MYSTERY MEN **1/2 (out of five stars) A review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-Ben Stiller, William H. Macy, Hank Azaria, Geoffrey Rush, Janeane Garofalo, Greg Kinnear, Paul Reubens, Kel Mitchell, Wes Studi and Claire Forlani Director-Kinka Usher Rated PG Released August 1999 Universal
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Mystery Men is a movie about super-heroes who use garden tools, cutlery and flatulence to fight evil. They dress up in threatening, homemade costumes and try to rid the city of crime. This sounds like it would make a terrific Saturday Night Live skit, but a 2-hour summer movie is... perhaps pushing it. Despite it's sporadic enjoyment and visual flare, Mystery Men simply can't hold together as a whole.
The premise is certainly creative. In futuristic Champion City, the local super-hero Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear) controls crime and rules the streets. Sporting more product-placement ads than Tiger Woods, Amazing is a sponsor for companies like Pepsi, Penzoil and Mighty Whitey Toothpaste. But lately, it seems, the crime rate in Champion City has been experiencing a serious decline. Losing the spotlight and hoping to regain his stature, Amazing springs super-villain Casanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush) from a mental institution so he can make headlines again. But alas, the plan backfires, as Amazing is kidnapped by Casanova to leave the city in destruction and peril.
Enter a squad of second-rate heroes who want to also clean up the city, and rescue Captain Amazing in the process. Mr. Furious (Ben Stiller) is a leather-clad `ticking time-bomb of fury', The Shoveler (William H. Macy) has incredible skill with gardening tools, The Blue Raja (Hank Azaria) tosses kitchen utensils with precise accuracy, The Spleen (Paul Reubens) uses the deadly art of passing gas to ward off villains, The Bowler (Janeane Garofalo) wields a bowling ball containing her late father's skull, and Invisible Boy (Kel Mitchell) has the ability to disappear when no one is looking. The fate of the city is in their hands. I know, it doesn't look good.
While Mystery Men certainly has it's moments, the foundation is lost with all the frantic special effects and missed opportunities. Too many gags fall flat as a result of botched humor and imperfect comic timing. Everything becomes caught in a whirlwind of expensive sets and visuals, and the movie begins to see the jokes as a second priority. Still, there are bits and pieces of sheer delight. Wes Studi plays The Sphinx, a (supposedly) wise and mysterious super-hero who offers the group some philosophical views on fighting crime. His pointless lessons include `If you doubt your powers, you add power to your doubts' and `When you care what is outside, what is inside cares for you.' Studi, best known for his role in The Last of the Mohicans, has never been better.
Most of the cast fares exceptionally well. Stiller is believably angry, but he adds an unexpected sensitive side to his character that was nice to see. Macy is wonderful (as always), but given limitations. Azaria does a remarkable job with a cheesy British accent, Garofalo is fun to watch, and Reubens is appropriately disgusting. Geoffrey Rush is somewhat irritating as the long-nailed, disco lovin' super-villain, but his performance seems perfectly on target. All of the actors, despite some unfunny material, never display a hint of desperation.
There are amusing one-liners everywhere. Debating whether businessman Lance Ardon and Captain Amazing are the same person, Macy argues: `Lance wears glasses. Captain Amazing doesn't.' Hmmm... perhaps a little (wink, wink) reference to Superman and his alter-ego. But even with clever zingers such as this, the film can't settle on a stable conglomeration of comedy and action, as the scale never fixates on a confident center. Laughs are absent from certain scenes where they could have been plentiful, and minor when they should have been huge. I certainly won't argue if Mystery Men is funny; it is. But with more skillful material, the proceedings could have multiplied in comedic value.
For most, this will be entertaining. But take a look at the cast list and the enormous potential that it carried, and perhaps you'll agree: it could have been more.
(C) 1999, Jamey Hughton
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