Grade: B Director: Matthew Vaughan (Layer Cake) Screenplay: Jane Goldman (Stardust) from the Mark Millar comic book series Cast: Aaron Johnson (Nowhere Boy), Garrett M. Brown (Catalyst) Rating: R By John DeSando, WCBE's "It's Movie Time," "Cinema Classics," and "On the Marquee"
"Tool up, honey bunny. It's time to get bad guys." Damon Macready
Kick Ass kicks the hell out of the serious comic-book hero films like Spiderman because it makes fun of the genre while it has fun indulging in the excesses of both comics and their film adaptations. Dave Lizewski/KickAss (Aaron Johnson) represents every healthy male who has ever dreamed of being a super-hero (and I'm one of that legion).
Dave actually makes a costume and goes out to do good, failing at each encounter with evil because, well, he's never been trained in super-hero actions, and he's a klutz. The real thing is played with gusto and uncharacteristic sweetness by Nicholas Cage as Damon Macready/Big Daddy, but the heroine, Mindy Macready/Hit Girl, is played with gusto and tongue firmly in her 12-year old cheek by Chloe Moretz, who dons a hero costume and literally kicks ass. Moretz is memorable as the young sage, Rachel, in 500 Days of Summer, and Cage, well, he hasn't been this good since Leaving Las Vegas.
While it's not always easy to tell at any one moment whether Kick-Ass is a full-blown Batman satire or a teen comedy about dorks redux, it is enjoyable for its lighthearted depiction of sanitized violence, corny adolescent romance, and eccentric dad/daughter dealings.
Besides the fine lead performances and impeccable pacing by director Matthew Vaughan, the cinematography, a rich color blend and crispness, delivers the visual fun of comics with the high-key clarity of a teen musical.
While Kick-Ass is far away from the fanboy fantasy of Sin City, arguably the best comic book adaptation in the last decade, don't let the bullets and badinage keep our teens from enjoying a bit of pop-cult satire as easy to digest as White Castles on late date night?it's sinfully good.
John DeSando teaches film at Franklin University and co-hosts WCBE 90.5's It's Movie Time, Cinema Classics, and On the Marquee, which can be heard streaming at http://publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/ppr/index.shtml and on demand at http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/arts.artsmain