The most surprised I've ever been at a film.

Rating: 9/10 (21 February 2011)

When I saw the ad campaign over here in England, it was marketed as just the sort of film I'd turn my nose up at and wouldn't take any notice of. The campaign showed the 2 or 3 slapstick or obviously funny moments from the film, and I immediately dismissed it as being another "Wedding Crashers" or "Step Brothers" type film. That's why I saw it a whole 2 months after release. I'd heard good things about it from a few friends so thought I'd give it a go.
This film is just stunning. It's the antithesis to the dark knight, which I kind of enjoyed, but it is the most over-rated film of all time. This is possibly the most under-rated. There have only been a handful of films that have gone any sort of distance to changing me as a person, and it seems odd to be putting this film in the same venn diagram as the likes of the Shawshank Redemption, Fight Club etc... but as the end credits rolled, I was left with that numb feeling I live for, and found myself thinking about my own life, and what it could be.
If you haven't seen Kick-Ass, that's going to seem like a chronic exaggeration, but in my opinion, it deserves everything I've just written plus more.
Kick-Ass just has everything. Some of the best direction I've seen in years from Matthew Vaughn, who is hardly a familiar face in the film industry, which just sings his praises even more. When you add to that some genius camera-work, a script that grabs you by the nuts from scene one and doesn't let go, and some terrific acting (particularly from newcomer Chloe Moretz as the oh so lovable but oh so vicious hit-girl), and also one of my favourite ever soundtracks from John Murphy, Ilan Eshkeri, and others, you've really got a quite frankly stunning film.
If you read this and go and watch Kick Ass, you may not enjoy it as much as I did, but I defy anyone to sit through it's 2 hour duration without laughing, crying, shouting, or just smiling at it's sheer epicness. I did all 4.
Any film that makes me leave the cinema and want to ditch my profession to fight crime in my town gets my vote. Absolutely brilliant.