‘Kick-Ass’ lives up to its name, and then some

In the weeks leading up to the release of “Kick-Ass,” director Matthew Vaughn’s adaptation of Mark Millar’s blood-soaked graphic novel of the same name, test audiences all over the world were reaching a similar verdict: This is some of the most fun we’ve ever had at the theater.

It should come as no surprise that regular audiences have started chiming in with the same sentiment. Simply put, “Kick-Ass” kicks ass. It is everything that a comic-book movie can and should be, and belongs right up there with “The Dark Knight” and “Iron Man” among the best films in that category.

While concerns arose that the over-the-top nature of the movie’s fight scenes would leave other elements — namely, plot and performances —  lacking, those concerns were thankfully misguided. In fact, without Vaughn’s snappy script and career performances from wunderkinds Chloe Moretz, Aaron Johnson and Christopher Mintz-Plasse (not to mention Nicolas Cage in a rare role that doesn’t detract from the movie), the action violence and foul-mouthed antics wouldn’t amount to much.

Moretz commands the screen especially well. As Hit-Girl, a preteen weapons master indoctrinated in the ways of crime fighting by her father, she kills more people and drops more four-letter words than any other character but is still given immense emotional depth by the 13-year-old Moretz in a performance showing poise far beyond her years. 

Critics of stylized comic-book movies will likely find plenty to hate in “Kick-Ass.” It isn’t accessible in the traditional sense of the word. But anyone willing to take a movie whose leads parade around in brightly colored spandex at face value will find an uproariously self-aware action comedy that showcases some fine young talent and, beyond a shadow of a doubt, kicks ass.