Review of Defendor (2009) by Jason D — 05 May 2010
It is testament to the towering talent of Woody Harrelson that this film has a burning, beating heart beneath its quirky story and eccentric, likeable central character. Harrelson plays Arthur Poppington, a simple blue-collar worker who takes on the persona of bungling superhero Defendor in attempting to rid the city of crime.
The catch is, he lives in the real world, has no powers to speak of and has a simplistic view of the world around him, as he attempts to track down arch-villian Captain Industry, whom he blames for his mother's death.
The film is wonderfully observed, sensitively written, clearly directed and extremely well acted by all its principals, including Kat Dennings as a hooker who strikes up a friendship with Poppington and character actor Michael Kelly as his best friend Paul Carter.
But it is Harrelson who delivers a performance of startling, stirring, heartbreaking, nuanced simplicity as Poppington, a man who clearly has no grip on the real world but has great goodness of heart and a valid sense of purpose.
The film is certainly not a complex work that takes a fresh look at human nature and the corruption eating away human society. It merely touches on those themes and is an entertaining little film about one man trying to make a difference.
Highly enjoyable.
This review of Defendor (2009) was written by Jason D on 05 May 2010.
Defendor has generally received positive reviews.
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