Brightburn (2019) #471

What if Superman had been born evil? This simple premise is the foundation for the 2019 film "Brightburn", written by James Gunn's brother Brian and his cousin Mark, and directed by David Yarovesky. "Brightburn" stars Elizabeth Banks ("Slither") and David Denman, and special cameo but Michael Rooker.

Just like Superman, Brandon crashed landed on Earth and was found and adopted by Tori and Kyle Breyer, a young couple who couldn't have children of their own. They raise him well and he turns out to be a typical, awkward preteen. One night, Brandon wakes up and is drawn to the family barn, to where Tori and Kyle had hidden Brandon's ship. This is when his powers begin to manifest and he starts to realize that he isn't as limited as everyone else. Brandon is devastated when the girl who he has a crush on calls him a pervert, causing him to begin acting on his feelings. Later, when he does discover the ship hidden inside the barn, he becomes encouraged and begins chanting "Take the world". Kyle becomes suspicious of his son and only Tori believes that Brandon is still her innocent, little child.

Jackson A. Dunn is perfectly cast as Brandon, portraying him with all of the wonder of his new powers while having moments of conflict of what he should do compared to what he is learning that he can do. The transformation between innocent preteen to an unemphatic killer who sees himself as untouchable. Although he's developing his powers, Brandon is still just a 12 year old boy who is still learning on how to deal with his feelings. This is the tilt on what makes Brandon turn into Brightburn and Kent into Superman. 

The visuals for "Brightburn" as fantastic, including his outfit that he creates. It's simple, homemade, and utterly frightening. The special effects work well and the scenes are graphic and detailed. I love the scene where he flips a truck and examines his handiwork. I was impressed that the trailers for the film did not give away too much, leaving the context unspoiled while showing some of the action sequences. The music for the end credits is Billie Eilish"s aptly titled radio hit "Bad Guy".

Slither (2006)

Watching the movie “Slither” had some unexpected challenges during my first viewing. First and foremost, I could not help comparing this film with one I saw many years ago called “Night of the Creeps”. It turns out I wasn’t the only one to think this as there was a small amount of controversy over the issue. Truth of the matter is that both films may sound similar but vary enough to be their own film.

Secondly, While I had high hopes for “Slither”, I was not expecting it to have such a dark comic side to it. When the scene where the town mob is hunting the “monster” because he’s been killing livestock, I had to turn the movie off and watch something else that night. When I came back to it and watched the second half, I was delighted by what I saw and I learned a valuable lesson; never expect anything. If I hadn’t finished the movie I would never have enjoyed how the dark comic moments really shine in the second half.

Before joining the Marvel team and directing and co-writer “Guardians of the Galaxy”, James Gunn’s directorial debut was the dark science fiction horror comedy “Slither”. Knowing more about him as an artist, as well as Michael Rooker as an actor, the film’s chemistry makes so much more sense. Nathan Fillion and Elizabeth Banks round out this talented crew. The make up team and special effects should also receive kudos for the outstanding work they did in this film.

“Slither” is almost your classic tale of alien life form falling to earth and takes over the first human that comes stumbling along and quickly spreads. We’ve seen this in “The Blob” and “Creepshow” and “Alien” (sort of) and others. But what is different is how it multiplies and once the nest is released, the movie really gets going!

Favorite moment – A teenager is hiding in a truck while her possessed family is asking her to come out. One of her younger sisters, who standing next to the driver’s side door, looks and sounds really creepy. What is it with scary little girls???