Kick-Ass – Mark Millar And Chloe Moretz Give Me A Few Minutes For The DVD Release

Hold on... I'm about to throw a lot at you.

First off, Kick-Ass is out on Blu-Ray and DVD, and I should just get you a bit of information on that. Check my Kick-Ass review here if you missed that.

And, here's some general info - Co-written and directed by Matthew Vaughn (upcoming X-Men: First Class), the ass-kicking adventure is more than just an action film, as it combines a unique sense of humor, powerful storyline, and sometimes shocking violence with impressive performances by a talented cast of both young actors and on-screen veterans.

The film stars Aaron Johnson (Nowhere Boy), Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad) and Mark Strong (Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes), along with the dynamic father-daughter duo played by Chloë Grace Moretz (upcoming Let Me In), and Nicolas Cage (National Treasure series). Based on the comic written by Mark Millar and John S. Romita JR, "Hit Girl,", "Big Daddy" and the do-it-yourself superheroes make their way to your home with super DVD special features, including audio commentary, art archives and the featurette "It's On! The Comic Book Origin of Kick-Ass."

The Blu-ray Disc Combo Pack kicks even harder with the same DVD special features plus a documentary length "making-of" and a feature-length "Ass-Kicking Bonus View Mode," which give audiences an inside look at all elements of the filmmaking process. In addition, the Metamenu Remote powered by BD Touch, another Blu-ray exclusive, will allow for iPhone OS and Android users to personalize their experience with this state-of-the-art free app. Once connected through BD-Live, viewers can select menus using intuitive gestures, find scenes by dialogue, discover details about the actors and more. With headphones, they can select to listen in alternate language tracks, or enjoy other synchronized content including portions of the "Ass-Kicking Bonus View" (which users can take "to go" on their mobile device).

--

At this year's SXSW, seeing Kick-Ass was one of the first things I got to do. My expectations were not terribly high, and the incredible mix of people anxious to see it made for a mixed reaction. An enormous and rowdy audience, it was easily one of the best times I have ever had watching a film.

The next day there was a panel for the film, and everything about it made me enjoy the film more. I went to see it again the day it opened in theaters, and it is alone in the category of films I can say that about.

Most impressive to me, at the panel, were Mark Millar and Chloe Moretz. Millar because he has fascinating ideas about what to do with themes and films, Moretz because she is simply amazing for her age.

Here are a couple of my shots from the panel, followed by YouTube video of the entire thing. It's worth the time.

Kick-Ass SXSW Panel

With the Blu-Ray/DVD release, I got a chance to talk to both Millar and Moretz for a few minutes, and they were both brilliant.

Given my history with the film, and my knowledge of its history, I asked Mark if there was a certain moment during the long course of production when he knew that they were going to turn out something really special. Without hesitation, he said, "It may sound arrogant, but I always thought that." Given the long road the film took, that was something of a surprise to me. He went on, "Everyone hated it. The studios hated it. I just always had this great belief."

If you know the comics Millar wrote, which are the basis for the film, you know there is rather a big difference in the ultimate Big Daddy story (which I won't tell, in case you don't), and though people had talked about that before, I was curious at what point that change became part of the film. He told me that it was really before work started on the screenplay. In putting together the comic, with its serial nature, "it needed a twist." He said he talked the general idea over with Matthew Vaughn (I gather before he even knew exactly what the twist was), who didn't want a twist. End of story.

It was fun getting Mark's take on the whole idea, because as he said, "I mean, it's one page of the comic, everything else is the same." Which is true, but it makes the entire story different.

With the home release available, I wanted to know if he could give me some take on the release that fans could sink their teeth into, and being the writer, I wondered if there were any scenes he might be especially fond of that didn't make the final cut. He was quick to point out that there many scenes available on the Blu-Ray, and the one that jumped to his mind was that of Big Daddy and Hit Girl training by doing pull-ups in a park setting. "A quite, little moment that adds to the film."

If you've seen the film, or heard it talked about, you probably know that many have mentioned the idea that it changes the entire genre. I wondered if Mark thought the film would have far-reaching effects. He quickly noted that Empire Magazine called it, "The Game Changer," adding, "It's funny and genuinely touching. You can't go back to something like Iron Man."

