Brightburn - a Horrific Superhero Tale
Childless couple in Kansas discovers a baby boy crashed down from a spaceship, and raise him as their own. Boy when he’s older discovers his true parentage and his extraordinary abilities far beyond those of mortal men. We all know this story well as the origin of Superman, but what if he has all of the powers but is a psychopath? That’s the basic concept and story for Brightburn, the new film produced by James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) and written by his brothers Brian and Mark.
The movie stars Elizabeth Banks and David Denman (The Office) as the parents who find the boy in the spaceship and raise him as their own son. Brandon Breyer is his name, keeping the comic book style alliteration that so many characters have. He’s played by Jackson Dunn, who has a very recent comic book movie role as young Scott Lang in Avengers: Endgame.
This movie was okay, but it could have been a better film if they allowed Brandon to have some personality and some depth and added more character development time to the film instead of jumping straight to the horror early on as Brandon hears the calling of his ship which awakens his powers and causes him to snap and become an emotionless socio/psychopath. Leaving him with the emotional range of an Asa Butterfield character, there really isn’t much for him to do here.
I did also like his calling card, that modified “Stussy” S that a lot of us drew on our notebooks in school back in the day.
I feel also that the character feels much like that outsider power fantasy of getting revenge on all who upset you and didn’t see your greatness like so many we see on the news who don’t have powers but have guns, and that part is a little scary.
On the horror side it does have some really cool scenes, effects, and gore, which are entertaining to see as a horror fan in addition to a comic book fan, but the movie’s more interesting aspects as seen in the trailer are all in the credits scene which features a great cameo from long time Gunn collaborator Michael Rooker as a conspiracy theorist YouTube show host ranting about the other freaks in the world, setting up potentially future dark takes on other superheroes which can be a lot of fun, and I’m looking forward to that.
In the end this is a decent movie but it had the potential to be something much more special not unlike the titular character himself
Written by Mike
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BRIGHTBURN was directed by David Yarovesky and stars Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson A. Dunn and asks the question...what if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he couldn't accept that truth, and was sent here to take over our planet, enslaving mankind, and become a God-like being? Basically, think Superman but without morals or a conscience. I was able to catch this movie on a Thursday night viewing ahead of the Friday premiere, and I gotta say, it really did scratch that itch for me. But let's get right down to the bits and pieces of the film itself...
The movie has a very interesting concept that those outside of the comic book community would never even know has existed for...I don't know...forever? I mean, it's something I've always wanted to see in a live action setting that I never got to see in this scope before. So, does the movie pull it off? Sometimes, it does. There were moments in the film where the whole concept just didn't really work for me, but they were few and far between. Some of the CGI effects were pretty noticeably bad, and some of the acting could've been better from the supporting cast, but the end result of this film far outweighs any small issues I had with it.
As for the great parts of this movie? The family this film follows, the Breyers, are incredible together. David Denman and Elizabeth Banks had great chemistry together, as a wife and husband trying to make sense of their child and his awakening powers. They attempt to teach him valuable lessons, but ultimately fail, and we get to see that tormenting their every thought. I mean, I get it, Brandon (played by the very creepy Jackson A. Dunn) might be a being from another world hell-bent on global domination and can kill you with his thumb...but as a parent, the Breyers really did love their son, and you can see that throughout the film. The gore effects for the kills were very cool and in some cases, nauseating to see. The script was great overall, and the film really did keep me engaged throughout. There were some fun nods to Man of Steel throughout the film, with the cinematography, the musical score, and even how they interacted as a family.
But never forget...this is a horror movie. Seriously...that kid was creepy and the way they filmed some scenes totally got under my skin. There were some very cool practical effects, the CGI was not overdone, and the cast was great. I had a ton of fun watching this movie and would gladly watch it again. So, go check out BRIGHTBURN, it's in cinemas now!
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