Sidekick
Mild-mannered computer consultant Norman Neale has two great loves in this cruel world: Comic books and his office's effervescent main receptionist, Andrea Hicks. Norman spends his days dreaming of Andrea from the isolation of his cubicle and his nights dreaming of fighting crime from the solitude of his apartment. Then one fateful day Norman discovers that a fellow co-worker, Victor Ventura, a swaggering, pretty-boy salesman, has slight telekinetic abilities beyond his understanding. After discussing his mind-blowing discovery with his only friend Chuck, a know-it-all comic book store owner, Norman comes to the outlandish conclusion that he should train Victor to become a real-life superhero by helping him refine and expand his extraordinary ability.
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- Cast:
- Daniel Baldwin , Perry Mucci , David Ingram
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Reviews
It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.
Absolutely the worst movie.
It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.
There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.
The main story had been stolen from Robert Townsend's The Meteor Man and ended with a reverse Scrooge tactic, where Rowan Atkinson has already done it in his spoofs - Black Adder. Too shame a Canadian studio would do such a degradable act as a movie that had complete been plagiarized to just make money out of it. The acting is worse than the directing. You don't have to show all your colours just to make a point where the receptionist does it over and over again in her overacting: face expression is important but exaggerating is really annoying and disgusting especially near the subway station. As per directing a movie is concerned fella just keep your day job - period. If you had quit it to do this then some mental hospice might do wonders buddy.
Watchable but nothing special. It reminded me of a sci-fi channel TV movie. Woulda made a mediocre Twighlight Zone or X-files episode.I rate it a 3 because if you spent any money watching it, you might very well feel ripped off.Some people might rate it higher because it's an indie, but I'm an average movie watcher, not a film-school teacher. I rate all movies by one standard.It had a low-budget feel from the start. Camera and sound work were fine, The few small special effects were OK, so I guess it was the acting and directing that made it feel cheap. All the extras looked like acting students who like to stretch their lines out to get more face-time on camera.The Baldwin brother looked like De Niro compared to the other actors, and no that's not a compliment. If you thought the movie "Unbreakable" was the bestest movie ever, then you might like this variation of the same theme.
I saw this the other night at the okanagan fall film fest and it ruled. This is the kinda movie that $200,000,000 would not necessarily make better. The script was awesome very smart very funny and very witty. The acting was all spot on, not one weak character. The directing, cinematography and special effect were all perfect. (just so you know I do not know anyone involved so this IS not a biest review). The beauty of Canadian films is due to lack of budget they have to be exceptional films in order to get picked up and maple has picked this one up so you should see it in your local independent video store come mid November, and I strongly recommend it. All I have to say about this film is that it was well worth the $8 movie ticket and I will stock several copy's in my store.
Norman (Perry Mucci), a nerdy computer troubleshooter at an investment firm in Toronto, fills his personal time and imagination with comic superheroes; his best buddy runs a comic book shop where he often hangs out. One day in the coffee room at work, Norman sees Victor (David Ingram), one of the slicker salesmen, grab a toppling coffee cup in midair with such lightening speed that Norman guesses he must possess some sort of telekinetic powers. Turns out he guessed right.Norman offers to train Victor to focus the use of these powers more intentionally, and, after initially spurning the offer, Victor acquiesces. Norman envisions training Victor to become a superhero, fighting crime with his paranormal skills, while Norman sees himself as a sidekick, his Robin to Victor's Batman. Trouble is, Victor does not share this vision: he has no scruples whatsoever and laughs off the idea of becoming a crimefighter in favor of accumulating corporate control and wealth through his powers, even if this requires violence.Norman has inadvertently created a monster and now must attempt to pull the plug on him. The screenplay is cleverly written. Ingram is perfect as the narcissistic bad guy. Mucci is burdened by playing a character too naive to be believed, not in the big city of Toronto. My rating: 6.5/10 (B). (Film seen on 10/01/05 at the Idaho International Film Festival). If you'd like to read more of my reviews, send me a message for directions to my websites.