marxthedude

In a movie industry cluttered with own-grown hype, gimmicks and lack of idea, "Kick Ass" bursts onto the screen and shatters all expectations in it's wake. You're on this page because you think it's gonna be good? Wrong. Or you're here because you think it looks a decent or a good superhero movie to join the ranks of the ones you already love? DEAD wrong. Reason being, is "Kick Ass"doesn't want to be good or above average, "Kick Ass" wants to be great and it has the balls to want to be original too. Seemingly impossible in a done to death genre where we've already glimpsed Mark Millar's signature style in "Wanted", but "Kick Ass" is all about the unexpected.

Make no mistake, nothing you believe of this movie compares to what Vaughn and co. serve up for you. Mainly because everyone involved seems determined to honour the comic and redefine a genre. Most movies entertain, but this one? It wants to BLOW YOU AWAY! Less smarter movies have done that but "Kick Ass" ain't giving that up either. It's script is razor-sharp, dumping the pretension of "the burden of heroism" crippling even the better superhero films, showing this in actions rather than long drawn out emoting. Matthew Vaughn has finally solved the hurdle that all superhero movies suffer, namely how to get to know and love your characters without long drawn out scenes. He does it by keeping them moving. The more they do, the more they try, the more you know and love them. And make the narrative interesting and most of all relatable so we're with Dave 100% of the way, it doesn't just have to functional.

The real visual joy of "Kick Ass" is it's desire to keep it simple but not at the expense of wowing us. Make characters do cool things, instead of Michael Bay-esquire things happening to them. That's why they exude coolness, despite Dave's almost humdrum existence. This is the everyman doing the things we could do if wanted to; not a guy from another reality or possessed with great drive and ambition. Dave wants to get laid. He wants to be hip. Even your bad guy in this is believable. Watching the whirlwind that is Hit Girl perform a routine almost straight out of Jackie Chan's Hong Kong days stuns us in a way no big screen chase ever could. Visually the film takes all the thing we DID love from the movies that ultimately didn't zing and churns them into a finely balanced flawless brew.

Did I mention it's feel good? From it's inspired use of music (again utterly relatable) right down to it's outstanding score, like "Get Carter" for superheroes; I could say more but there's surprises in store.

In a movie this stunning, acting is usually secondary (as any James Cameron film shows). Not a bit of it. In a cast as eclectic as the styles the film embraces you have performances that set a benchmark for all concerned. Can Mark Strong already better his stellar work? See his menacing and humorous turn as D'Amico, a career best. Christopher Mintz Plasse follows "Role Models" by breaking out of McLovin mode. His guy has layers and he can show them. Nicolas Cage as expected returns to his past glories playing larger than life eccentric characters but not without a little sadness too. Joining him is Chloe Moretz forever destined to be remembered for her first major role. She idolised Angelina Jolie apparently. Guess what, you trounced any action movie she has ever made! Moretz dominates any scenes she's in, no easy task considering her fellow cast! Aaron Johnson has the most difficult job of all. Being an original uber-geek after Michael Cera set the standard (anyone who's seen "Zombieland" knows it's hard to write an original geek even in a great movie). He shakes it, redefines it and OWNS it. He leads the movie like he wrote it, joined by a cast where even the smallest roles are fully fleshed out. It's quite an ensemble. A renegade band of acting styles forming a perfect one and complementing the film's fun style.

Watching "Kick Ass" is ultimately like being on a thrill-ride, it doesn't just want to dazzle you, it's wants to draw you in, ride the wave and leave the cinema on a high. And it doesn't do that with gimmicks or tried and tested formula's, it breaks the mold, shakes conventions and wants you to be surprised while complementing all the movies you already love. It's not just a movie, it's a standard, one that promises to prove movies like this can be written with great heart and brain.

And ultimately you'll be leaving the screen thinking "Wow, let's do that again" no matter how many agains come before it.

