Innovative, energetic and absurdly fun, Kick-Ass is one of the best adaptations of recent comics, and also one of the best satirical works in recent years

Rating: 8/10 (12 May 2020)

Who has never dreamed of being a superhero? This premise, which is the dream of every child further enhanced after the beginning of the 2000s with the invasion of films of this kind in theaters worldwide, is the base story for this new film by English director Matthew Vaughn, raised to fame after direct the great fantasy Stardust, The Mystery of the Star (2007). Kick-Ass is based on the comic book of the same name written by Mark Millar and illustrated by John Romita, Jr., published by the Marvel Comics editorial line, Icon.
The film tells the life of a normal teenager named Dave Lizeewski (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), who decides to become a superhero under the influence of comic books. He becomes known in the media as "Kick-Ass", and motivates the emergence of a new wave of superheroes in the country, including Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), who becomes his "partner" in combat to crime, the mysterious Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and his daughter Hit-Girl (Chloë Grace Moretz), who live an electrifying day-to-day killing mobsters. However, when Frank D'Amico sets a trap for heroes, Kick-Ass must prove that it doesn't take powers to be a real superhero.
The big difference in the script by Jane Goldman and Matthew Vaughn knows very well the fact that Dave Lizeewski was the last person we would expect to see as a superhero, not that there was anything wrong with him, but there was also no nothing special. He had few friends, is a fan of comics and is in a phase where hormones are simmering, like any teenager and who had a special passion for his schoolmate Katie Deauxma (Lyndsy Fonseca). In five minutes, we already know our protagonist, what he likes to do, what his life is like and what he plans to do.
'Kick-Ass' is urgent as a satire tribute to the universe of comics and superheroes, but bringing with it all the pop aura and stylized violence. Vaughn was and has been criticized for the violence of the film, but it is worked in a very sophisticated way by the director. When it involves the villains, the media show is a caricatural violence: giant microwave, Japanese sword, bazooka. When it involves Dave Lizewski and his awareness journey, it is important that there is a change of key with the violence becoming more credible, level knife in the belly. The film works as an escapism from the usual serious tone of the comic books, introducing the viewer into a reality marked by nerdy culture through the desires of a teenager who seeks his inspiration in the fictional pages of the comic books.
The script knows how to place emphasis initially on the question that the desire to become a superhero wearing an outfit bought over the internet is not everything. One cannot want to fight criminals and gangs with good intentions alone, without any training. In the first incursions of our new hero in the fight against crime we can already see how dangerous this could be. And the script shows this counterpoint well, the contrast between the lack of preparation of the new aspiring hero with the deep knowledge of martial arts and armaments of the father and daughter duo Big Daddy and Hit-Girl who have been preparing for a long time. take revenge on crime boss Frank D'Amico (Mark Strong) who devised a plan to accuse them of drug trafficking and put him behind bars.
The production is based on the non-modest use of violence and black humor that we can attest to the main inspiration of Kick-Ass. In the action sequences, full of blood and dismemberment, always accompanied by an animated and unusual track, the inspiration for Kill Bill is obvious, even giving himself the right to include a flashback in animation, as seen in Tarantino's work. The production makes use of acid - and real - dialogues to tell a totally crazy, violent and fun story.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson is excellent as the protagonist on his journey to discover what a hero actually represents and the responsibilities arising from this point, but it is the supporting characters who gain all the prominence leaving the work with an even more irreverent air, using and abusing the politically incorrect. Nicolas Cage's Big Daddy is ironic and insane, seeking revenge for facts that occurred in his past, but which also has a great paternal sense. His uniform is a clear and amusing reference to that used by Batman in the 1960s TV series. The Hit-Girl of the excellent Chloë Grace Moretz has already entered the imagination of the cinephile as one of the most striking characters based on comics. The young actress blends her beauty and angelic haircut for an 11-year-old girl until being a real killing machine that was trained from an early age to lacerate everyone who appears in her way. The charming figure when not dressed in the heroine's uniform, but who at the same time asks for a gun as a Christmas present, disappears completely when she wields all kinds of weapons and batons beating and killing a bunch of merciless mobsters. This is undoubtedly the supersummof what we call black humor. They are arms, heads and legs cut off and a huge smile on the girl's face. It would be sick if it wasn't so much fun. As if that wasn't enough, the young heroine still participates in the best action scenes of the entire film.
The soundtrack is another highlight, betting on funky songs by Primal Scream, The Omen, The Dickies, Joan Jett and Mika that manage to bring their target audience even closer together. It is also highlighted by the photography of Ben Davis, the production designer of Russell De Rozario and the costume of Sammy Sheldon who managed to leave a lighter tone and cartunesco that perfectly match the black humor and contrast with a general realistic tone of the production. The action scenes directed by Vaughn are another great highlight, especially when Hit-Girl saves our hero from a bunch of mobsters and the whole final act when the same Hit-Girl invades her enemy's office to finish the job that if her father had begun having to face dozens of mobsters. This entire final sequence is spectacular and stands out among the great action scenes of recent years in the cinema.
The film is so wide-open and debauched, that scenes like a "live" torture or a little girl slaughtering her enemies, "amuse" in their nearly two hours of unbridled action and everyday comedy scenes. And with a high-level edition, a quirky color and an uncompromising but current script, Kick Ass is the perfect antithesis of the hero: without powers, there is no responsibility. And even in the midst of a world of eccentric characters, Kick-Ass manages to keep his foot in reality thanks to Vaughn's calibrated direction and great production design, which completely destonates all the weirdness of the costumes. Innovative, energetic and absurdly fun, Kick-Ass is one of the best adaptations of recent comics, and also one of the best satirical works performed by Hollywood in recent years.