I saw the teaser to this on local TV and immediately guessed what the plot might be, and I was right. However, I read heaps of Superman comics as a child in the 60s, and have been reading superhero (along with undergrounds and other types of comics) ever since. The basic scenario is exactly the classic Superman one - arrival on earth and being raised by a childless couple as their own. The are homages all through the film along these lines, like the fact that the in character has an alliterative name, use of blanket into cape, and so on.
But this is NOT Superman's origin story as such. Rather it's someone a lot like him (imagine the Eradicator brainwashing him when he was a teen), and more realistic in how a teen would react , upon discovering that they had super powers. When I saw the film in the cinema, it was obvious it was going to be a horror film by the trailers before it: HOUSE OF CONJURING and the CHUCKY reboot! I have a couple of issues with the film however.
The first is that the audience is given very little reason to care about the main characters. We know almost nothing about Mum and Dad, and Brandon remains much of a cipher throughout the film. Yes, he's 12 years old but we don' see much about his hopes or dreams or aspirations. There's no degree of vulnerability in him, which would have made seeing him turn from a average kid to a super powered killer, shocking. There are a number of opportunities missed because of the lack of character development, and it shows. I had meningitis when 2 years old, and suffered from epilepsy for a dozen years when young, so when the parents keep saying that he's "special" or "different" I found it rather grating. Going out on a tangent here but considering the portrayal we get, Brandon could have been "on the spectrum", which would explain the lack of certain responses, but that's never established in the film.
The other major issue is the excessive use of violence. I have an eye injury phobia, and it was all I could do to stay in the cinema when a MAJOR EYE INJURY happens to one of the victims. Likewise the second major killing is equally gratuitous. We could have had it happen off-screen (and then have a flashback when Brandon's asked about it) and moved on to other moments of prolonged terror. The credit scenes are a cute way of adding story, but on the whole they show the character to be a major nuisance rather than a major threat.
There will be at least one sequel to this - if box office does OK - I'm sure, but I don't know if I want to see one.
But this is NOT Superman's origin story as such. Rather it's someone a lot like him (imagine the Eradicator brainwashing him when he was a teen), and more realistic in how a teen would react , upon discovering that they had super powers. When I saw the film in the cinema, it was obvious it was going to be a horror film by the trailers before it: HOUSE OF CONJURING and the CHUCKY reboot! I have a couple of issues with the film however.
The first is that the audience is given very little reason to care about the main characters. We know almost nothing about Mum and Dad, and Brandon remains much of a cipher throughout the film. Yes, he's 12 years old but we don' see much about his hopes or dreams or aspirations. There's no degree of vulnerability in him, which would have made seeing him turn from a average kid to a super powered killer, shocking. There are a number of opportunities missed because of the lack of character development, and it shows. I had meningitis when 2 years old, and suffered from epilepsy for a dozen years when young, so when the parents keep saying that he's "special" or "different" I found it rather grating. Going out on a tangent here but considering the portrayal we get, Brandon could have been "on the spectrum", which would explain the lack of certain responses, but that's never established in the film.
The other major issue is the excessive use of violence. I have an eye injury phobia, and it was all I could do to stay in the cinema when a MAJOR EYE INJURY happens to one of the victims. Likewise the second major killing is equally gratuitous. We could have had it happen off-screen (and then have a flashback when Brandon's asked about it) and moved on to other moments of prolonged terror. The credit scenes are a cute way of adding story, but on the whole they show the character to be a major nuisance rather than a major threat.
There will be at least one sequel to this - if box office does OK - I'm sure, but I don't know if I want to see one.
Tell Your Friends