By Jay of the Dead

“It may sound absurd, but don’t be naive
Even heroes have the right to bleed
I may be disturbed, but won’t you concede
Even heroes have the right to dream
And it’s not easy to be me

Up, up and away, away from me
Well, it’s all right, you can all sleep sound tonight
I’m not crazy
Or anything.”
— Superman (It’s Not Easy) by Five for Fighting

I’ve thought about it many times before. Everyone has. What would we do if Superman went on a rampage — and I don’t mean flicking peanuts at whiskey bottles? We’d all be screwed. Sure, Superman’s one weakness is Kryptonite, but who has that lying around? And even if you had some, how would you ever “use it on him”? I mean, Lex Luther is an evil super-genius, and even he’s had trouble applying the ill effects of the glowing green crystals to the Man of Steel.

“Brightburn” has a great premise for a Horror movie. And since we’re in the midst of a tidal wave of superhero movies, I suppose a movie like “Brightburn” was inevitable. In fact, the cinema has been shifting this direction for some time now with all its anti-heroes, super villains and straight-up monsters: “The Punisher,” “Hellboy,” “Watchmen,” “Deadpool,” “Split” and “Glass,” “Suicide Squad,” “Venom,” “Brightburn,” coming soon “Dark Phoenix,” and in October, “Joker.”

Now with movies like “Split,” “Venom,” “Brightburn,” and “Joker,” we have two phenomena that we really haven’t seen very much previously: An evil super villain’s stand-alone origin story, and a comfortable slide down into the darkness of the Horror genre.

I must admit that I was a little worried about “Brightburn” because it was reminding me quite a bit of the excellent Animated Comedy “Megamind,” which has some similar riffing to the Superman origin story but with an evil being. But I’m happy to report that “Brightburn” didn’t make me think of “Megamind” at all. In fact, I would emphasize here that this movie is not for kids. “Brightburn” is a full-blown, R-rated Horror movie. This isn’t “Venom,” by any means.

Premise: In the small Kansas farm town of Brightburn, Kyle and Tori Breyer have been trying to start a family with no luck, until one night an infant mysteriously crash lands in a small spaceship near their home. It is evident that the child came from outer space, but Tori (Elizabeth Banks) regards him as an answer to her prayers, a heaven-sent gift.

All is well and mostly normal as Brandon (Jackson Dunn) grows, until his 12th birthday approaches. The ship that’s hidden beneath the trap door in their barn starts to emit a red light and some sort of incantation that seems to activate the boy’s underlying, malevolent nature and his true dark purpose. And as the boy’s behavior incites ire from the community, he begins to eliminate any and all threats with terrifying and impossible power.

The Superman character and story is obviously a type of Jesus Christ. He is a Messianic figure who selflessly tries to save our world, regardless of how underserving humanity may seem. With “Brightburn,” we have the inverse of the benevolent Christian character, so this Brandon Breyer character is an anti-Christ, of sorts, as he selfishly tries to take our world, regardless of how undeserving humanity may seem. It is in this way and on this thematic level that “Brightburn” is truly terrifying to me.

To a Christian (like me), the Christ figure — and by extension, Superman — represents hope. Fear subsides and hope resides. But with a powerfully destructive being like Brandon Breyer in Brightburn, fear becomes all-consuming and hope is lost. It’s a scary place to go in my mind, especially when seeing it vividly played out on the big screen.

But even for viewers who are not religiously oriented, I think “Brightburn” is still chilling. This film is obviously of the Evil Kid sub-genre, and for once, here is an evil kid that I don’t think I could beat down. And like most Horror films, this “monster” preys upon his victims one by one, amassing a body count. But this monster isn’t really created as a result of any prior evil. This kid is simply evil incarnate or an alien invader. That’s right. Technically, “Brightburn” is an alien invasion movie, as well.

Also, this movie has several effective jump-scares and some good gore / kills / aftermath scenes. I’d love to describe them here, but these little surprises should be preserved for your viewing pleasure. There’s a cringe-inducing, eyeball scene depicted in the trailer that would have made Fulci proud. I will say (with no spoilers) that the last death we actually witness onscreen is one of my all-time biggest irrational fears. That death is terrifying to me. Once again, we have a monster that is scary to me due to his “unnatural” abilities.

“Brightburn” is careful to follow many of the familiar story elements of typical superhero origin stories, particularly of the Superman narrative. For example, the family lives on a farm in small-town, midwest America. Even the opening shot of the film of the Breyer mailbox mirrors imagery that we’ve seen before with the Kent mailbox.

And finally, a few random observations that I’ll just string together in stream-of-consciousness fashion: I love how the kid’s newfound defiance corresponds with the pre-teen onset of puberty, so he just seems like a typical kid, even when he begins to lash out. I also love the depiction of “the blindness of a mother’s love.” How long can a mother love her monster unconditionally? How long can a father? And speaking of the parents, I was very impressed with David Denman’s (Roy from “The Office”) conjuring of terror in his eyes. Excellent performance! On the other hand, I was a little disappointed in Elizabeth Banks’ portrayals of fear, though I love that actress.

“Brightburn” was released in theaters on May 24, 2019. It is an effective Evil Kid / Alien / Super Villain Origin Story that delivers on its R-rating. I’m rating it an 8.5 out of 10, and I’d say to see it in the theater and buy it!

Rating and Recommendation: Brightburn (2019)
Jay of the Dead = 8.5 ( Theater / Buy it! )

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