User reviews

Here comes a new superhero movie from… Chile? Why not? This is not a typical superhero story. In fact 'super' is downright inaccurate while 'hero' just barely applies – at first.

Marko Zaror, a stuntman and reputed martial artist, stars as Maco, a quiet and respectful bouncer working at a local strip club. When not working, Maco is a fitness and workout nut. The seemingly gratuitous scenes showing Maco working out, charting calories, and taking amino acids seem like filler at first, but what the film is doing is introducing the character and showing his solitary life that contains little meaning outside of fitness and his institutionalized brother.

Maco's family was brutally attacked three years earlier. In the attack, the father and mother were murdered, the youngest brother beaten and sodomized, and Maco was beaten to near death. Since that time Maco has been training, working out, fanatically practicing martial arts for… something. Maco's brother is in a mental hospital due to the severe trauma of the murder and rape.

One night while jogging Maco stumbles across a robbery in progress outside of a suburban house. After instinctively disabling one bad guy, Maco hears screams coming from inside the house. Maco grabs the bad guy's mask and enters, surprising the bad guys and saving the day. One of the rescued victims is ambitions tabloid television reporter Carol V (María Elena Swett).

Carol V broadcasts a commentary piece the next night on her television show in which she calls the man that rescued her a "hero" without a Batmobile or cape. Maco is stunned by the reaction and the gears in his head start clicking. The gears become unstoppable when Maco visits his brother at the institution. For the first time since the attack, Maco's brother is responsive. It seems he was inspired by the report of the regular guy superhero. Maco then becomes convinced that he can stop the type of evil that happened to his parents, inspire his brother to get better, and perhaps earn the adoration of such public as Carol V.

"Mirageman" is a difficult and ultimately rewarding movie. In it's short 87 minute running time, "Mirageman" changes tone three different times. By far the most amusing scenes come early in Maco's career as Mirageman. Mirageman has to fight what would be the first real life challenge of any superhero: Practicality. Mirageman has to overcome cumbersome costume difficulties which include time required to change into the costume and where to stash his non-hero clothes. And of course transportation. Although Maco's "origin story" is similar to Bruce Wayne, Maco is no billionaire. His costume is pieced together from a sporting goods store and he owns no car. At first he takes the bus when battling villainy.

"Mirageman" also revels in the belly-bouncing glee of how a superhero must hold himself while walking around. "The Dark Knight" and "Spider-Man" never shows the viewer what it's like when the Caped Crusader or the Web-Slinger has to, say, simply walk up stairs or down a hallway. How would they act while doing the mundane? Marco deals with that as Mirageman. The extended sequences showing the costumed Mirageman 'creeping' in bright sunlight with his arms held to ready like an arcade game are both funny and uncomfortably awkward.

The second tone of "Mirageman" deals with the life of a hero after he's sorta figured it out. This includes the surprising public reaction to their very own superhero and the ways that a simple masked man trying to do good can be exploited and become something of which he never wished. Maco also has to deal with what fans he has and hopefully deal with that embarrassing transportation issue. Maybe a sidekick would be just the thing?

Maco goes through many transformations during the movie. I honestly can't remember more than one or two lines that Zaror has as Maco. Most of the character building is deftly conveyed using what the viewer already knows about 'superheros' and situational drama. Although he never says it, we feel Maco's pain, inadequacies, and sense of justice.

The third tone is set as Maco has to deal with these issues and the very real likelihood that, in order the make a real difference, he may have to risk it all.

The last act is brutal and realistic – a sharp contrast when compared to the relative camp of the opening act. One gets the feeling that this is what it would be like to take that mantel of responsibility.

Mirageman is left exploring a final question. Does he truly want to be a Hero?

from www.PopBunker.net @popbunker

This is rational and perspective review:

If created in US, this movie would be laughable, ridiculed by all, and reduced to its own special place on a shelf in your local video store. The main actor would receive invitation to be an extra in a movie directed by Dolf Lundgren, and from there he would slowly grow as an actor, until the highlight of his career will be playing a bodyguard for a villain in a movie directed by Uwe Boll.

