![[box cover]](../reviewimgs/m/mysterymen.jpg)
Mystery Men
Great concepts are smothered in hopeless execution, and what should've been a potent, hilarious deflation of comic-book action pomp turns out to be as lifeless and unimaginative as Batman Returns. Based on the Dark Horse comic-book series by Bob Burden, the idea behind Mystery Men is pure gold -- a motley gang of inept superheroes is given a chance to shine when jaded Captain Amazing is held hostage by the last remaining evil genius in Champion City. The hippest self-deprecating ensemble of 1999 -- Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy, Hank Azaria, Tom Waits, Greg Kinnear, and Geoffrey Rush -- is wasted as pathetic first-time director Kinka Usher ignores the material's deadpan textures and delivers another in a deadening series of noisy, chaotic, comic-book-inspired barrages of senseless aesthetics. Presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and 5.1 Dolby Digital. Includes a commentary by Usher, deleted scenes, featurette, soundtrack presentation and music highlights, textual supplements, trailers, and additional material as DVD-ROM content. Keep case.
