It's rare when I dedicate a review just to a DVD I've seen, but I feel like this deserves one.Super was a movie that came out in a very limited run. In fact, it came out the weekend of WonderCon and I had fully intended on attending a screening that day, but due to circumstances out of my control (in short a 'friend' effed up) I didn't get to see it that day. After that weekend, I couldn't find a theater in the area that was playing it. Even the Art House theaters in the area didn't seem to have it. This was just one of those movies I just wasn't going to be able to see in the theater.
So what's Super about? It stars Rainn Wilson as kind of a schlubby loser. He's a short order cook and married to a woman, played by Liv Tyler, who is a recovering drug addict. He comes home one day to find that his wife has moved out without any real explanation. He's able to track her down and finds that she's hanging out with a drug dealer, played by a great Kevin Bacon.
After trying desperately to get his wife to come back to him, Wilson goes home and prays for a sign for what to go. Eventually, he is given a sign that he interprets that he needs to become a superhero and he comes up with the Crimson Bolt.
At this point, I'm sure you're thinking this is like Kick-Ass, and it is in a sense, only Super is much more real and brutal than Kick-Ass. The Crimson Bolt is the most brutal superhero you've ever seen on film. The movie is very real in it's depiction of the violence for the most part. The Crimson Bolt's weapon of choice is a simple pipe wrench and he beats the living hell out of people with it. In Super, the violence is very real. When he hits someone with his wrench, I'd say the results are pretty accurate.
It's pretty clear watching this that the Rainn Wilson's character isn't all there and is a sociopath. He's eventually joined by Ellen Page's character, who is even crazier and more sociopathic than he is. She's so bad that it actually brings Wilson's character back down to Earth a little bit.
At this point, I'm sure you're thinking this is like Kick-Ass, and it is in a sense, only Super is much more real and brutal than Kick-Ass. The Crimson Bolt is the most brutal superhero you've ever seen on film. The movie is very real in it's depiction of the violence for the most part. The Crimson Bolt's weapon of choice is a simple pipe wrench and he beats the living hell out of people with it. In Super, the violence is very real. When he hits someone with his wrench, I'd say the results are pretty accurate.
It's pretty clear watching this that the Rainn Wilson's character isn't all there and is a sociopath. He's eventually joined by Ellen Page's character, who is even crazier and more sociopathic than he is. She's so bad that it actually brings Wilson's character back down to Earth a little bit.
While you might not like Wilson's character, his performance is great. He's very emotional and shows a range you aren't used to seeing from him on The Office.
The movie does take a bit to get going, but it has a short run time at about 98 minutes and once the superhero stuff starts, it's pretty much non-stop.
The performances are all great here. This is essentially a four person film: Wilson, Page, Bacon and Tyler. There's also a small role from Michael Rooker and a great cameo from Nathan Fillion as The Holy Avenger.
The movie was written and directed by James Gunn, who also made Slither, which was another film I liked a lot. This was also made on a very small budget (only about $2.5 million), but you can't tell. They really got a lot out of the money they spent.
I'll admit this movie might not be for everyone. If you don't like dark characters or comedy, then this won't be for you, nor if you don't like superhero films.
For everyone else though, I highly recommend renting this as soon as you can.
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