Finally, I mentioned that the film was going over well with both sexes, and the fact that my wife responded as positively as I did. I wondered if he had this in mind when writing it, to try to appeal to men and women equally, or if it just worked out that way.

To my surprise, he quickly said, "I've been thinking about this a lot actually. The books seem to be attracting a lot of female readers, so I've noticed the fact." He didn't exactly answer the question, or at least didn't say that he actually "did anything" intended to attract a female audience specifically. Part of his theory was that if you come out with something like X-Men, women are perhaps more apt to feel alienated by decades of backstory they aren't familiar with. Kick-Ass is new, and its a completely different take on the general idea.

However, he did mention that when he was putting Wanted out there, he was told that it wouldn't work with a woman lead. It wasn't, apparently, what people wanted to see.

Not taking that too well, Mark was determined to make strong, interesting female characters. There is, he says, "a gentleness and sweetness to Hit Girl," and after all, he says, "I have a twelve year-old daughter. I want her to have superheroes of her own."

--

As I said, I also had a few minutes with Chloe Moretz, and you're going to get another look at her amazing talent in the upcoming Let Me In.

One thing I had to ask about was the transition from the adorable girl to the crime-fighter, and I asked her if it was particular difficult to perfect the two sides of her character. "I really had to show the difference," she said, "and it was a challenge. I love being challenged, and I just went with it. The cast was super supportive."

Of course, I wanted to ask her about any deleted scenes as well, but were both thrown a little on that score. "All my scenes were in the movie," she said, flying in the face of Mark's response to the same question. She had an easy choice for her favorite scene in the film though, "When Big Daddy dies. He's rooting her on, and it's a shock of reality."

I tried to get her take on the controversy surrounding her character. As we all know, there was much talk about someone so young playing such a character, and more generally a film having such a character, but she didn't really have much to say on the matter. "It's just a character," she said, and though we talked a bit about the controversy itself, she didn't really have a definitive response to it, apart from disinterest that is.

She spun the issue toward working on the film in general, saying that, "everyone sort became my big brothers," and she, "got to work with great people."

As we talked, I was reminded of that panel at SXSW. I've talked with a lot of teens getting thrown into the big leagues, and few of them carried themselves so well. She didn't exactly have a lot to say, then or now, which is exactly what you expect given her age (it isn't a bad thing), but not everyone can say very little, and manage to be rather dazzling at it.

Pick up Kick-Ass on Blu-Ray and DVD today!

BLU-RAY DISC SPECIAL FEATURES

DISC ONE

·Ass-Kicking Bonus View Mode (Blu-ray Disc Exclusive) -  Synchronous with the feature film, this innovative multi-media presentation incorporates video and audio commentary, behind-the-scenes clips and illustrative graphics with Co-Writer/Producer/Director Matthew Vaughn, plus cast and crew providing an all-access perspective on Kick-Ass

·"A New Kind of Superhero: The Making of Kick-Ass " documentary (Blu-ray Disc Exclusive)

·"It's On! The Comic Book Origin of Kick-Ass" featurette

·Audio Commentary with Writer-Director Matthew Vaughn

·"The Art of Kick-Ass" gallery

·Marketing Archive

·BD Touch and Metamenu Remote

·Lionsgate Live™ enabled, featuring extra content for Internet-connected players

·Enhanced for D-Box™ Motion Control Systems

DISC TWO

·Standard Definition DVD Copy of the feature film

DISC THREE

·Standard Definition Digital Copy of the feature film

DVD SPECIAL FEATURES

·Audio Commentary with Writer-Director Matthew Vaughn

·"It's On! The Comic Book Origin of Kick-Ass" featurette

·"The Art of Kick-Ass" gallery

·Marketing Archive

RU?

© 2010, Are You Screening?. All rights reserved. Reprinting without express permission of the author is prohibited.

About Marc Eastman

Marc Eastman is the owner and operator of Are You Screening? and has been writing film reviews for over a decade, and several branches of the internet's film review world have seen his name. His reviews have brought him personal praise from the director of a major motion picture, and have been used as required reading in a course at a major University. These priceless rewards, along with just bags of cash, keep him from straying from freelance writing. He is also a member of The Broadcast Film Critics Association and The Broadcast Television Journalists Association.

Twitter | Facebook | More Posts (1450)