Kick-Ass 2 MPAA Rating: R Entertainment: +2 Content: -4

Aaron Johnson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloë Grace Moretz, Jim Carrey. Written by Jeff Wadlow and Mark Millar. Directed by Jeff Wadlow.

FILM SYNOPSIS: The costumed high-school hero Kick-Ass joins with a group of normal citizens who have been inspired to fight crime in costume. Meanwhile, the Red Mist plots an act of revenge under a new name (which I can’t mention here as it’s pretty obscene). And Hit Girl tries to fit in as a high school freshman.

PREVIEW REVIEW: I feel guilty admitting this, but there was something I liked about the 2010 Kill Bill-styled action comedy Kick-Ass. First, the premise was creative, the humor truly witty, and little Chloë Grace Moretz (Hugo, Dark Shadows) was the Hollywood find of the year. I also got a kick out of the offbeat Nicolas Cage doing a faux Batman, replete with an Adam West vocal delivery. None of that is to suggest my endorsement. It was justly rated R and we are bombarded with R-rated material in today’s movies (even when they’re only rated PG-13).

As for our little Hit Girl (Miss Moretz), she’s pretty much the central figure in this sequel. But unlike in the comic books, superkids played by humans grow up. She’s more Hit-ager now, and being a teen her attitude resembles that of just about every other 15-year-old. I presume that in the next sequel, she’ll be dating Red Mist, then go a little more to the badder side until she’s rescued by K.A.

As to the film itself, I kept thinking it’s unnecessary. It’s a sequel and it knows it, despite the fact that at one point we see the male lead wearing a t-shirt with the pronouncement “I Hate Reboots.”

Like with Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, much of the violence in the original was stylized and blended with bizarre comic book outlandishness. But although there was an exuberant panache to the action sequences, they also served to further desensitize us. And this being a sequel, guess what we get more of? Right, more violence, the humor is even darker, and the sexuality incorporates the sexploitation of underage girls. There’s a new character, Colonel Stars and Stripes, played by Jim Carrey, but mostly, there’s more swearing, more hitting, and more sexual exploration. Though comic strip in presentation, the visual abundance of sliced and diced bodies may be having more of a counter social effect on our psyches than we suspect. But I’ve already discussed to death the issue of too much violence in our media. The complaints don’t seem to be doing much good, do they?

Something that surprised me – the Jim Carrey character is a reformed crook who is now a born again Christian. He even chastises others for taking the Lord’s name in vain. He does this at least twice. By film’s end, the other superhero wannabes take this to heart and swear not to swear. Colonel Stars and Stripes new-found faith is not mocked and it signals a search for righteousness in other characters – even Hit Girl, who does her best to give her word and keep it.

Your word of honor means something to the lead good guys. Still, I wouldn’t call this a spiritually uplifting film. This isn’t a film about accepting Christ. The language will cause the ears to bleed, there’s grown-up sexuality and sexual situations, and in one scene the underage girls are seen in skimpy clothing trying out for dance team at school. Mind you, this isn’t a film for adolescents, due to R-rated material. And I felt uncomfortable with the exploitation of the teenage female body. Are we grownups supposed to be watching this scene? No? Then why’s it in the film?

Then there’s the violence. I won’t go on and on about it, but it is excessive. Several main characters are murdered, people are shot to death, some have their throats cut and a few even get run over by vehicles. All of the action is well choreographed and executed (so to speak), but it’s brutal and often jolting.

One of the truths we gain from Bible study is the need for moderation. That’s a word that goes out the window when Tarantino wannabes script an action adventure. If you feel your psyche has been pounded too much by the recent exploiters of this cartoon noir genre, you might want to take a stand. You don’t have to put on a superhero suit. Just don’t give the box office your loot.

Preview Reviewer: Phil Boatwright
Distributor: Universal