Brightburn (2019)

Review

90min

Genre:       Fantasy, Horror, Thriller

Director:    David Yarovesky

Cast:         Jackson A. Dunn, Elizabeth Banks, David Denman…and more

Writers:     Brian Gunn and Mark Gunn

-Synopsis-

When a childless rural couple discover a crash-landed baby from another world on their land, it seems like a blessing from the heavens, but his personality and childhood soon reveals to be a curse when this boy with supernatural abilities begins to display a sinister side, with consequences for the whole town . . . and beyond.

After introducing new levels of plucky humour to the superhero blockbuster with 2014’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’, now producer James Gunn leads a family affair with his screenwriting brother Brian Gunn and cousin Mark Gunn, as they team up with director David Yarovesky (The Hive) to inject true horror into comic book filmmaking—giving us their distinctly dark take on the ‘Man of Steel’ story.

Jackson A. Dunn stars as Kansas farm boy ‘Brandon Breyer’, a sweet and intelligent youngster raised by his loving and unassuming parents ‘Tori’ (Elizabeth Banks) and ‘Kyle’ (David Denman). But their idyllic, typical life in middle America is turned upside down when Brandon learns the truth about his origins, with teenage urges and youthful rebellion conspiring with inexplicable forces to transform him into something increasingly fearsome—as he begins to tests his physical limitations and moral boundaries, beyond the control of anyone around him.

James Gunn is certainly no stranger to homage and genre hybrids, having made his name blending alien invasion, body-snatching b-movie horror with 21st century comedy in 2006’s ‘Slither’, then capturing the world’s imagination and changing the tone of the MCU by combining a comedic character piece with superhero space epic in 2014’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’. But with the junior members of the Gunn family and director Yarovesky taking the reins here, there is virtually no sign of the Gunn charm and humour, as the ‘Brightburn’ writers and director play it dark and straight . . . and pretty dour.

The basic premise of ‘Brightburn’ is clear for all to see; a Kryptonian-like baby lands on Earth and is taken in by an unsuspecting couple, but turns out to have (or develop) a dark heart, or perhaps is sent for purposes quite contrary to the Man of Steel’s mission to save and protect humanity. But as its brisk ninety-minute runtime might suggest, there is no space here for a grandiose ‘Superman’ style origin story, with the Gunns and Yarovesky jumping straight into the present day action and seeming completely uninterested in illuminating any context in terms of the boy’s powers, what he is and where he comes from—instead they’re in this for the tension and the horror, back-story be damned.

We wouldn’t be surprised if the filmmakers were on a Richard Donner trip when conceiving this film, which often feels like a 21st century blend of 1976’s ‘The Omen’ and 1978’s ‘Superman’. But ‘Brightburn’ sits uncomfortably and innocuously between a genuine horror film and a bona fide superhero flick, while never excelling at either.

Sure there are a few sudden jump scares and some gruesome kills, but it’s never creepy, foreboding or scary enough to clench butts onto seats or leave a mark, and it’s all confined and crammed into the third act, as are the boy’s display of his powers and the film’s limited action credentials. Meanwhile as a superhero film, or an anti-hero tale, ‘Brightburn’ doesn’t exactly soar either, proving morally ambiguous and offering little to sink your teeth into in terms of story or character development.

The performances here are solid enough but uninspiring, with Elizabeth Banks adding to her record of switching from comedy to drama by playing her part in what is to some extent a bizarre tale of motherhood and unconditional love . . . to a point. Meanwhile in the lead role and with little to work with, young Jackson A. Dunn does well as a conflicted young soul, proving occasionally sympathetic and suitably unsettling when necessary, without ever completely capturing our attention—trying to follow in a tradition of creepy kids and clearly taking a cue from Damien in ‘The Omen’, a horror classic which proves a clear inspiration for this film’s overall narrative, and its dark conclusion with no silver lining.

Ultimately this slightly predictable and underwhelming tale of a caped executioner reels you in with an interesting premise, toiling to deliver enough thrills and morbid spectacle to keep you engaged throughout its mercifully short and moderately sweet runtime, but offering nowhere near enough to make a lasting impression or keep you interested in any sort of franchise that Sony probably hopes to start with it.

In the end ‘Brightburn’ falls well short of being the film which ushers in a new horror frontier for the superhero and comic-book movie milieu, the way ‘Kick Ass’ and then ‘Deadpool’ did for R-rated comedy. But despite extensive reshoots, multiple major delays and a change of management, there might still be hope that 20th Century Fox’s ‘The New Mutants’ does the job next year.

The Bottom Line…

An anti-hero, superhero/horror hybrid which fails to truly thrill or capture the imagination on either front, ‘Bightburn’ falls short of turning the classic ‘Man of Steel’ tale on its head, squandering a promising premise by delivering a few gruesomely creative kills and moderate tension, by way of a dysfunctional family drama and a dark puberty parable which ultimately just don’t work.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

A Quiet Place (2018)

In a world devastated by an unexplained catastrophe, a young family—stalked by menacing and mysterious creatures who hunt on sound alone—lives in complete silence and rural isolation, but their tentative tranquil existence will soon be smashed when silence proves neither golden nor eternal, in this horror/thriller third feature from actor-turned-director John Krasinski.

Directed by John Krasinski and starring Emily Blunt, John Krasinski and Millicent Simmonds among others.

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