Ok, I’ll admit this blog post is about three months overdue. Although, I’d argue that it’s really never too late to draw attention to a good movie or an awesome young female character.
So I’m just going to proceed.
Last night I ended up watching the movie Kick-Ass on bootleg. I had dismissed the film when it came out back in April due to its seemingly lame premise (high school comic-book nerd wants to be a superhero and get laid, blah, blah, blah).
It turned out to be far more enjoyable than I would have ever expected–not a cinematic gem, but far from a total crap-fest.
There was comedy. There was action. There was a shocking amount of violence. But more importantly, there was an ass-kicking little 11 year-old girl who completely outshone her spandex-wearing vigilante male counterparts.
Her real name is Chloe Moretz and she’s actually an adorable 13 year-old actress who has appeared in quite a few TV shows and films, including the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror and 500 Days of Summer. She also has several movies lined up.
Hit-Girl reminded me a lot of Natalie Portman’s character in The Professional, just far more bad ass and far less sexual.
Words can’t even express how awesome it was to watch a young female repeatedly outsmart and outlast burly thugs twice her age without using her sexuality.
Instead, she uses impressive knife slinging and sweet kung-fu moves.
That being said, it’s no surprise that Hit-Girl wasn’t openly embraced by some critics. In fact, Roger Ebert found it “morally reprehensible” that the film would show a child cursing like a sailor and brutally murdering countless evil-doers with no remorse.
While I suppose this is a valid argument, ultimately, we’re talking about an R-rated movie adapted from a comic series set in the present day. Perhaps critics unfamiliar with the series had just assumed Hit-Girl would be more Powder Puff.
If anything, I was more disturbed by Nick Cage’s character (aka. “Big Daddy” aka. Hit Girl’s father) who goes from looking like a child molester by day to a wannabe Batman by night. A pretty creepy father-figure if ya ask me.
But anyway, despite mixed reviews, Kick-Ass pulled $20 million at the box office and Kick-Ass 2: Balls To The Wall is already in the works.
I’m really hoping the sequel is followed by a Hit-Girl spin-off. Hell, can someone please give that girl her own comic series? It only seems right considering how many times she saves Kick-Ass’ ass.
For those of you who haven’t seen the movie yet, it comes out on DVD on Aug. 3rd. I recommend adding it to your Netflix queue now.
Or you can just go the illegal route and watch it tonight.
[Image: RottenTomatoes.com]
