Super (2010) - Blu-ray Review

Review:

*Originally written March 16th, 2016*

2010's Super is a bizarre little film that was sadly over shadowed and mostly forgotten due its release so close to Kick-Ass, a film with a similar premise and ultra-violence. The comparisons are there and while I feel Super is definitely the weaker of the two films, it still holds up on its own and has its own unique feel and quirk to it.

After losing his wife to a drug dealer played by Kevin Bacon, Rainn Wilson takes up the misguided journey of winning her back by becoming a vigilante called the 'Crimson Bolt', he eventually is joined by Ellen Page's kid sidekick 'Boltie'.

The tones all over the place, it jumps from drama to pitch black comedy mostly very well, but there were a few moments that did not sit well with me at all. The rape scene in particular just felt off to me. Some of the jarring violence also just didn't sit with me either. While being a comedy, the violence is so graphic and gory, like way more than Kick-Ass, which went for more cartoony and over the top. Super on the other hand feels far more grounded with its portrayal of violence, you see people get killed in such brutal and low-key ways that it just felt disgusting. We're meant to root for this guy, but at one point he smashes a guy and woman's heads in with a wrench purely for butting in line, it really drew the line for me in whether I should be rooting for the "hero" of the story.

Rainn Wilson's character Frank is clearly a disturbed guy who justifies his violence and sees his mission as a sort of calling from god, which he sees in his own delusions. So the guy is clearly mentally ill, something I wish was explored a lot more. Wilson's performance was excellent though, I can't imagine anyone else in this role, he goes from pathetic, to sympathetic, to bad-ass over the course of 90 minutes and it felt right.

Ellen Page was also great as the sidekick, although her character was grating at times, she started off as really annoying, but her character grew on me as it went on and she delivers some of the best lines of the whole film. Her character's end is also extremely shocking and unexpected. 

I do appreciate James Gunn's use of practical gore, it truly is horrific and disgusting at times, which I'm sure is the intention. I do sound like I'm being negative about it, but I do really like Super, I like the idea of a more grounded normal man as a superhero film, despite the shortcomings. I don't believe this deserved to flop or be forgotten as much as it did either, but I'm glad Gunn managed to move on and get a gig directing Guardians of the Galaxy, which he did an amazing job with. 

I also really like how it subverted expectations with some of the twists. Involving a subplot with a police officer which comes to an unexpected and abrupt end, and the same with Ellen Page's character who goes down during the final battle.

One of my biggest problems is just how cheap this looks too. It feels very televisual, which is due to the low budget, but it does look ugly despite a nice colour scheme. Some of the editing is also really weird, I didn't like the use of '60s style Batman cartoon fonts popping up either, it just felt weird. 

There was a surprising heart at the centre of it all too, all thanks to Wilson's performance. You really do care for Frank most of the time and at moments it is really touching. Helped by Tyler Bates excellent score which delivers some genuinely nice tracks like "Two Perfect Moments", which I have loved since ever since the films release. 


Super is an angrier and more nasty relative of Kick-Ass, but it still holds its own thanks to Rainn Wilson's performance, Gunn's writing and direction and some nice gore, you just need to look past the bitter taste and the insane tonal shifts.

7/10 Dans

Super is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
Watch the trailer below:

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