Kick-Ass: When Superheroes Meet Dark Comedy
Matthew Vaughn, the director known for “Stardust,” delves into the question of how far one might go for superhero glory in the darkly comedic action film “Kick-Ass,” featuring the characters Hit-Girl and Kick-Ass.
The Emergence of Kick-Ass
“Why aren’t there real-life superheroes?” This is the question that plagues Dave Lizewski, an ordinary high school student. Donning a ridiculous wetsuit purchased on eBay, he ventures out into the city streets. His initial attempt doesn’t go as planned, leaving him hospitalized with knife wounds and, upon his return to school, labeled as a gay prostitute. However, his second outing proves more successful. After intervening in a street brawl, Dave not only avoids serious injury but also becomes a YouTube sensation when a bystander captures the event on their phone. “I’m Kick-Ass!” Dave exclaims into the camera.
One Western critic described the film as “what if Tarantino directed ‘Spider-Man’?” This sentiment largely rings true. In adapting Mark Millar’s comic book (“Wanted”), director Matthew Vaughn, previously known for adapting Neil Gaiman’s “Stardust,” truly finds his stride. Demonstrating a clear understanding of comic book culture, he blends mockery of comic book geeks with a genuine appreciation for heroes in tights. This combination solidifies his place in the industry, transforming him from Guy Ritchie’s former producer into a promising talent.
The film’s protagonist, the imprudent high schooler Kick-Ass, possesses only one superpower: a heightened pain tolerance resulting from his initial hospital visit. He serves as the perfect, albeit fortunate, punching bag. This almost sadistic humor reaches its peak in scenes where national news anchors proclaim the bewildered Dave as a “mysterious masked savior.” Vaughn astutely observes that in our digital age, where a Facebook page is practically a prerequisite for existence, the traditional “15 minutes of fame” morphs into 20 million views.
Hit-Girl Steals the Show
However, the true driving force behind “Kick-Ass” is the eleven-year-old girl with a purple wig, known as Hit-Girl. She rescues Dave, who arrives at a drug den armed with a taser, from a fate worse than being labeled a gay prostitute. She then vanishes into the night, embodying the essence of a true superhero. Raised by her ex-cop father, Big Daddy (a gleefully mustachioed Nicolas Cage, finally in his element), on a mission of revenge against the local drug lord, she dispatches assassins with the skill of The Bride, bats her eyelashes like Portman, and moves with the determination of The Terminator. Vaughn’s decision to self-finance the film allows him the freedom to depict the necessary amount of dismemberment for Hit-Girl to navigate her path with graceful precision.
By rescuing Kick-Ass from perilous situations, Hit-Girl propels the entire film forward. It gradually evolves from a dark comedy about a high schooler in a wetsuit into a bloody comic book vendetta led by genuine superheroes. Naivety proves to be a formidable force, and adoration ultimately triumphs over mockery. The hero insists that with great power comes great responsibility. But Matthew Vaughn suggests that with great power comes even greater fun.