James Gunn‘s newest film Super is comical, gritty, and lovably all over the place in tone and nature. This isn’t a satire. This isn’t a parody. And this isn’t anything that resembles Kick-Ass or Defendor, so no need for the comparisons. Super is its own thing. Some, well most, will find the tone uneven and jarring, which is intentional.
The mood swings of Gunn’s script are so apparent, Gunn himself must have had some intention behind it. Knowing the filmmaker’s past work — including the excellent Slither and PG Porn — I wouldn’t put it past him. Gunn is a clever filmmaker, so whenever he takes a turn towards oddness, one must put trust in the man that he knows what he’s doing and is going for something more than oddball-ness. And SUPER, without question, goes into odder territory.
Now this twisted vigilante film ain’t as dark as a film with this subject matter could get, but just enough to make it divisive. This isn’t a film for everyone. Gunn is going for a very specific audience, the ones that’ll get his dark comedic sensibilities. He plays around in so many genres it’s difficult to pin down what the film exactly is, which is a part of the film’s charm.
The surface level material is bloody, pleasantly juvenile, and fairly mean-spirited. Underneath all the mayhem and carnage, there is a sad and lost man at the center of it. Frank D’Arbo (Rainn Wilson) is a broken man. After his wife, Sarah (Liv Tyler), turns back to a life of drugs and leaves him for a charming drug dealer, Jacques (the Kevin Bacon), Frank is left in ruins. With no direction in sight, Frank gets a little visit from God to provide assistance.
That guidance is to pick up a wrench and start cracking the heads of child molesters and movie theater line butters, both crimes obviously going hand in hand. That head-busting alter ego Frank takes on in none other than The Crimson Bolt, who spouts the soon to be classic catchphrase, “Shut up crime!”
Frank’s driving goal is to win his wife back from the ultimate antagonist, Jacques. Jacques is the best type of villain because he’s so damn charming and interesting, which he recognizes himself. He makes Frank look about as fun as going to church on Sundays. There’s a appearance of perfect glee and smugness to Jacques. Bacon makes him the type of guy you’d love to hang out with, as long as does get you involved in his business.
Considering Frank has no chance alone against Jacques, The Crimson Bolt gains a sidekick. That right-hand girl is Libby (Ellen Page), a.k.a Boltie. Libby is annoying, nerdy, narcissistic and, oddly endearing. Libby fluctuates from being sweet to someone that couldn’t get more joy out of stabbing goons brutally to death. Even during her crazier of moments, she’s likable. There’s a different type of charm that Page brings to Libby than what she’s usually recognized for, which makes for a perfect dichotomy of innocence and insanity.
Next month Rainn Wilson will be seen in another memorable film, Hesher, and in both performances he shows a fantastic level of humanity and vulnerability. That type of humanity, which Page and Tyler also bring to the table, makes Super more than just a fluffy one-joke film. Every moment may not strike gold, but the cleverness and uniqueness makes for a fun Taxi Driver inspired violent tale with a twisted and a hopeful heart, deriving from a beautifully done ending.