Confessions of a Superhero |
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What's it about: A look at 4 people who try to pursue acting careers and dress as superheroes on Hollywood Blvd. for tips.
Running Time: 92 minutes
WITH Growing up in the mid '70s, it was somewhat common to see someone dressed as a comicbook superhero and appear at a department store or a 7-11, sign autographs, and pose for pictures with the kids, kids who coaxed their parents to drag them to the store. The merchants hoped the kids and parents alike would be enticed to buy something once inside. Good business. I met Burt "Robin" Ward at a TG&Y once in Memphis; two unknown masked Spider-Mans separately in Memphis and Detroit local department stores, and a Captain America (who I suspect wasn't even out of his teens at the time) at a suburban Detroit 7-11. (I still have the Captain America #203 he personally autographed on the splash page.) Nowadays, you still can consistently see folks dressed as comicbook superheroes if you happen to go to Hollywood Boulevard in the vicinity of Grauman's Chinese Theater. They will pose for pictures; preferably for a tip, of course. Four of them have parts of their lives detailed in this documentary, which came out on DVD a couple weeks ago. Christopher "Superman" Dennis does get the most time in the film. He claims to be the son of actress Sandy Dennis (though some in the Dennis clan dispute this). His small apartment is cramped with Superman memorabilia; revealing a LOT of his inner fanboy geek. Dennis is seen getting the hair-curl on his brow just so at the start of his day. A typical day consists of conversing with tourists (reminding them that he works on tips!), conversing with local authorities on the boundaries of public and private private property, and on this day, getting his crotch grabbed by a zealous female who wants her picture taken with him. He seems to be the unofficial leader of the group who's done this a long time. Maxwell (Batman) Allen claims to look like George Clooney -- well, if you blur your vision a bit, perhaps. He seems to be the most aggressive of the lot and has anger issues. He does see a psychiatrist while wearing his costume and there are times it seems his wife is unsure of his career pursuits. He's later arrested for his ... mmm... "overzealousness." My favorite of the quartet was Jennifer (Wonder Woman) Gerht. She's a former small town homecoming queen that flew to LA to try to make it big. She's cute with nice cheekbones. We see her try to maintain a marriage (that eventually sours), go on commercial auditions, and try to open up to her agent about her weight; and the agent reminds her she's not a therapist. She seemed the most grounded of the group. But I wanted to know more about her. How often does she get hit on? What's the oddest request she's got? Will she ever give up her dreams? I daresay she could've been the subject of the film herself. McQueen, another struggling actor, seemed to get the least amount of time. He recalled and showed where he lived when he was homeless. Also, while wearing his Hulk costume, passing out on a 100+ degree day. He says he didn't come here [Hollywood] to be a loser, and yet . . . I think Ogens does aim for humor when the opportunity presents itself. There are some genuinely funny "not-taking-yourself-too-seriously" moments. Other moments just scream "pathetic" and sorrow -- I say again, PATHETIC and sorrow -- stark contrasts to the characters that they're all portraying. There are some painful & depressing moments here. Still, I wanted to see more of the day-to-day doings on the Boulevard of all of them; individually and together. Don't be thrown by the "names" in this, if you see them displayed as a selling point, thinking they have huge parts. Yes, Stan Lee does appear, and so does Margot Kidder. Lee is filmed essentially saying he would be too embarrassed wearing a costume if he was a superhero. He said with his ego, he would want folks to know who he is. Kidder is seen signing autographs at the Superman Festival in Metropolis, IL, with Dennis wearing his costume waiting in line with numerous things for her to sign. She is given a moment of screen time saying what she thinks of men who dress up as Superman, pro and con. The DVD does have some extras. I found the convention/celebrity-autograph seeking segments with Dennis to be the most interesting among them. They do seem to capture the feeling of creepy awkwardness of a "fan-meeting-celeb" experience. There were some minor, nitpicky things I didn't like. There are some jerky camera movements, and fast zoom-ins/zoom-outs from time to time. The onscreen graphics were a bit too small and unclear to read making it hard to identify who was onscreen. It does muddle a bit in the middle, bouncing from character to character. I thought the "R" rating was a bit harsh, but I would not recommend the film for young children, at least those who aren't ready seeing superheroes in this light of reality. (That may apply to some grown-ups too.)
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