Brightburn (15)
Directed by David Yarovesky
Starring Elizabeth Banks, David Denman and Jackson A Dunn
Running time: 1hr 30min
Remember all those clichéd superhero films where a character says
“Thank God he’s on our side”?
The makers of Brightburn have decided to turn that notion on its head
and imagine if he was, well, not on our side.
You could almost describe David Yarovesky’s film as being Kal El’s
origin tale but in reverse.
Instead of growing up to be a symbol of everything that is best about
humanity, Brandon Breyer is intent on using his superpowers to enslave
the world and crush everyone is his path along the way.
Right up until about 30 minutes in you could be watching a reboot of
the Superman mythos. However, it becomes quite apparent that Brandon
Breyer, despite sharing an alliterative name with Clark Kent, is
anything but a blue-eyed boy scout.
Strange things start happening to people who annoy him and it is not
long until it emerges that he might not have our best interests at
heart.
Spider-Man and The Hunger Games star Elizabeth Banks adds some star
wattage as Brandon’s mum, compelling as a protective mother refusing
to believe her little angel could actually be a monster.
There are also nods to The Omen, not least when young Brandon is
coming up with terrifyingly gory ways to dispatch of those who annoy
him.
It is worth noting in fact that Brightburn is extremely vicious and
relentless on the gore front, as anyone familiar with producer James
Gunn’s back catalogue might not be surprised by.
Jackson A Dunn deserves kudos as Brandon, he has a chilling presence
as the villain of the piece. Scenes of him taking a sadistic pleasure
are genuinely unnerving and he does a superb job of portraying someone
who looks innocent but is devoid of the usual traits we associate with
humanity. An alien in other words.
Long-term fans of Gunn’s previous work might want to stick around for
the end credits too, I don’t want to give anything away but he clearly
has not got the memo that shared universes are out.
4 out of 5 Nerds
Marc
Marc is a self-confessed nerd. Ever since seeing Star Wars for the first time around 1979 he’s been an unapologetic fan of the Wars and still believes, with Clone Wars and now Underworld, we are yet to see the best Star Wars. He’s a dad of two who now doesn’t have the time (or money) to collect the amount of toys, comics, movies and books he once did, much to the relief of his long-suffering wife. In the real world he’s a graphic designer. He started Following the Nerd because he was tired of searching a million sites every day for all the best news that he loves and decided to create one place where you can go to get the whole lot. Secretly he longs to be sitting in the cockpit of his YT-1300 Corellian Transport ship with his co-pilot Chewie, roaming the universe, waiting for his next big adventure, but feels just at home watching cartoons with his kids….
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