As has been proved many times before spoofing something that is in itself tongue in cheek is never a good idea (Scary Movie anyone?). Henceforth, the writers and producers of Mystery Men were always on a loser in their attempt, brave though it is, to create a truly amusing comic-book inspired film. With only Batman and X-Men succeeding recently in transferring themselves to the big screen you really had to wonder exactly what they were all thinking bringing the story of a group of disparate quasi-superheroes to public attention.
As I'm not familiar with the Dark Horse comics the story and characters belong to, the nerdy comic-obsessed nutsacks amongst you will have to forgive me if I fail to do my review properly. As I don't read any comics, and have quite a distaste for them, I shouldn't really be doing these kind of films but that's a different story altogether.....
Mystery Men takes place amongst the fictional metropolis that is Champion City, a place so well served by it's resident superhero Captain Amazing, that crime is practically non-existant and the wannabe superheroes of the townsfolk are left with practically nothing to do. With his corporate sponsers leaving in droves due to his near-crimeless lifestyle, Amazing (Kinnear) and his publicist dream up a scam in which his arch-nemesis Casanova Frankenstein (the wonderfully campy Geoffrey Rush) is released from his incarceration in a mental home and allowed back onto the streets. With him sure to return to his fiendish ways Amazing can then battle him heroically and get back the many companies who pay for his alter-ego, the billionaire Lance Hunt.
However, Amazing lives in a world in which enemies are there to be defeated only, and in a fit of arrogance fatally underestimates Frankenstein and is captured and threatened with imminent death. This is where our almost-superheroes, The Shoveller (Macy), Mr Furious (Stiller), the Blue Raja (Azaria) and others have to save the day and overcome their fundamental lack of superhero skills at the same time.
With a nice take on the whole comic book ideal and with such a talented comic cast where did Mystery Men go so wrong? The answer lies in the fact that although they've swung at the comic traditions from a totally new angle the basic premise, stop the bad guy, save the world, is pretty much exactly the same. Take out all the exciting battles ala Batman or Superman and what have you got? Not much.
That is the problem that plagues the film from the start, there simply isn't much there. Sure you can laugh at the fart-related antics of The Spleen (Paul Reubens), gaze longingly at the uber-babe that is Claire Forlani and admire the quality of the backgrounds, city setting and colourful bad guys but at the end of the day there's barely enough there to make an effective 30 minute sitcom, let alone a 90 minute feature film. Another comic book title bites the dust. |
