I went to see the latest graphic novel-turned live action movie on its opening weekend and since then a lot of controversy has been stirred up regarding its violence content.

In Australia the film is rated MA 15+, meaning it is not suited to those under the age of 15. I had thought that the sale of movie tickets was also restricted to those under 15 but according to the official Australian Government classifications website it simply means those under 15 must be accompanied by an adult.

In the US the film is rated R17  ie. those under 17 must be accompanied by an adult. Clearly the film’s content was too mature for the PG-13 rating so it had to go to the next category up.

Now the film contains violence. People get beaten up, stabbed, shot, burned, tortured and blown up. It is a movie about kids trying to be superheroes and finding out what that kind of life would really be like – without the skills or abilities of Spiderman, Batman or Cyclops. There’s a lot of swearing too but no more than you would hear on the school bus.

I am not going to use the ‘kids are watching more violent movies than Kick Ass’ defence as I don’t believe that’s the issue here. The controversy has primarily revolved around the target audience of the film.

The previews have made the film look like your average, fun young movie with a bunch of kids playing superheroes (who hasn’t done that as a kid?). At least the cut-down, TV length preview has. The extended preview shown in the cinemas gives a better indication of the film’s content, with a bit more action and language – but that probably just makes teenagers want to see it more. It does however, siphon out the audience for which the film is not intended – pre teens.

The violence in Kick Ass is appropriate for its rating and that’s what the film ratings system is there for – to give you an indication of whether a film is suited to your tastes, and from there you can do further research – the movie’s website is almost always included with the advertising, and it is not difficult to find a review of a movie.

I would not take my nine year old nephew to see Kick Ass (though there were plenty of pre-teens in the theatre with their parents that day) as I would not take him to see any MA rated film without first researching the content. That’s what parents and guardians are there for – to filter their children’s consumption to an appropriate level, be it movies, games or food.

Check out GamingAngel‘s update on the soon to be released electronic Kick Ass graphic novel.

Shadow_kat_au loved Kick Ass and walked out of the theatre wanting to fit out her basement with a sweet armament of military-grade weapons and awesome costume just like Hit Girl. Alas, she knows fantasy from reality and might just settle on the purple hair and school girl uniform instead.

Kick-Ass is a feature film coming out to theaters everywhere tomorrow, but originally it was a comic book from Marvel.com. I just bought my hardcover copy of the graphic novel, but now you can also pick up the complete Kick-Ass limited series for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch or your PSP.

“I have an ancient cell phone given to me by a relative that’s so old it can’t take pictures so this tech is so far away from me it might as well be science fiction,” said Kick-Ass writer and co-creator Mark Millar. “But I read about it on Comic Book Resources and Marvel.com– the guys seemed excited so consider me excited by osmosis. More readers and new readers is always a good thing.”

John Romita Jr, artist and co-creator of Kick-Ass, said, “I’m excited about these advances in technology that I have been hearing about for, what seems like ten years. Now it has arrived, and all I can think of is that it advances the state of ‘comic books’ in that it will direct people to the source material. I believe this will cement the tangible material, the comics themselves, into the hands and minds of future ‘young’ generations! It always comes down to the quality of writing and the sequential art. Holding a comic and turning the page for more will forever be a novelty, even with advanced technology as an option.”

What better way to enjoy the movie if you’ve already read the comic? I’ll be doing my comic review of Kick-Ass this weekend along with my movie review next week. But in the meantime, go check out Kick-Ass.

Title:

Most superheros have a secret origin: a terrible injustice that was done to them by an evil doer; a super power they gain from a mutation, caused by an experiment gone wrong, or a freak accident; or a dire need for helping people. Dave Lizewski didn’t have any special secret origin, he was just bored.

“I always wondered why nobody did it before me…”

Inspired by his love of comic books super heroes, as well as the lack of real-life ones, in the first issue of the comic this self-proclaimed class nobody embarks on a mission to become a super hero. Deciding that you don’t need special powers to be a super hero – just a wetsuit and mask off EBay – the crime fighting begins with our yet to be named hero prowling roof tops and wearing his costume under his school clothes. At first this is enough to satisfy Dave, until he eventually blunders into an encounter with graffiti-ing thugs who stab and beat him, as well as a run in with the front end of a Mercedes, leaving him hospitalised and fighting for life.

Overcoming intensive rehabilitation and multiple surgeries under the guise of mugging related injuries – but unable to go back to a “normal” life – Dave resumes his crime fighting escapades in the second issue. He begins prowling the streets once again, this time becoming involved in an incident that gets recorded via mobile phone and posted to YouTube. Dave, not a popular kid at school and purely a geek at heart, thoroughly enjoys the overnight sensation that his now named alter ego – Kick-Ass – generates. He creates a MySpace account under the name Kick-Ass to talk to the people, and get requests for help. And so the tale of our less than average hero Kick-Ass begins. (There is a MySpace page set up for Kick-Ass, with the “actual” footage of him saving the guys life. www.myspace.com/kickass_comic)

Mark Millar introduces two new super heroes in the third issue, father and daughter duo Big Daddy and Hit Girl – who are the opposite of Kick-Ass. These two characters impart a no holds barred, take no prisoners stance – they are willing to kill for what they believe in. At this point, if not blindingly obvious earlier, it becomes clear that this is not a typical super hero story. The evil doer doesn’t get caught by the hero and left for the cops to deal with. Hit Girl and Big Daddy serve up their own brand of justice, and they serve it up steaming hot. Mark Millar occasionally drops comments into the narration that give reference to his political views, which adds substance to the vigilante feel of the Hit-Girl and Big Daddy characters.

Issue five introduces the fourth and final super hero character – Red Mist. This character presents a rival for Kick-Ass; he sparks intense feelings of outrage and jealousy in Dave. Red Mist is seemly one of many in a copy cat subculture spawned by Kick-Ass’ popularity in the media. It soon becomes apparent that Red Mist is exactly like Kick-Ass – he has no powers or training – so his addition adds a curious interest to the story, leaving the reader wanting to know where the author will go with it.

Kick-Ass is an original, 8 part mini-series that delivers a fresh perspective on the super hero genre, with a modern-day real-world edge. Not only does it deal with a super hero with no powers, it imparts a sense of cynicism about the hero stereotype. There are many cringe-inducing moments in the story, but there are also many moments leaving the reader thirsty for more. The use of profane language in the comic is not for the faint hearted, but it adds a reckless quality to the characters that is almost endearing. Dave is an easily likeable character; even though most of the time he thinks he’s a total bad-ass, at the end of the day he knows he’s just a comic book geek out for cheap thrills.

The movie Kick-Ass, starring Nicolas Cage, and new comers Aaron Johnson, Chloe Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse is released in Australia early next year. It looks to be as action packed as the comic, but it is doubtable that it will convey the same amount of blood and guts or profanities as John Romita Jnr and Mark Millar depict on paper. Initial reviews about the movie are that if you like the comic book, then you’ll love the movie. Hopefully it doesn’t turn out be another of those movies where all the good bits are in the trailer.