Superhero Movie is a spoof of the recent superhero movie craze. Its main target is the Spider-Man series, but it also parodies X-Men, The Hulk, The Fantastic Four, and more. The movie's humor is not sophisticated; it is stupid and juvenile. In short, if you do not see the humor in a teenager being humped by all the animals in a test lab then this movie is not for you. If you do, this movie is reasonably enjoyable.
The movie's main plot follows Spider-Man 1 and 2 closely. Drake Bell plays Rick Riker, an under-appreciated teen and soon-to-be superhero. While on a class trip, Rick is bitten by an experimental dragonfly. This gives him super powers; he acquires super strength along with sticky and armored skin. He does not acquire the ability to fly, but still takes the name Dragonfly. Meanwhile a scientist named Lou Landers (played by Christopher McDonald) is working on an anti-aging device. He discovers a way to regenerate his body – if he kills someone each day. He becomes the super-villain Hourglass. His evil plan is to kill enough people with his device at once to no longer need regeneration. Quite obviously, the movie must end with Dragonfly standing off against Hourglass.
This type of movie is a bit hard to review because plot, character development, and theme are all meaningless. It ultimately comes down to whether you like the gags and the movie makes you laugh.
I did find a number of the gags quite amusing. In one, Rick and his love interest Jill (Sara Paxton) are having a tender moment. The gag is that it keeps getting interrupted by Aunt Lucille's (Marion Ross) ridiculously loud and smelly farts. In another, Dragonfly saves an old lady from being run over by a bus, only to push her into a wood chipper. The crowd congratulates him for his heroism, completely ignoring her fate.
Article comments
1 - Derek Fleek
I agree completely. The x-men gags failed almost completely, but some moments were hilarious. Great review.