TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

cricketbat I feel that Kick-Ass would have been better as a PG-13 movie. Sure, this would have upset the comic book fanboys, but the strong, vulgar language and intense violence are distractions from the heart of this movie. At its core, this is an inspiring film about humanity rising to its full potential and it's a fresh take on the superhero genre. The acting, plot, costume design, art direction, cinematography and soundtrack are all very well done, but I think the general public didn't embrace this movie because it is, simply, too much.

shoquandasmith Kick Ass was a surprise hit both commercially and critically when it was released, and one can see why. It is probably as anti-superhero as one can get and it is visceral- which is something you do not see in risk averse big budget superhero films. Nicholas Cage is a worthy guru to Aaron Taylor and his sidekick- the ass kicking Chloe Moretz. Do not go in with any expectation and you will be pleasantly surprised. A special mention to the cinematography and fights department who really shine through.

The Movie Diorama Matthew Vaughn found his style with this film, a style that would later become a trademark for his most successful franchise 'Kingsman'. Excessively stylised action that excel in showcasing gratuitous violence with comedic flair. All blending into a light hearted story in the name of entertainment. Yet, Kick-Ass is slightly more intelligent in its execution than the average action flick. A high schooler is tired of being invisible, so he creates a superhero alter ego in a bid to fight crime and become noticeable. Utilising a standard formula for any superhero origin story and flipping it upside down by becoming a self-referential comedy. By allowing its own awareness to seep through the plot, it suddenly becomes hilarious and that is exactly what this film needed in order to differentiate itself from the clustered genre it resides in. Then applying Vaughn's glossy use of blood and guts spewing from every direction, the film suddenly becomes intelligent and entertaining simultaneously. It's just ludicrous fun. During its deconstruction of the genre, there are times that the plot succumbs to the clichés it sets to avoid and thus becomes predictable for the most part. Fortunately, an interesting cast list keeps the narrative flowing. Moretz is the foul-mouthed "Hit Girl", the always eccentric Cage is "Big Daddy" and Johnson the optimistic protagonist "Kick-Ass". Cage and Strong gave the best performances with natural comedic execution to their dialogue, particularly the former who forcefully communicates like a broken robot. Johnson played the alter ego well, but unfortunately didn't really suit the nerdy character of Dave. The action, for the most part, was well edited although certain scenes felt slightly haphazard, especially the final shootout which was crazily mental. Overall, I admire the intentions of Kick-Ass. It's light, fun and entertainingly humorous. A more exciting plot would've elevated the originality, but Kick-Ass definitely kicks ass.

fcabanski The first half of the movie set up an epic superhero story. But in the end there was nothing epic - no epic story, no epic resolution, no epic fights, no epic characters.Dave, Kick Ass, the main hero, ended up being just a regular guy that could ride a hero's coat tails.The movie should have been named Ghost Girl and Big Daddy.In the end we learn that hero's are just regular people who decide to make a difference. Duh.It's like the writers got bored half way, or they ran out of ideas half way. "Crap, we have to make an ending to this!" The movie is like a roller coaster that brings you up to the top of a precipice. You look down at a 10,000 foot drop, thinking, "how the heck am I going to survive the ride down!!!???" Then a door opens at the side. "That's the end of the ride."