"Chaved up" for the millennium comes a timely if unwanted remake of the 'St. Trinian' films of the sixties. St. Trinians is the worst school in the country known for bad grades and unruly behaviour and an equally eccentric and unruly headmistress, Miss. Fritton, it's targeted for severe investigation by Education new broom Geoffrey Thwaites. With the bank looming round the door, things pad out even worse for the school. Even Fritton's caddish brother plans to twist the knife to make money from the school's misfortune, even with his daughter's recent enrolment. This as such serves the plot for the unruly behaviour to ring out, cue a bizarre heist, a "University Challenge" style quiz and general anarchy in the name of saving the school. But it's here 'Trinians' is woefully misguided. What was considered anarchy and amusingly unusual behaviour in the time of the original films, simply is the teenage norm now. Drug-peddling, booze loving, flirtatious schoolgirls are more a problem these days then a source for comedy so the underlying tone becomes somewhat sinister. The film tries to have it's cake and eat it. Drinking is only implied by kids, never actually seen and only older characters are seen dispensing 'uppers' and 'downers' to unwitting participants for 'amusing results'. 'Poshy totty' flirt and dress provocatively but never actually are seen in an embrace. It's this kind of humour which proves even worse baring in mind it's target audience. It takes the film to a seedy and unpleasant level, pitching knowing drug-jokes at kids, many of which ask us to laugh at people 'buzzing' many of whom have had drinks spiked. Definitely the films lowest low. Family friendly? I don't think so.... How this film ended up with a '12a' certificate in the UK is beyond me! Add to this unwanted sexual jokes and you have a film far too adult for kids but too childish for adults. Of course, with some nifty direction and timing, 'Trinians' could maybe make this fly, but the film has neither. The characterisation poor, the plot threadbare, painfully predictable and struggling to add up. The resolvent of the key heist rendered pointless when the exact object of theft isn't even needed. Even when 'Trinians' is aiming for smart it fails. Numerous 'Girl With A Pearl Earring' jokes are no doubt lost on it's key audience, probably thankfully as they are of 'christmas cracker' standard at best. Colin Firth is top of his game in a film you'd assume he'd be out of place in, TV personality, Russell Brand, you'd believe has been thrust into the proceedings to score some street cred, but thankfully is more than acceptable but the usually excellent Rupert Everett is hamming it up just a notch too much here. Kudos go to it's teenage cast (one has to weep at the already pretty Talulah Riley, given a 'slutted-up' makeover in one scene). Overall the acting is decent, making even the worst of lines bearable. The film tries to whip up a frenzy of enthusiasm and fun, but as UK girl group Girls Aloud stomp on in the finale shouting a song about 'discount rates for Chavs and their mates' you pretty much feel the whole thing is just tawdry and cheap. Much like it's level of humour and even more upset tingly, it's level of decency.

In the last entry in the 'Popsicle' series we have somewhat of a conflict, namely a slight return to form but a compromise of content. The Popsicle series has had many twists and turns during it's reign, it started out as a raunchy Iserali 'American Graffiti' homage, branching into a series of entertaining, if dopey, sex comedies and then, from Episode 6 onwards, a shameless cash-in on it's former glory, complete with bored cast members and non-existent stories. So it ends as bizarrely as it started, as a German teen movie. Raunchy content is more-or-less ditched in favour of a more family friendly approach, keeping in line with the TV edits of the previous movies very popular on German television. The boys are back, older but not much wiser, with yet another name change (do the translators even watch previous entries??) this time aspiring to open a Hawiaan-style bar with a little help from a rich investor. The key to his help is the rich investor's daughter who has long harboured a crush on bad boy Bobby (Momo) who has no interest in romancing a geeky accident prone nerd to gain the necessary cash to make Hughie/Yuhadle/Johnny's (!!) dream a reality. Interestingly it develops that Zachi Noy's multi-named character is the love-lorn one here replacing Benzi's usual character-ark and in the process giving him little to do. Bobby or Momo has a nice change of pace exhibiting a possible softer side but proving by the final reel that the new writers keep Bobby in check. To say it's flawed is an understatement, it's certainly nowhere near as interesting as the first entry but thankfully seems like 'Gone With The Wind' compared to the previous one! This time the German producers have paid for proper versions of GOOD songs from the era and the new writers at least have bothered with a thread of story (although typically twee and easy) and took the characters (bar poor Benzi) is some new directions. Shame they forget to up the laughs and give the Popsicle fans some scantily clad babes in the process. At least it's a fitting end to this branch of the series, if a watered down one.