Super

Spoiler Level: Medium

Have you heard about this movie?  If it wasn't for a friend of mine being a fan of James Gunn and Nathan Fillion I wouldn't have.  It's the story of an average loser named Frank who loses his wife to a drug dealer. 

The thing is, Frank's a little unhinged.  After he has a vision where God uses naughty anime tentacles to tell him to become a super hero, well... what choice does he have but to become one?  So he comes up with his super hero persona, the Crimson Bolt, and goes on a vigilante spree, thwacking thieves, drug dealers, child molesters and anyone else breaking the law with his trusty wrench.

Now I am not a fan of gore, and I really don't find blood funny.  This movie has a lot of blood, and yet it made me laugh, and laugh hard.  Why?  Is it a Three Stooges kind of thing? Disbelief that he's actually doing it? Wish fulfillment, getting to see bad people get what's coming to them?  Most likely it's a combination of all of these.  All I know is that this movie is at times funny, at times brutal, and at times brutally funny. 

Oh, and disturbing.  Very disturbing.  It has not just one but two rape scenes, and no, they're not funny in the slightest, although they are about as polar opposite as rape scenes can get.

It's not a super hero movie for the faint of heart, but it is a humorous look at what might happen if someone who was just slightly off balance tried to be Batman, what would probably happen to him, and what he might accomplish, both good and bad.  If you can find it-- and if you can take it-- it's definitely worth seeing.

This film is currently showing at art house cinemas and is available via On Demand.  I went with a bunch of my friends to the Harris Theater in Pittsburgh, where it will be showing until May 5; you can find details and show times at their website. On a personal note, it's been a long time since I've gone into the city with my friends to watch an art house movie, and I'm really glad I did.  All five of us enjoyed it and had a good time.