I would call Special a blackety-black comedy, but it's really a drama, albeit an absurd one. And absurdity can often fuel the perception of something as a comedy. Michael Rapaport is a meter maid with crushing self-doubt who, on a whim, joins a pharmacological study, then starts exhibiting super powers and becomes a vigilante. The movie wastes no time showing us that this is a grand delusion based on the comic books he likes to read, but still treats the superheroics as "real", with Big Pharma villains coming after him convincingly and real-world consequences to the violence. I'm not sure there's actual commentary on anti-depressants, though some might think so. It almost seems more like Mazes & Monsters with comics instead of D&D, though I'm pretty sure the production isn't trying to create a comic panic. Rather, Special is an exploration of what kind of psychosis might provoke superheroics in the real world, and has its protagonist (Les, ironically enough) work through his mental health issues and achieve catharsis and change. Do we need to be "special" to feel valuable? Rapaport gives a poignant performance in service of the answer.
The lack of Super & Kick-Ass's crude humour both works for and against Special: it gives a different tone and feel, which is nice (and preferable to some people), but means it lacks the same kind of punch as the others. While I personally would give the later two films 5/5, this is a solid 4.
A "normal/delusional guy becoming a superhero" story, notable for pre-dating "Super", "Kick-Ass", and "Defendor". A bit more modest of a film, far less violent and not prone to the crude humor of "Super" and "Kick-Ass".
Add your comment
Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Siskoid
I would call Special a blackety-black comedy, but it's really a drama, albeit an absurd one. And absurdity can often fuel the perception of something as a comedy. Michael Rapaport is a meter maid with crushing self-doubt who, on a whim, joins a pharmacological study, then starts exhibiting super powers and becomes a vigilante. The movie wastes no time showing us that this is a grand delusion based on the comic books he likes to read, but still treats the superheroics as "real", with Big Pharma villains coming after him convincingly and real-world consequences to the violence. I'm not sure there's actual commentary on anti-depressants, though some might think so. It almost seems more like Mazes & Monsters with comics instead of D&D, though I'm pretty sure the production isn't trying to create a comic panic. Rather, Special is an exploration of what kind of psychosis might provoke superheroics in the real world, and has its protagonist (Les, ironically enough) work through his mental health issues and achieve catharsis and change. Do we need to be "special" to feel valuable? Rapaport gives a poignant performance in service of the answer.badblokebob
DJPowWow has it pretty much spot-on.The lack of Super & Kick-Ass's crude humour both works for and against Special: it gives a different tone and feel, which is nice (and preferable to some people), but means it lacks the same kind of punch as the others. While I personally would give the later two films 5/5, this is a solid 4.
DJPowWow
A "normal/delusional guy becoming a superhero" story, notable for pre-dating "Super", "Kick-Ass", and "Defendor". A bit more modest of a film, far less violent and not prone to the crude humor of "Super" and "Kick-Ass".