Movie Review: CONFESSIONS OF A SUPERHERO

CONFESSIONS OF A SUPERHERO

2007
R


"I like to think that my future holds, uh, fame and fortune. But I'd like to say that I've got the fame without the fortune right now."
-- Christopher Dennis

Confessions of a Superhero is a 2007 documentary directed by Matthew Ogens that follows the lives of four Hollywood Boulevard street performers who dress as superheroes and make a living taking pictures with tourists. We get an inside look at the following performers: Christopher Dennis, who plays Superman; Maxwell Allen, who plays Batman; Jennifer Wenger, who plays Wonder Woman; and Joe McQueen, who plays the Hulk. By giving a bit of back-story on each of these individuals, Ogens gives a rather in-depth look at the people themselves as well as the psyche behind continuing with this seemingly fruitless profession.

I decided to watch this movie after finding it on NetFlix Instant Watch. Considering I'm currently staying about two miles from where these people work on Hollywood Boulevard, I thought it'd be a neat little flick for me to see right now. I could theoretically head out right now and go meet these people - if they're still working there, of course - and tell them how I just watched their movie.

The film itself is a little slow-moving, and it does take a bit of patience to keep yourself engaged with the intertwining stories. Because it's a documentary on individual people, don't expect much in terms of a storyline (I realize docs often don't have "storylines," but sometimes there's something a little easier to follow). If you're not into movies that are solely based on characterization and character development, this one probably isn't for you.

The people are interesting enough, but it feels like we get a little more story on both Dennis and Wenger. Yeah, the Allen and McQueen storylines are nice, but there's something more attractive about Superman and Wonder Woman in this film. I personally think that Jennifer Wenger has the beauty to be a big-time star, but I can't necessarily speak for her acting ability. Dennis, however, seems to be the most emotionally damaged of the lot, claiming to be the son of the late Academy Award winner Sandy Dennis, a claim which her family denies. Still, it makes for entertaining cinema when you have out-there characters gracing the screen. Also be on the lookout for cameos from the likes of Stan Lee, Antonio Banderas and Margot Kidder.

At the end of the day, Confessions of a Superhero is a thoughtful documentary that will probably prove to be entirely forgettable. It's the story of four mortal souls trying to make a name for themselves, and they're doing it in the best - or only - way they know how. It makes you realize how far some people will go to make it big, diving to the depths of taking pictures with tourists and hoping they'll toss a tip your way.

Movie Review Summary
Grade: B+
1.5 Thumbs Up

Addition to Awards
2007: Nominee - Best Documentary

Movie Review: THE AMITYVILLE HORROR

THE AMITYVILLE HORROR

1979
R

The Amityville Horror is a 1979 horror film directed by Stuart Rosenberg. It's your classic tale of a haunted house that starts with a young man brutally murdering his entire family in the middle of the night. A year later, a young pair of newlyweds, George (James Brolin) and Kathy Lutz (Margot Kidder), moves into the house with the Kathy's three children. At first, everything seems fine and dandy, and although they know about the deaths that occurred only a year before, the Lutz's choose to believe that a house cannot retain any memories. However, a series of incidents start to plague the family, from random acts of horror and violence to a mysterious illness that soon takes hold of George. As all of the events continue to occur, a great strain begins to affect the young newlyweds as they wonder what exactly they've gotten themselves into by moving into this house.

The film actually starts out pretty well, setting the scene with the aforementioned brutal murders inside a rather menacing-looking house (pictured below). At first glance, the house appears to have a face, with the two upper windows providing the eyes. That's the first thing we see in the film as a series of gunshots ring through the night. After that, however, everything starts to spiral downwards. The movie quickly becomes rather dull and uninteresting, as do seemingly every haunted house flick nowadays. We get the standard gags - a door opening and closing on its own, random pieces of the house "attacking" family members (like a window slamming on a child's hand) - and thirty-two years after this movie was made, they all seem boring and rote. At times, it's almost laughable, but I wouldn't even give it that much credit.

What's really laughable is the level of acting in the film. Now, Brolin and Kidder do have moments of semi-goodness, but for the most part, their over-the-top ham-fest is almost unbearable to watch. And the chewing of the scenery doesn't limit itself to our leads. We have a couple performances from supporting actors that rival their own badness. For example, Rod Steiger plays a local priest who knows there's evil within the house. His scenes are so over-the-top and bad that it's hard to take them seriously. He can't get through a scene without yelling at someone, and all I wanted to do was roll my eyes and laugh at him. We also get a short scene from Helen Shaver, one of the Lutz's friends who seemingly understands paranormal activity. As with everyone else, she brings a level of "over-the-top" that's too ridiculous to miss. If you can't tell, there's really not much in terms of acting going on in The Amityville Horror.

If there's anything going right within the film, it's the musical score which garnered an Oscar nomination. Lalo Schifrin helps to set the tone of the film with his haunting score, but it's nowhere near enough to save the picture. I can see why it would grab the Academy's attention, but this trainwreck of a film really shouldn't have gotten any of their attention. However, credit should be given where credit is due, and Schifrin did the best he could with a terrible flick.

Had I been more drawn into the movie, I might call The Amityville Horror "so bad, it's good." However, the lack of interest in any of the situation makes me want to say that it's just a bad film. I had a few high hopes for it going in, considering the film was remade in 2005. The two reasons a movie can be remade are as follows: the original was either very good (in which the studio is trying to cash in on its name), or the original was very bad (in which the filmmakers think they can take the concept and make a better film). I'm gonna have to say that the original Amityville Horror was pretty damn bad, but from everything I've heard, the remake is even worse. Maybe they should've just let this one die on its own.

(On a side note, this is the first "F" grade I've ever given to a film from the 1970s. I thought that deserved mention.)

Movie Review Summary:

Grade: F
Current All-Time Rank: Worst - #89
2 Thumbs Down