Dark, violent and funny, ‘Defendor’ has surprises (4/5)

“Defendor”

Starring: Woody Harrelson, Elias Koteas, Kat Dennings
Directed by: Peter Stebbings
Rating: R for drug use and language throughout, violence and sexual content.
Running time: 1 hour, 41 minutes

It’s a maniac with marbles, it’s Woody Harrelson in a funny costume, both, it’s DEFENDOR!

Rarely does a movie transcend the boundaries of a genre well. But “Defendor” is a comedy, action flick and drama rolled up into one pretty good film.

The emotional aspects of this movie were relatively surprising. I was expecting an off-beat comedy, but instead got a more realistic version of “Kick-Ass” complete with the mental turmoil of being a superhero-sans-powers.

Woody Harrelson stars as Arthur Poppington, a mentally challenged city man who is tired of the drug kings running his shattered home. Rather than the honest working man, the streets are full of corrupt cops and prostitutes enslaved to the drug pushers. Arthur creates the alter-ego Defendor (complete with duct-tape logo and black face paint) to protect the city and fight back against the drug runners.

By day, Arthur works as a road crewman under Paul Carter (Michael Kelly), who has taken Arthur under his wing. But the independent Arthur wants no handouts and instead lives in an abandoned warehouse by himself, unbeknownst to Paul.

In his search for his arch nemesis Captain Industry, Arthur happens upon the bought-out undercover policeman Chuck Dooney (Elias Koteas) and the young streetwalker Kat Debrofkowitz (Kat Dennings of “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”). Kat “befriends” Arthur and tells him she knows the identity of Captain Industry — mob boss Kristic (Alan C. Peterson), who Kat wants taken out for her own selfish motives.

“Defendor” is an unexpectedly dark movie with comedic undertones. The tough themes circling the devastated city and Arthur himself are balanced by Arthur’s marble throwing, “Oh no, not the lime juice!,” and random labels (“Defendoor” over the warehouse entrance, for instance). This sort of humorous melancholy brings an immense feel of realism to “Defendor” that makes its points strike home all the harder.

Although “Defendor” can be seen on the surface as a superhero parody, it becomes blatantly clear that it’s more of a reflection on society and one man’s drive to fix it. Our laughter is hardly a mockery of Arthur and his intelligence level but rather we laugh at the brutal silliness of it all, and by extension the crazy lifestyles inherent with drug abuse and prostitution. “Defendor” takes backroom conversation and thrusts it into the limelight of humor while forcing it to maintain its dangerous vibe.

“Defendor” manages to be an honest movie in the realm of the fantastical. Woody Harrelson’s performance is impeccable as he flawlessly switches between animated and spirited to dejected and grim and Elias Koteas is a superb bad guy. Kat Dennings does a suitable job as Kat Debrofkowitz but I feel that her limited range just can’t hold a candle to Harrelson’s.

This movie isn’t suitable for all viewers, largely due to the themes of drugs and prostitution itself. But there are also scenes of violence and language — it’s rated “R” for a reason.

This is the writing and directorial debut of Canadian Peter Stebbings, and I think it’s safe to say he has a long career ahead of him in the movie industry.

4 of 5 stars

Funny ‘Zombieland’ still scares

Zombieland

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone.
Directed by: Ruben Fleischer.
Rating: R for horror violence/gore and language.
Running time: 1 hour, 20 minutes.

It’s that time of year again.

Time for costumes, candy and, oh yeah, horror films.

I am not the scary movie type. I was the one hiding in a corner with a blanket over my head while my friends watched the Chinese version of “The Eye” (you think it’s hard to watch a movie with subtitles, try to do it when you’re not even looking at the screen). But, to be fair, “The Eye” is a legitimate scary movie — at least the Chinese version is; I can’t vouch for the Jessica Alba fiasco.

I can take most slasher films. I actually really enjoy the “Saw” series. It’s the supernatural stuff that gets me, especially ones involving creepy little kids.

But that’s all beside the point. I watched “Zombieland” recently and had to keep myself in check — this was, after all, a comedy.

Doesn’t mean I didn’t jump on occasion. But, for fellow timid moviegoers, this film manages to satisfy the obligatory Halloween viewing without leaving you checking under your bed.

In “Zombieland,” the majority of the population has turned into (shockingly) zombies. The narrator (Jessie Eisenberg of “Adventureland” notoriety) tells the audience that these transformations began after a bad experience with a Mad Cow-diseased hamburger. And it was all downhill from there.

