Aug 16 Super - Blu-ray Review
4.1 Stars (out of 5)
Synopsis
When his wife (Liv Tyler) falls in league with a drug dealer, average guy Frank D'Arbo (Rainn Wilson) dons the guise of a superhero, dubs himself the Crimson Bolt and tries to keep a tag-along comic-book store clerk (Ellen Page) from becoming his sidekick. But it's hard to be a superhero when all you've got to work with is a pipe wrench. Buy Now $13.49
Starring:
Rainn Wilson, Ellen Page, Liv Tyler, Kevin Bacon, Gregg Henry, Michael Rooker, Andre Royo, Sean Gunn, Stephen Blackehart, Linda Cardellini, Nathan Fillion
Director:
James Gunn
Blu-ray Release Date:
August 9, 2011
Subtitles:
English SDH, Spanish
Rating
Overall rating weighted as follows:
Audio 40%, Video 40%, Special Features 20%, Movie - its just our opinion so take it with a grain of salt
Audio 4.1 Stars (out of 5)
Dolby and DTS Demo Discs used as basis for comparison
● Subwoofer - 4.0 Stars
● Dialog - 5.0 Stars
● Surround Effects - 3.5 Stars
● Dynamic Range - 4.0 Stars
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
If you ever wanted to know what a heavy pipe-wrench to the face sounded like, you can here it in this film over and over again. Let me tell you, is sounds a little scary. Sometimes it hits with a thud, sometimes a crack, but whenever it hit someone, I winced. Surround speakers aren't utilized as much as they could for an action movie, but they do feature bullet ricochets with pinpoint accuracy, and help fill the room with fiery explosions. Speaking of explosions, this movie has a few bloody ones, and they are filled with bass and are loud and heavy. Low frequencies are also used to bring bang and heft to several gunshots.
Video 4.4 Stars (out of 5)
Spears & Munsil Benchmark Blu-ray Edition used as basis for comparison
● Color Accuracy - 4.5 Stars
● Shadow detail - 4.5 Stars
● Clarity - 4.0 Stars
● Skin tones - 4.5 Stars
● Compression - 4.5 Stars
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC, Resolution: 1080p, Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1, Original Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
I loved looking at the Crimson Bolt's homemade costume. The clarity of this film was good enough to show all the crazy stitch work. Pinstripes on suits, pockmarks and wrinkles on faces, and blood and gore all look crazy awesome due to the sharp picture and the natural color pallet. Most of the film was shot using a handheld Red One digital camera, and sometimes some shots can have a little extra softness to them. There are several dark scenes in the film, but not much gets lost in the shadows.
Bonus Features 3.5 Stars (out of 5)
● Commentary with James Gunn and Rainn Wilson
● Trailer (1080p, 2:13)
● TV Spot (1080p, 00:33)
● Deleted Scene (1080p, 1:08) That's right, just one.
● Behind the Scenes (1080i, 18:37)
● Making of the Main Titles (1080p, 4:51)
● How to Fight Crime at SXSW (1080p, 3:59): The Crimson Bolt walks the streets of Austin during SXSW.
Movie - 2.5 Stars (out of 5)
Review
Super is a crazy awkwardly funny movie and is sometimes too uncomfortable and even depressing to fully enjoy. Frank is a depressed, dim witted, and clearly insane man who is "chosen" to be a super hero. I felt sorry for him, he is truly pathetic. When he started hitting people in the face with a pipe wrench for cutting in line, I stopped feeling sorry for him and realized he was just crazy. Rainn Wilson gives a decent performance as Frank, but his character is too dark and twisted to understand or even like. The best thing about this movie is Ellen Page. Her lighthearted energetic character is just what this movie needs to even out its darkness. She's just as insane as Frank is, but she's way more likable. Kevin Bacon also gives a good performance as the villain, even though he's the bad guy you still kinda like him.
The violence in this movie is over the top. Heads crack open, people get stabbed while they're on fire, and bodies explode as one of the "heroes" laugh. I understand what this movie is trying to do, but it was hard for me to get on board. I laughed a few times, winched a few more, but I don't think I'll be watching Super again.
Reader Comments (1)
When describing this to my friends the best I could come up with was- think Kick-Ass + Punisher: War Zone + Clockwork Orange.