Kick-Ass

Rating: 4 1/2 Shurikens

I really enjoyed watching Kick-Ass. I decided to go see it when I heard it was based on a comic book by John Romita Jr. I used to read John Romita, Jr.'s work when he drew Frank Miller's Daredevil. Anyway, I recognized the name, so I wanted to see it.

Kick-Ass is a story of a teenager, Dave Lizewski, played by Aaron Johnson. Dave likes comic books, and hangs out in a comic book store. He goes to a rundown inner-city high school, and is not the least bit of a genius or an athlete, or any of the things that are entry-level for super heroes and super villains. He gets the idea to dress up as a super hero, despite having absoutely no skills and abilities beyond those of normal men. In fact, he has no business trying it in the first place. But, he sees a need, and decides to fill it.

Frank Strong, who recently starred in the 2010 Sherlock Holmes as Lord Blackwood, plays the underworld mobster boss, Frank D'Amico. Frank is very rich and powerful, and his son just happens to be an acquaintance of Dave Lizewski. Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who played McLovin in the movie Superbad, is Chris D'Amico, and also dons the costume of the character Red Mist. Nicholas Cage plays the Big Daddy character, who is a Batman-esque character. At one point in the movie, Big Daddy sounds exactly like Adam West's Batman of the 1960's.

Big Daddy is also the father of the pink-haired, pint-sized Hit Girl, played by Chloe Moretz. The Hit Girl character is a real show-stealer, and in my opinion, the best part of the whole movie. Chloe Moretz is as cute as the dickens, and delivers her lines without the slightest hint of difficulty. In short, no pun intended, she is the star of the show. Just saying.

The movie starts out like a teen party movie, like Role Models or Superbad, and soon becomes a really sharp action movie. It is replete with a good deal of violence and strong language, which you would never see in an actual comic book. It also includes a near-endless supply of bad guys for the good guys to kill. The Spirit and Sin City come to mind, as good examples of the cinematography used for the fight scenes.

I rarely go to a movie twice, but this one is worth the second ticket. I don't recommend for children to see it, even though one of the main characters is eleven years old. But if you are 16 or older, you will hopefully be mature enough to deal with the use of the drugs, the more than sexually suggestive scenes, and the really mature language. This movie is a must-see, which I give 4 1/2 shurikens.