Now, the number of zombies greatly outnumbers that of normal humans. In fact, at the start, the narrator is our only known character, and he introduces us to the world by giving us a few of his most important zombie survival rules.

Rule No. 1: Cardio.

Narrator is a college-aged kid who was studying at the University of Texas when the mayhem struck and is now on his way back home to Columbus, Ohio, to see if his family is still alive.

On his way, he meets a tough, gun-toting, zombie-killing maniac (Woody Harrelson) who agrees to give him a ride in his truck. But, in order to avoid familiarity and, thus, any sort of friendship, he insists on calling the narrator by his destination, Columbus, and he refers to himself as Tallahassee.

Columbus soon discovers Tallahassee’s one weakness: Twinkies. It’s during a foray into a grocery store in search of the spongey snacks that they run into the untrusting Wichita (Emma Stone) and her intelligent 12-year-old sister, Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), who are headed to the rumored-to-be zombie-free amusement park Pacific Playland.

“Zombieland” is a fun, offbeat, clever film. Columbus’ “rules,” playing off the horror-flick stereotypes and the hilarious celebrity cameo, are reason enough to watch it.

Woody Harrelson is in a realm of his own in his role and is one of the main sources of the film’s entertainment.

Abigail Breslin also had a shining performance as the mouthy, know-it-all preteen, and it will be interesting to see what future roles she will decide to choose.

The one thing that really gets me is Jesse Eisenberg. I saw him in “Adventureland” too and I just can’t fathom how someone can look, act and talk so much like Michael Cera ("Superbad,” “Juno”) and not be related. It’s like watching someone acting like Michael Cera while he’s acting. But, besides that, Eisenberg did a great job.

And, though I would rather qualify “Zombieland” as the one “scary” movie I need to watch by Halloween, I grudgingly promised my boyfriend I’d watch an actual scary one soon. He may not be so eager to watch another after my fingernails have dug into his arm for an hour and a half.

3 1/2 of 5 stars

‘Seven Pounds’ has Smith. That’s all you need to know. (4/5)

Seven Pounds

Starring: Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson.
Directed by: Gabriele Muccino.
Rating: PG-13 for thematic material, some disturbing content and a scene of sensuality.
Running time: 2 hours, 3 minutes.

Really, what more do you need in a movie than Will Smith? Since “Bad Boys,” Will Smith seems to be an untouchable encapsulation of everything that is acting. He excels in comedy, action, drama and romance.

“What’s it about again? Oh, Will Smith is in it? OK.”

Smith once again flexes his talent in Gabriele Muccino’s “Seven Pounds,” reunited two years after their collaboration on the dramatic “Pursuit of Happyness.”

The movie kicks off with a distraught Ben Thomas (Smith) reporting a suicide to 911. When asked who the victim is, Thomas replies “I am.”

In a flashback, the audience learns of Thomas’ nuanced and tortured character, which Smith plays so convincingly that I may end up calling him “Ben Thomas” from now on. It quickly becomes evident that Thomas is on a quest to find people in order to give them a type of gift.

Thomas’ phone confrontation with the blind Ezra (wonderfully portrayed by Woody Harrelson) will leave you gaping in a “Did that really just happen?” kind of way, not to mention leave you reeling in confusion. Despite Harrelson’s short amount of screen time, Ezra quickly became one of my favorite characters of the film.

Smith’s co-star is Rosario Dawson, who stands her own beautifully against Smith as the fun, upbeat yet terminally ill Emily Posa.

Despite the strong cast, the film’s two-hour running time seemed to drag quite a bit in spots. Also, many of the secondary characters who are vital to the central theme of the plot are barely fleshed out, and at times merely briefly mentioned. Instead, the movie focuses on Thomas’ connection with Posa, an important but perhaps overplayed plotline.

“Seven Pounds” is a mysterious film about sacrifice, redemption, guilt, atonement and the possibility (or impossibility) of self-forgiveness. Its message will stay with you long after the TV is turned off.
A full explanation of the movie’s title would require multiple “spoiler alert” flashing neon signs; suffice it to say that “Seven Pounds” alludes to Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice.” Appropriate, as the film works as a modern-day Shakesperean tragedy.

While the movie was beautiful, bold and innovative, it begs the question of whether it would have been as popular without Smith at the helm. And actually, the film didn’t do as well as producers had hoped it would, placing after “Yes Man” the weekend of its opening. Though admittedly Smith is a major drawing point of the movie, the film’s creative and convincingly dramatic story is worthy of being seen.

4 of 5 stars