Review of Super (2010) by Michael A — 15 May 2012

A highly underrated, and very very strange, film. Dismissed as being something of a Kick-Ass clone, this film actually succeeds more in many areas. While Kick-Ass was hyperactive entertainment to the extreme, Super is a much darker (and funnier) look at the concept.

The premise of a "superhero-in-real-life" is fully explored here in this very strange black comedy, with some of the strangest characters in recent American cinema. While Kick-Ass fell back into the expected superhero cliches, Super goes all out.

The tone is very strange - at once the images are horrifying, yet also hilarious. The violence in particular shows this. For its bizarre tone the film succeeds in being a very original, haunting and funny film.

Hainn Wilson is excellent as the protagonist Frank - at once sympathetic, pathetic and nihilistic. As a religious nut-ball, Frank essentially becomes a superhero to save his wife, inspired by the Holy Avenger (played by Nathan Fillion!) Are his actions heroic? Is he just a murderer? What does he gain? Can you be a hero in a modern world? What is a hero, anyway? The film's conclusion, which I won't dare spoil, leaves things on something of an ambiguous note.

Ellen Page is also excellent as Libby, Frank's 'kid' sidekick, who represents fandom taken to its extreme. Again, I won't spoil anything, but she's at the center of one of the film's most disturbing and hilarious scenes.

Shot ultra-low budget, the DV and shaky camera actually do contribute to the film's tone, where fantastical comic book graphics are put in sharp contrast to the gritty look, essentially as strange as the film's tone.

So, the verdict for becoming a superhero in real life? You've got to be a complete psychopath. A twisted, dark, funny and bizarre film, this is not to be missed. At once hilarious and thought provoking, this is definitely one to check out.