema and I can't believe the awesomeness that has been unleashed upon British cinema screens before our friends over the pond are able to get their mitts on it.  Based on Mark Millar's comics of the same name (illustrated by John Romita Jr.), comes Kick-Ass directed by British director Matthew Vaughn.

Starring
We've got hot British actor Aaron Johnson (previously played as John Lennon in last year's Nowhere Boy) as the title hero and comic book geek Kick-Ass, and upcoming young star (and comedy film favourite) Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Role Models and Superbad) as a "rich boy" and "hero" Red Mist.  Then there's a spunky performance from young actress Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl (previously starred as Kiki George in Dirty Sexy Money), and Nicholas Cage manages to gain forgiveness for involvement in both National Treasure films by becoming Big Daddy.

Story
So Johnson's character Dave Lizewski, a typical American teenager, one day contemplates becoming a super hero.  Now these thoughts kind of stick heavily with him until one day he finally caves in and becomes the phenomenon known as Kick-Ass: New York's "first" super hero.  Of course things are not all dandy and just a simple case of dealing with the odd mugger, as Dave/Kick Ass quickly learns, muggers are not all that's out in the world as there's a lot of organised crime in the Big Apple too.  As Kick-Ass struggles to realise who his true allies are, and Dave falls in love with a girl from school, New York does not know just quite what is about to kick its ass.

What did you like?
There's a lot in this film to like.  Due to the nature of its source material, there are tonnes of comic book and comic book film references, and Matthew Vaughn and co-writer Jane Goldman quickly show just how to make fans of the genre squeal and laugh, with both often happening at the same time.

The film is well-edited, well-acted and stylised in just the right way, producing a humour filled and action packed text that is just bursting at the seams with cinematic goodness.  Admittedly I have yet to read the original comics/graphics that the film is adapted from, so I can't tell you how they compare, but this is definitely the best film of the first quarter of this year (at least if you like plenty of action and super heroes).


Who should watch this?
Quite frankly, anyone aged 15 and over who isn't, as Matthew Vaughn put it on a recent appearance on BBC 1's The One Show, a Daily Mail reader because, quite frankly, Dail Mail readers are just too sad to be capable of handling this awesomeness (and as Vaughn actually said, "this film wasn't made for them.").  Seriously, with the levels of violence in the film, any parents who let their under-age kid watch this film is irresponsible, it has a 15 BBFC handed out certificate for a reason.

By the way...
This film has one of the best soundtracks I've heard in a film for a while, and is definitely worth picking up.  There's a healthy dose of Prodigy and some sweet old tunes that will make you smile when you watch the scenes where they're used.

Kick-Ass is out in UK cinemas now.

Related links
Official website
IMDB entry
Wiki entry on the Mark Millar created comic book series

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