But since it's not, since this was created in Chile and has this special exotic smell, it goes to film festivals and gets screenings at the theaters. The main actor will still receive invitation to be in a Dolf Lundgren's movie, but that is not the point.

The movie looks like an amateur action/martial arts movie, but actually has a little more to offer.

The martial arts are good, and although it's not Tony Jaa good, the important thing is that it looks and feels very real. That is a first achievement. There are some funny scenes, sort of self humor, that have this WTF? potential and will make you laugh. Like when the Mirageman jumps from height to land bad on the hard asphalt, and then he rubs his foot, like it really hurt him. This small self humor is another achievement.

The story is rubbish, of course, full with melodramatic moments and silly situations. The production value is very poor, some of the street scenes were filmed with hidden camera and the reaction of people is real.

The Mirageman is not bold thematically, and mainly uses primitive and stereotypical tearful situations to awake some emotions in the viewer and create an empathy toward the heroic protagonist. You will find just a little complexity in this movie.

But Mirageman explores some difficult issues too, like what people are capable of in order to get famous, the price of fame and what is it mean to be a hero and what are the reasons to be one.

Overall the watching experience is very decent, and it even gets some big reinforcement by the ending, which is surprisingly good. The ending puts all the movie in the correct proportions, tights properly the plot, and delivers the movie as a good and solid product. The ending is the final and the biggest achievement.

This movie would've been bad in the 70's where it belongs. It is exponentially bad for 2007. It was so obviously bad that I just went with it, like clearly this movie is going for ludicrous. The fight choreography was amateurish, the cinematography was high school level, and the plot was paltry.

"Mirageman" is "Kick-Ass" minus the novelty. "Meteor Man" minus the superpowers. "Blankman" minus the laughs. "Batman" minus everything. It was a 70's, low-budget, American-made, kung-fu movie in Spanish.

A masked man named Maco Guttierez (Marko Zaror), who barely speaks the entire movie, decides to fight crime in Chile in a cartoonish fashion. He even runs like a Japanese anime character. He fights crime in a place where people in groups attack him one at a time, and he has a thing for a pretty news reporter named Carol Valdivieso (Maria Elena Swett). If he was younger with a shell he could be a teenage mutant ninja turtle.

Maybe in Chile this movie was a hit, and even still they'd had to have been devoid of U. S. cinematic entertainment for years. This movie was neither creative, entertaining, or good.

I really really really enjoyed this movie. It carried an emotional & self effacing quality to it. From his love for his tragic brother to his meager attempts at heroic acts. This story tells a literally realistic way, in a comic book style of course, how one could be become a comic book vigilante. There were many levels & details to this film, his comical attempt to design his costume (with homage doodles) and the build up of the final design by his institutional brother's own nightmarish drawings that then ascend to the dream of a hero. I mean the intensity of it really worked for me. I fell for the feelings, the tragedy, the loss and hope.

And it was funny! He had to stop, pull of his mask, and wipe the fog off the lenses! Subtle but awesome! Realistic setup as opposed to over written contrived setup comedy, you know, the kind you laugh it because it makes sense, not because it was setup via caricatures and over acted 2ndary characters.

If not Tony Jaa, then gosh darn close! I could easily go from Tony to Marko and enjoy both thoroughly. And I'd take both over big Hollywood comic book heroes! Though I'd enjoy all just the same.

Full review on my blog max4movies: Mirageman is a low-budget action movie that focuses on a more or less realistic story of a bouncer turned vigilante. The independent production lacks in cinematography and the plot and the comedic undertones may not always work as effectively as they should. However, this doesn't mean that Mirageman is simply a cheap copy of similarly themed movies like Kick-Ass with a considerably higher budget and well-known actors. The stunt work and choreography are impressive and the gritty performances make the movie feel realistic and compelling. The movie also never takes itself too seriously, which makes for some light-hearted and funny bits - that are also accompanied by some more serious discussions about the morality of vigilante actions in general. In total, Mirageman is a convincing and entertaining action movie package.

