Culture

Rating: 3/5

Being a big fan of the original Kick-Ass film, I was prepared to be let down by the sequel. In particular, I was dubious as to whether the new director, Jeff Wadlow, would manage to reproduce certain aspects of the original film, such as the stylistic violence sequences and the low-key comic book feel.

A director always faces an added level of pressure when delivering a follow up, and Wadlow’s task is made even harder by the fact that Kick-Ass was such a surprise hit. The gruesome sequel has received an impressive level of publicity recently, due in part to actor Jim Carrey’s refusal to participate in any promotional efforts on the grounds that the violence of the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings had affected him deeply. Too late, mate – you still starred in the blood-soaked flick.

The first film was a relentlessly gruesome blood-fest, but its style had some inherent value. Sadly, and predictably, the sequel’s fight scenes felt like old re-runs of Hollywood blockbusters, and hence lost their sense of realism. While the enlarged budget showed, it was clear that the money had been spent on explosions rather than plot development – the narrative was so predictable that I could have written the synopsis before watching the film.

High-schooler Dave Lizewski (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) becomes the hero Kick-Ass again, and joins up with a group of normal citizens who have been inspired to fight crimes … in costume. Chloë Moretz, who plays Hit-Girl, was a major reason that the original Kick-Ass was marvellous. Her combat sequences were the bloodiest and she was a subversive badass. In the sequel, however, we watch as Hollywood once again attempts to develop Chloë into the industry’s new “it” girl. For the record, Hollywood: I did not relish Kick-Ass because Hit-Girl was a stunner who just happened to be a super hero, I enjoyed it because this little girl was ripping full-grown men’s guts out through their mouths.

I’d always thought of Moretz as a young starlet who could really act, but in this film she delivered a flaccid performance. Kick-Ass 2 loses all of the original’s sharpness, while desperately trying to convince the audience it is a credible contribution to the meta-superhero genre.

On the whole, cinematic violence has been handled most skilfully by contemporary Asian directors such as Chan-wook Park, who directed Old Boy (2003). Those guys know what they are doing.