Kick-Ass review

Before I delve into the actually nitty gritty of the ‘Kick Ass’ review, I’d like to vent or rather expel some issues and a degree of confusion, frustration and overall disillusionment I’ve been having with the cinematic world of late. Recently I’ve been conflicted in a personal sense due to a lot of the films I’ve been watching both old and new and the world of film criticism and land of elitist film viewers. The conflict arose when time after time this belief that the only way to make a great film or even a good film is A: in the independent market and B: seemingly inspired by foreign works; some old and some new, but mainly old. And that anything made within the confines of the ‘mainstream’ or studio system is automatic shit. If you earn money, you’re automatic shit and a sell out. If you get big press, you’re automatic shit, a sell out and pomes. I suppose the same can be said of elitist views in the music world as well, but that’s not my the point. I began to question why this was. I started looking back further and further, going through my owned films and seen films and old reviews and thinking, is there something I’m missing? Am I blind to something that I can’t wrap my mind around? Why don’t I think the same thing?

I mean sure I love foreign pictures quite a bit, I may not own as many I’d like but I don’t have forty bucks to drop on a criterion every week. In fact having forty dollars once week for anything would be nice, but in truth I can’t buy DVD's in bulk as I used to. As for independent works, sure some are great and some suck just like anything else. I spoke with a friend about my feelings on the matter, which I probably haven’t described too well, but that’s because it’s hard to truly explain and she told me that it’s a generational thing. That depending on the time and what’s out there will very much dictate what we see coming out on both ends. In addition to that I re-watched the documentary “A Decade Under the Influence” which chronicled the 70’s filmmaking world. I loved hearing the big names of then (and many that are still big now) talking about how French and Italian new wave got them into wanting to make movies and so on and so fourth, but what I found really fascinating was that the filmmakers they loved from the 60’s and what not were inspired by a lot of the “bad” movies we were making over here. None of them talked up the work of John Ford or Billy Wilder as their inspiration. After a while I began to develop a hypothesis.

Sure there’s independent movies coming up and dying to see, just as there’s summer blockbusters I’m looking forward to (although much less than usual), but there’s so many terrible things getting pushed out there on both plains that it’s clouding the view of the better ones. A lot of the independent filmmakers of today seemed to have gotten their inspiration from those same 50’s and 60’s auteurs, however the difference is with those inspired in the 70’s and the ones now is that then they loved the idea of smaller stories and of a different style that was unlike what they’ve seen before. Now they love the idea of telling a little story, but don’t care for style, think as long as the characters seem ‘different’ from what we see in the mainstream that it makes the characters truly different and original and often those little stories they’re telling aren’t that original.; in some cases filmmakers telling almost the same stories, but with different actors and locations. So again I ask, what makes them so much better than the mainstream if they’re lacking originality and creativity but with less money and resources?

Now this brings me to ‘Kick-Ass’ which lands in that zone of a creative, ballsy and original independently made film that people might not recognize as such. I’ve sadly never read too much of the comic, although I have seen it in the past; but as a film it succeeds as an action picture, a dark comedy and as a satire of comic book heroes in an ultra violent and over the top manner while still placing some realistic looks at the aspects of costumed heroics. Could this movie been made as easily in the a straight studio zone? Ehhh… probably not. But thanks to producer, co-writer, director Matthew Vaughn, co-producer and co-writer Jane Goldman, Brad Pitt and Plan B and of course Lionsgate it could be made and presented to the popcorn munching public as best as possible.

Is it flawed? Yep. I really dig Aaron Johnson as this kid, but his voice got tiresome. Works for the character, but a tiring voice. Some music choices were off putting, while some were great (Hit Girl’s action sequences probably the best example of great choices). And as with any satire it takes me a little bit to ease into that mindset and world. Everything else though, I dug the hell out of. Some of shotty CGI, works for me. The lack of a moral and often emotional compass with allowing an 11-year old girl to drop fucks, cunts and bodies like clock work, while getting kicked around by the likes of Mark Strong, who has yet to make me dislike him, reminds me of the old days when movies had that bit of balls that made them stand out. And the dark humor works almost every time.

However suggesting this movie is a bit tough. Easily I can see why Roger Ebert felt the way he felt about it. Partly because I’ve been a reader of his for a long time and this isn’t the first time his feeling or morality effect the way he reviews a film, but just in general I could see someone being put off by the films violence and crass humor. For the mainstream crowd I guess I’d try to appeal to need to see a good popcorn flick with action and laughs and to the indie crowd I’d attempt to appeal to their possible knowledge of more violent independently made films of the early 90’s like ’Bad Lieutenant’, ’Menace II Society’, ’Reservoir Dogs’, or ’El Mariachi’ mixed with the satirical humor of ‘Clerks’.

'Kick-Ass' is at it's core a throwback movie to a time when action movies didn't always play it straight. When who was a hero and who was villain was a bit if-y and when people had the guts to make something unconventional at a time when everything is considered controversial. I've been a fan of Vaughn's past two directorial works, the british crime, dark comedy 'Layer Cake' and I even had some mild affection for his fantasy romp 'Stardust', but 'Kick-Ass' returns him to that violent and jivy feel he had with 'Layer Cake' and his produced films with Guy Ritchie. Having not read the books prior to going into the film also allowed the film to surprise me more than I expected with just how out there it was willing to go.

Personally I miss getting to see films that go as over the top as they can or films that don't have that attempt for something more than being the next indie darling. I miss that ridiculous fun or seeing something original and fresh that isn't a melodrama or a melodrama trying to pose as a comedy with a serious point about the human condition. It seems like the amount of Vaughns or Duncan Jones' or Neil Blomkamps in the cinema world either aren't getting enough work, not getting it displayed or frightening enough don't exist.