This is another very good pairing of Chile's Mark Zaror and Ernesto Díaz Espinoza in a martial arts action film. This film surrounds Zaror's attempt to become a vigilante after the murder of some family members. The film has real heart and some very good fight scenes. It is a great vehicle for Zaror to display his fighting skills. The training scenes are among the best you will see in any film. The film is low budget, and that shows in its cinematography and, especially, in its musical score. The acting is good. The script is original. Zaror is great, and in this one he does not take himself too seriously. It is no wonder he has become one of the most sought after so-stars for martial arts and action films, including John Wick 4.

At the time I wrote this review, this movie had 6.6/10 * rating and if you compare that to other movies on IMDb, that definitely is a too high score for 'Mirageman'.

You can tell, the production isn't the best. Camera work below average. Post-production low standard. Sound is okay and at least the main actors were well chosen probably to bait you into watching. Marko Zaror, who's playing our superhero, definitely has the body and fighting skills necessary.

The plot is very superhero typical, a guy who wants to fight crime due to family reasons and makes his own costume and falls in love with some newsreporter chick.

So overall, this isn't a COMPLETE trash movie since they did some things right, but I'd still call it pretty much trash since it does not keep up with movies that have a higher box office; this is definitely a low-budget movie and not a very outstanding one.

Please do not fall for the high rating and the cool looking cover. You will be merely disappointed in wasting your money for this one. Trust me only this one time, thank you.

Zaror's last movie, Kiltro, and this one, are incredibly fun to watch; the best time I've ever have in the cinema was watching them. Mirageman, in any case, is not only fun (the comical depictions of "typical" Chilean stuff are great!), but the social and psychological part of it is moving. Zaror's character is lovable, you can't help to feel the rightness of his cause, in a much deeper way than other superheroes movies like Spiderman, cause he is real! The TV's abuse on Miragamen is also a good metaphor on how the Chilean media is. The only thing I hope is that they don't make a second part... Anyways, watching this movie is money well spent, super recommended :)

When you hear "superhero movie," its almost a given you think larger than life characters with over the top action scenes and heavy special effects. Sadly what I imagine will be lost on many potential viewers is that Mirageman is supposed to be what would happen if someone in the real world decided to become a superhero.

Sure, there have been famous superheroes before whose only "power" has been knowing karate, but Mirageman does a great job setting up the realistic consequences of someone putting on a mask to fight crime. His martial arts are impressive but they're very real, with no camera tricks or special effects to make them look cooler. He doesn't have a police scanner or anything, so he has to rely on people emailing him their problems to find out where to be (which some people abuse, naturally).

Mirageman is no god among men either; he gets surprised, beaten within an inch of his life and wonders what the hell made him think he could do this after a disastrous setback. But in the end, he realizes in a cynical world like ours one ordinary person can make a difference if they've got the courage to try.

Mirageman isn't your average blockbuster superhero movie, but if you're willing to accept it for it differences, you won't be disappointed.

OK Where do I begin , let's see. First of all the movies plot is excellent, where a normal and simple Club Bouncer transforms himself to be Chileans first Super hero but the man has nothing super about him, all he has is balls and a good martial arts background , but it just doesn't cut it. The movie had all the good ingredients to be an alright flick but needed more of every thing from action to good acting, as well as a bit more of creativity , where as we see many repeated stories from other super hero movies, Example the journalist that the hero falls for(Superman) , the making of the Super Heroe Costume (Spiderman) the looking down from a high rise building etc.... WE also see a super hero that gets his butt kicked and suffers from depression, honestly cant have that. All in all the movie needed a couple of key ingredients to pass the test, I honestly hope that there will never be a MIRAGEMAN 2 because it doesn't deserve a second part and well this being Marko Zaror's second movie as a starring role he clearly needs acting classes or just stick to being a stunt man.

