Let's be honest, Ma and Pa Kent had a tough job when they decided to raise an alien baby that crashed on their farm. They had to hide his origins and fake an adoption, no easy chore. But once their son hits his teens, in reality, things had to be much harder than depicted in any Superman comic.
Now, I don't have children, but I remember being a teenager and, while I wasn't quite the hellion my middle brother was, I was still a handful. The teen years are a time of rebellion, of believing you know everything and you don't want to listen to anyone, especially your parents. You know what you want to do, and you don't feel the need for anyone's permission to do it. But, compound such an attitude with a teen who has the power of a god, and you have to praise the Kents for how Clark turned out. But you have to wonder what might have happened if their lessons hadn't taken root.
Which is why I was so interest in Brightburn when I saw the trailer a few years ago. The film seemed to be an exploration of what might happen if the moral values Superman's parents tried to teach him were washed away in a flood of hormones and a growing realization that he could do anything he wanted, without fear of repercussions. That film could have been an interesting story, with some real stakes and tension, but the resulting movie falls short. It delivers the horror of what such a person is capable of doing, but cops out on dealing with any struggle between morals upbringing and being able to act in any way you want.
The basic plot concerns Tori and Kyle Breyer (David Denman, and Elizabeth Banks from Slither), a couple living on a farm in Brightburn, Kansas, who are unable to conceive a child. Lucky for them, one falls into their laps, or rather their backyard, as a spaceship containing a male baby crashes next to their house.
He's just a baby from a strange spaceship.
What could possibly go wrong?
Twelve years later, their son Brandon (Jackson A. Dunn) is a quiet kid with overprotective parents. But that changes when...
Okay, I try not to give away SPOILERS in my summation of the film, but the direction the script takes early on is important to my review. While I'd be happy to skip it, it is the major problem I have with the film, one that made the story not work for me. So I'm going to issue a SPOILER ALERT for the rest of the plot summation, and some of the review that follows. If you don't want to know what's going to happen, go watch the film now (or purchase it at the Amazon links below, as I'll get a few pennies to help keep the lights on at The Shadow Over Portland office) and come back. I'll post an END OF SPOILERS later in the review.
Brandon starts receiving telepathic messages from the ship that brought him to Earth, locked away in the Breyer's barn. Tori knows Brandon has found the ship's location, but keeps it a secret from Kyle. Brandon discovers he has supernatural strength, and when his extremely high intelligence is mocked by students at his school, fellow student Caitlyn (Emmie Hunter) tells him smart guys are cool, leading to his infatuation with her.
Meanwhile, before a camping trip, his parents find his porn stash, consisting of bikini clad women and FREAKING AUTOPSY PHOTOS! Rather than being disturbed, they decide it's time for "the talk." Okay, I know they're farmers, but Kyle and Tori are pretty intelligent, and should know it's past talk time with them, and more like time for several sessions with a psychologist.
God, where's Harry Morgan when you need him?
I'm sure a little time out in the woods will cure
your desire to collect autopsy photos. Trust me!
During the camping trip, Kyle tries to talk about masturbation with Brandon. But, in typical parental fashion, Kyle is so vague that Brandon takes it to mean he should satisfy his urges when he wants, and he shows up in Caitlyn's bedroom. Fortunately, nothing happens, as her mother comes into the room when she screams upon seeing Brandon, and he takes off.
Oh, yeah, he can fly. Forgot to mention that, but the pitch for this film was basically advertised as Superboy gone bad, so you should figure he has all the Kryptonian's powers.
Convinced Brandon was in her room that night, Caitlyn fails to catch Brandon during a trust exercise at school. When forced to help him up, Brandon mangles her hand with his super strength.
And, as expected, mayhem ensues.
Guess he was blinded by the light.
Oh, yes, I have more bad puns coming.
The main problem with the film is the script turning this into an alien invasion story, or something like that. The script is never clear on why Brandon ended up on Earth, but when he hears the ship telling him to "take the planet," I'm going with an invasion. Perhaps script writers Mark and Brian Gunn, who are relatives of producer James Gunn (Slither, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. One and Volume Two), didn't want to vilify Brandon and made his actions more the dictate of the ship and not his coming to grips with the fact that he is a god walking on a planet of ants. Or that might have been dictated by the production companies, worried that casting a teenage boy as a ruthless murderer might turn away movie goers.
But whoever made the decision was wrong. Brightburn was R-rated, so it was aimed at a more mature audience that one suspects could handle a teenage boy exerting his superhuman powers to get what he wants. But had the story ditched the ship, and just let Brandon's actions be an extension of him, it would have made the conclusion more tense. Instead of realizing they have to kill him, Kyle and Tori could have tried reasoning with him, trying to reach a part of him that remembered the morals they installed in him. Sure, a parent might end up dead, and the world might have a superhero with a murderous past. But that's part of why we have an R-rating, so we can explore interesting ideas and keep the violence disturbingly real. Sure, it might mean a bit more work on the script, but it would have been a more interesting film than that hit theaters and home video.
And, to be honest, it's one of the lamest invasion plans on film since Signs. Not in the botched execution, but that whatever sent down this humanoid baby waited twelve years before executing their plan. One has to assume it would have been easier for them to accelerate Brandon's growth and send him down an adult with a program to kill. I guess when you conquer faster than light travel, time loses all meaning.
END OF SPOILERS
Getting back to the disturbing violence, some of the killings are quite graphic. A car wreck Brandon causes results in a gory jaw dislocation, which is just amazing. But that, and a few other nasty moments, aren't enough to make this a must see film. The film isn't like Logan or Amazon's The Boys, both of which contain some graphic moments while delivering a compelling story that keeps your interest.
I think he bit off more than he could chew.
Sorry. That was pretty bad. No more puns.
Despite the script, the actors do a great job. You really believe all the characters, including the secondary ones, are real people, not just cliche characters destined to be ground to paste. Even with the obvious warning sign mentioned above, Banks and Denman shine as parents slowly realizing their son is out of control. And Dunn is quite good, though some might feel his performance is a bit emotionless. But he is able to channel a character realizing he has the power to do whatever he wants, a frightening prospect as he's just a teenager and a reminder that he sees us as beings he can eliminate if we stand in the way of his desires.
I wish the plot had lived up to the promise of the trailer and the performance of the actors. Instead, Brightburn delivers a subpar story, but one can see how much better the film could have been had the scriptwriters delivered on the promise of the trailer.
You won't like me when I'm angry.
Hey, why not bring in another popular superhero into the mix?
If you want to purchase Brightburn, I hope you'll click on the links below from Amazon. As an affiliate, I get a few cents for each purchase, which helps keep The Shadow Over Portland office open.
