When Frank’s (Rainn Wilson) wife (Liv Tyler) runs off with a sleaze ball drug dealer (Kevin Bacon) he loses his sense of purpose and falls into a deep depression. Touched by the hand of God Frank decides to become a masked vigilante known as the Crimson Bolt and fight back against the crime and injustice of his small suburban community.
When Super was released theatrically I found the film to be a major disappointment. I don’t know what I was expecting. I certainly didn’t want a carbon copy of Kick-Ass and to its credit Super is decidedly different from that comic book caper. The problem is that Super is as bi-polar as its main character as it jumps from being an absurd comedy to a dark, violent and malevolent decent into madness.
Watching the film a second time, and then a third with the audio commentary by director/writer James Gunn (Scooby Doo, Slither) and Wilson, the runaway violence and escalating insanity that consumes Frank seems more appropriate. The tone is still wildly inconsistent but even the ultra-violent behavior of Frank’s sidekick Boltie (Ellen Page) feels more like a comment on modern society than bad writing.
If you didn’t see Super during its theatrical run you’ll want to at least give the film a rent. I don’t know that it will ever capture the cult status it desperately wants but it is better than I initially gave it credit for.
The bonus features are highlighted by the lively and informative audio commentary and a look at the making of the animated title sequence. The rest are rather fluffy and unnecessary unless you like watching Rainn Wilson run around Austin dressed in his Crimson Bolt costume shouting, “Shut up crime!”