So, you fancy a film which contains a lot of butt-kicking, off-beat humour and a gritty underlining theme? Whoa, wait, there also has to be plenty of satire.

Not after much, are you? Well fear not, because Mirageman delivers!!!

Ripped into by some, unknown to most, and establishing himself a solid fanbase with a select few, Marco Zaror was kick-arse long before the comic ever existed; he had the e-mails, the dodgy outfit, the bad haircut... But about the film:

Obsessed with being in a prime condition to defend himself after BLAH (generic vigilante background psychology), one night our soon-to-be hero jogs into the scene of a crime in progress and then it's all a blur: his training takes over, he KICKS BUTT! Yes, this is what he was training himself for all this time. Yet it's not clear to him until one of the women he rescued turns out to be a wannabe TV reporter who thanks him on the news at 11.

Okay, so now what's a boy to do if he wants to become the next Batman?

Going through a range of ridiculous kits and taking the bus to places where trouble may lurk, "Chile's national hero", as the HOT - now bona fide - TV reporter dubs him, finds his exploits methodically covered as she cashes in on her looks (I mentioned that she's HOT, right?) and his antics for a winning combination.

But for how long can a dude in a mask stay in the public eye? How much of an impact can one man beating up bag-snatchers make on society? It's at this point that the film takes it up a notch and we see that it has a whole other level of depth, as it effortlessly pivots from light-heartedness-to-something dark; from the downright hilarious-to-sheer brutality for a grand finalé.

So if you're looking for something a bit different, do yourself a massive favour and check out Mirageman; you may be disappointed but there's an 8/10 chance that you'll like it!

Excellent film, very good storyline and awesome action sequences. All the fights in this movie are in real time (no slow-motion then speed-up technique) and are done by the main actor Marko Zaror (Maco). All this makes it very realistic, honest and really fun to watch. I'm glad that this kind of films are made in Chile. I think the movie is great, it keeps you entertained all the time with vivacious action and a solid plot. I'm from Chile and I happen to know Marko from school (I was friends with his brother) and he always was influenced by the martial arts so I'm happy that he is doing what he most likes. I highly recommend this movie, you are in for a great treat!!

This film has poignant moments, is not a simple movie superheroes, has a great storyline. The director showed great potential and hopefully made ​​a sequel, the hero has a great charisma and great potential for a sequel. The Chilean film is to be congratulated, highly recommend it! Marko Zarkor showed an excellent performance in this movie, so much so that later worked with Robert Rodriguez in "Machete Kills". The film also contains fight scenes that simulate the old films of Bruce-Lee, for a low budget production, is to be congratulated It also has a scene of romance that includes the music of David Bowie- "Life on Mars" - chosen at a specific time, which produces a perfect scene. Regardless, shows little scenes shaped HQ that translates the perfect feeling of the film: the instinct of superhero. Other than that, we also have a helper funny,also have a funny helper showing a moment of comedy to the film , summarizing the movie in one word : Exceptional

I just saw this film 30th September 2009. I think it had some good fight scenes. This is an action packed film compared to the poorer Kiltro. It has many fight scenes. Marko actually hit and kicked the bad guys for real in this film. The only problem was, it was nearly all the times too difficult to see that. The camera angle's could have been better. As could the editing. I think they did too much of this quick cut editing.

I think Marko actually punched too fast in some of the fights. He punched so fast i couldn't see them. I think they should have told him to slow down, so the viewers could actually see the punches. I didn't like the sound effect's they used for the punches. I think it literally lacked punch and bass. Other than that, it was good. I really liked the reporter in this film named Carol Valdivieso.

I was just glued to screen every time she appeared. I love those fine dark brown eyes. What a looker!. But, one thing i didn't like was that she dyed her hair blond later in the film. I think she looked best with brown hair. So, if you was disappointed like me after watching Kiltro, you will be more happy to watch this film. As said, many more fights than Kiltro.