Review: Kick-Ass 2 (2013)

Let me preface this post by saying, first and foremost, that I am a huge Kick-Ass fan.  I loved the original film to death and consider it to be one of the best super hero flicks ever made.  The charm (if that’s the right word) of the original movie was in that it did not follow the conventional appeal of super hero films.  Kick-Ass was a story about normal (or rather slightly abnormal) people trying to make a difference by taking on the task of defending and avenging the innocent.  That being said, Kick-Ass 2, while it does still contain many things that are reminiscent of the first film, is less gritty and, therefore, a less potent addition to the franchise.

The general story follows the villain Red Mist (now known as the Mother F*cker) as he gathers together a group of like-minded baddies and sets out to take his revenge on Kick-Ass, the man that murdered his father with a bazooka.  At the other side of the fight, Kick-Ass is trying to get his skills up with the help of Hit-Girl.  Unfortunately, real life interferes with the underage Hit-Girl and she must step back from being a super hero for a while.

So what else is Kick-Ass to do but go in search of other heroes to join up with?  He meets with Justice Forever, a group organized by Colonel Stars and Stripes, a former mafia man turned born-again Christian.  Together, this group of wanna-be heroes patrols the streets and takes the fight to the criminals.  Eventually, The Mother F*cker goes after the group, killing one of their members and beating one into the hospital.  And so Kick-Ass, Hit-Girl and the others must engage in their final showdown with the villain and all his cronies.

The biggest problem with Kick-Ass 2 is that it is devoid of most of the harsh reality that made the first film the great story that it was.  People get punched in the face but have no bruises, people get hit with iron poles in the head and then get up to continue the fight as if nothing happened, and even when one character gets beat nearly to death, she still seems as if she maybe just took a spill from her bicycle, a few scraps here, a few bruises there.  No longer does the movie feel as if there are cold, hard consequences to being a super hero.  Gone is the horror of having a loved one set on fire and burned to death because you decided to fight crime.

In its defense, the movie does have quite a few fun scenes.  The humor is a bit over the top, unfortunately, so much of it feels a bit slapstick.  Once the film gets to the point where Hit-Girl is back in the fight and everyone is trading punches, it resumes in a very Kick-Ass fashion.  And Mother Russia is probably one of the coolest, most vicious villains ever created.  But, in the end, it still feels like a comic book film, where even if people die it’s not the people you really care about so it’s all okay.

I blame the change of director on the decline in the quality of the franchise.  It’s unfortunate, and I do wonder if they’ll even try to take on Kick-Ass 3, though Millar has expressed that he would like to finish the series up with a third flick.  If the do, they really need to bring back Matthew Vaughn.  If you liked the first film, you'll probably like this one as well, but don't expect anything ground-breaking.

Photo Credits -           

Kick-Ass 2 courtesy of metro.us