Contrary to my expectations due to its trailer, ‘Kick-ass’ is not a typical smart-ass fantasy flick only for kiddies. It’s gritty at parts, and some scenes are violent reflections of what might happen in the real world. Yes, as bad-ass Big Daddy put it, Kick-ass gets his ass kicked – bad. Kick-ass is a regular guy who, like most boys and girls, fantasise about being a superhero with a mix of naivety and optimism, despite not having any super powers. He goes one step further by actually dressing up for the ‘job’ and doing his bid to help strangers on the mean streets.
When Kick-ass gets stabbed on his first ‘assignment’, he started having second thoughts on being a masked vigilante. After all, it’s a largely thankless job, though one gets a kick out of fan support and er… kicking asses. Since ‘With great power comes great responsibility’, he began to entertain the reverse – ‘With no power comes no responsibility’! But who is truly totally powerless? He realised he had the power to better equip himself with training. Likewise, all Bodhisattva-wannabes learn to better themselves to better help one and all.
Kick-ass wondered why no one tried to be what he became. But… some people do try to be heroes… albeit with less egoism and theatrics, and without masks and costumes. Because their efforts are less physically colourful, they don’t get highlighted in the news so much. And there are those online, who use avatars to get their messages across.
Why the secrecy? Identity is a powerful thing, that can be used against them and their relations. No matter how super you are, who you are is always a potential weakness. In a way, all heroes, super or not, have the paradoxical power of anonymity and branding at the same time. While anonymity lets them be above the law, kick-ass branding sends shivers down baddies’ spines!