The hippest cast in history has united to become the funniest
superhero team ever. Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, Hank Azaria,
William H. Macy, Greg Kinnear, Geoffrey Rush and Paul Reubens
join forces in this wild, funny and thoroughly original
misadventure.When Captain Amazing, Champion City's legendary
superhero, falls into the hands of the evil madman Casanova
Frankenstein and his disco-dancing henchmen, there's suddenly a
chance for the aspiring superheroes to show what they can do.
They're the Mystery Men… a ragtag team of superhero wannabes
featuring: Mr. Furious, whose power comes from his boundless
rage; The Shoveler, a her who shovels "better than anyone";
The Blue Raja, a fork-flinging mama's boy; The er, who fights
crime with the help of her her's skull; The Spleen, whose
power is pure flatulence; Invisible Boy, who's only invisible
when no one's watching and The Sphinx, a cliche-spewing
philosopher.With its outrageous adventure, incredible cast and
hip alternative humor, Mystery Men is so irresistibly funny and
appealing, seeing it just once will never be enough.
Bonus Content:
* Spotlight on Location
* Feature Commentary with Director Kinka Usher
* Deleted Scenes
* Universal Soundtrack Pesentation
* Music Highlights
* The Origin of the "Mystery Men" Comic Book Characters
* Production Notes
* Cast and Filmmakers
* Theatrical Trailer
* DVD-ROM Features
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Ever wonder if there was a class system in the world of
superheroes? After all the big names like Superman, Batman,
Spider-Man, etc., who were the supporting players? The folks
assigned to the less-than-stellar gigs of saving only a small
part of the world? According to this intermittently successful
send-up of comic book heroism, there are indeed ed heroes who
struggle and toil for their moment in the super sun. Based on the
Dark Horse comic book series, Mystery Men follows the travails of
three B-list avengers--Mr. Furious (Ben Stiller), the Shoveler
(William H. Macy), and the Blue Raja (Hank Azaria)--as they fight
to make themselves known to the citizens of Champion City, quite
difficult to do when the flashy Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear,
never better) takes all the cool gigs and has product
endorsements up the ying-yang. According to them, it's all a
matter of timing--never mind that Mr. Furious never rises above a
snit, or that the Blue Raja wears green. Their big break comes
when Captain Amazing is abducted by the evil Casanova
Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush), and it's up to this motley crew to
save Champion City.
Blessed with a wondrously gifted comic cast and full of droll
details, Mystery Men struggles in fits and spurts towards its
climax. Transcendently witty in parts, it's also woefully
sopric in others. Literally, this is the kind of movie in
which someone gets off a brilliant line and then sits on a fork.
Still, when this movie is rolling, it's gleefully on target,
thanks primarily to the mordantly cocky Stiller and Janeane
Garofalo as a latecomer to the superhero gang; her secret weapon
is a ing ball in which her dead her's head is encased. The
comic chemistry between these two is fierce, and when you add the
dryly funny Macy and the endearing Azaria (who finally gets a
chance to let loose with his comic gifts), it's a hilarious
joyride. Too bad that the tank is only half-full; this
stunning cast deserves a first-rate vehicle. With Tom Waits as a
weapons expert, Claire Forlani as the requisite babe, and Paul
Reubens as the Spleen, the world's most flatulent superhero.
--Mark Englehart