Kick-Ass 2

James Hunt
Feature
Mar 15, 2013

The first trailer for Kick-Ass 2 landed this week. So what did it tell us about the film?

Call it a cult hit, call it an under-appreciated gem, there’s no question that the first Kick-Ass movie was a gloriously arch celebration of superheroes and superhero movies, and one that Den Of Geek loved quite unreservedly. Three years have passed, and the trailer for the sequel, Kick-Ass 2, recently hit the Internet. Director Matthew Vaughn has been replaced by Jeff Wadlow. Screenwriter Jane Goldman isn’t returning either, with Jeff Wadlow also on scripting duties. And Nicolas Cage‘s character is, sadly, long departed from this world. But have no fear: Kick-Ass and Hit-Girl are back, and this time, they’ve brought some friends…

Girl Meets World

At the end of the last film, Hit-Girl was sent to live with her mother, finally experiencing the kind of normal, healthy environment for a child her years as a superhero sidekick had denied her. It’s hardly a surprise to see that she’s apparently struggling to fit in.

The film of Kick-Ass 2 has, by necessity, aged the character of Hit Girl more than the comic sequel did, but it’s clear they’re going to cover similar ground in a different way. The shot in this trailer of Hit-Girl giving a dead-eyed stare in the direction of a sexed-up dance instructor suggests that there might actually be some teeth to her story this time. And rightly so – she was the breakout star of the first film, so it’s only natural that she receives a little more focus this time around.

We’re your Nemesis…ses

Red Mist, the ineffectual supervillain son of gangster Frank D’Amico, is back – and this time, he’s serious about being evil. He’s even rechristened himself The Motherfucker in a move clearly designed to try and help Kick-Ass 2 upset even more people than the first film.

But this time, he’s not the only villain around. Just as Kick Ass and Hit-Girl assembled as part of a larger team, so Red Mist has gathered a selection of villains. Instantly recognisable from the comics is Mother Russia (although we don’t get quite a good look at her in this trailer – maybe next time?), and there’s also a Japanese-themed villain threatening Kick Ass who appears to have been created entirely for the film.

The Mask

With Nicolas Cage gone, the role of the unlikely megastar guest goes to none other than Jim Carrey, who plays the role of the somewhat unhinged good guy, Colonel Stars. He’s the leader of the superhero collective Justice Forever, the Kick Ass version of the Avengers – with all of the brutal parody that entails. Don’t expect most of those guys to be alive by the end of the film. In the background of this shot, we can also spot Dr. Gravity (played by Donald “Turk from Scrubs” Faison!), Lieutenant Stripes and Battle Guy.

Spider-Man No More

One scene in the trailer sees Aaron’s father begging him not to put on the costume again from inside a jail cell. Anyone who’s read the comic knows where this is going, but it’s interesting that the film is taking the familiar superhero beat seen, perhaps most prominently, in Spider-Man 2: make them swear never to put the costume on again. Hopefully it won’t take 40 minutes for Kick-Ass to renege on that deal. Of course, if Kick-Ass 2 is as wry as the first, we’ll be surprised to see it last more than a scene or two…

Pass the Super-Soldier Serum

The original Kick-Ass film was, in many ways, a nerd escapist fantasy as much as a post-modern take on superheroes. This time around, things seem a bit closer to being an actual superhero film. Kick-Ass looks buffer than an issue of Men’s Fitness, and the cartoonish Hit Girl has been toned down into something resembling an actual character. It’s hard to say whether this will kill what made the first film great, but on the other hand, at least they’re not covering the same ground. If the Kick-Ass 2 comic had a problem, at times it was more oft he same. The film adaptation looks to be trying out a different path.

Still, we only have a couple of months to wait until we can find out just how well things have turned out for the sequel. Kick-Ass 2 is released July 19th in the UK and August 16th in the US. We can’t wait.

via Movies http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/kick-ass/24823/what-did-we-learn-from-the-kick-ass-2-trailer

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