Kick-Ass

Rating: 6/10 (15 November 2010)

From writer/director Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake) and Jonathan Ross's wife, co-writer Jane Goldman (Stardust), I had heard many people saying they liked this film, so I wanted to see if I would. Basically Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) is the New York high school that is unnoticed and a big comic book fan, and he believes that anyone can become a superhero if they put their mind to it. He spends most of his time with friends and fellow comic book fans Marty (Clark Duke) and Todd (Evan Peters), and he has a crush on the pretty Katie Deauxma (Lyndsy Fonseca) who is one of those that doesn't notice him. Then his life takes a different turn when he buys himself a superhero style suit on the internet to become masked hero Kick-Ass, and his first attempt at saving the day ends up with him getting stabbed. He recovers in hospital and Katie notices him at last, and he gains a very close friend, but she believes that he is gay, it seems this may be the only reason they stay close to each other. The next night Dave gets a second try at being superhero Kick-Ass, when he saves a man being beaten up by three thugs, and it is all recorded on a phone camera. The footage is quickly becoming the most watched video online, with Kick-Ass becoming the most famous person in New York, even getting a visit from father and daughter superheroes Big Daddy aka Damon Macready (Nicolas Cage) and Hit-Girl aka his daughter Mindy Macready (Chloë Grace Moretz). Meanwhile, the big crime of the city is powerful gangster Frank D'Amico (Mark Strong) dealing drugs, and many of his thugs are going down all over, he thinks Kick-Ass is responsible. To get the better of the superhero, Frank's son Chris D'Amico (Superbad's Christopher Mintz-Plasse) becomes fake superhero Red Mist to capture a big crime lord and becomes more popular. Of course eventually the true nature of this new "superhero" is revealed and Kick-Ass is captured, Big Daddy is killed when his identity is discovered, and Hit Girl gets captured. In the end, after a big guns blazing sequence with Kick-Ass saving the day, and the bad guy is blown up with a rocket launcher, Dave gets the girl and looks after Mindy as much as he can, and Chris vows to avenge the death of his Dad. Also starring Candyman's Xander Berkeley as Detective Gigante, Michael Rispoli as Big Joe, Omari Hardwick as Sergeant Marcus Williams, Dexter Fletcher as Cody, Jason Flemyng as Lobby Goon, Tamer Hassan as Matthew, Garrett M. Brown as Mr. Lizewski, Elizabeth McGovern as Mrs. Lizewski and Randall Batinkoff as Tre Fernandez. There is a good cast, Moretz swearing a lot and kicking butt, Johnson being nerdy and slow with his courageousness, and Cage in the Adam West style costume, the superhero concept makes for some good jokes, there are some controversial moments, and the fight sequences are all fun to watch, I would have to see it again to make a proper judgement on my rating, but I remember it being a fun action comedy drama. Good!