Mystery Men (1999)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Kinka Usher

Writers (WGA):

Bob Burden (comic book series by Dark Horse)
Neil Cuthbert (written by)

Release Date:

6 August 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Fantasy

Tagline:

This summer expect the unexpected

Plot:

A group of inept amateur superheroes must try to save the day when a supervillian threatens to destroy a major superhero and the city.

Plot Keywords:

Superhero | Sphinx | Bowling | Rajah | Spleen

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Hank Azaria	...	The Blue Raja
Janeane Garofalo	...	The Bowler
William H. Macy	...	The Shoveller
Kel Mitchell	...	The Invisible Boy
Paul Reubens	...	The Spleen
Ben Stiller	...	Mr. Furious
Wes Studi	...	The Sphinx
Greg Kinnear	...	Captain Amazing / Lance Hunt
Geoffrey Rush	...	Casanova Frankenstein
Lena Olin	...	Dr. Annabel Leek
Eddie Izzard	...	Tony P.
Artie Lange	...	Big Red
Pras	...	Tony C. (as Prakazrel Michel)
Claire Forlani	...	Monica
Tom Waits	...	Dr. Heller

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for comic action violence and crude humor.

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

UK:PG (cut) | Finland:K-10 | Iceland:10 | Iceland:LH (video rating) | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | France:U | Germany:12 | Ireland:PG | Singapore:PG | USA:PG-13 | Netherlands:MG6

Filming Locations:

Huntington Library & Botanical Gardens - 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, California, USA

Company:

Dark Horse Entertainment

Trivia:

The Sphinx was a Golden Age hero who was the creation of Better Publishing; his real name was Ellsworth Forrester, and he first appeared in Exciting Comics #2. Had Better Publishing still been in existence at the time this movie came out, the filmmakers could have been sued for plagiarism. As it is, due to the fact that Better went out of business in the 1950s with no successor, the character is now in the public domain.

Goofs:

Continuity: When The Bowler first arrives at the tryouts, she removes her ball from her bag and kicks it away. Immediately after it is back at her side.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Dr. Heller: [offering an old lady candy at the Senior dance] Would you like something sweet?
Old Lady: [impressed] Oh!

Movie Connections:

References "Battlestar Galactica" (1978)

Soundtrack:

No Way

Great fun

This movie is a lot of fun. What makes it great especially are two things: one is the straightforward way the characters embrace the stereotypes, with discussions of their costumes and superpowers. There's an endearing earnestness to the parody that's very appealing; the second is basic sweetness of the characters and the quality of the chemistry. Claire Forlani deserves particular note as the object of Mr. Furious's desires. There's a boatload of talent here. I realize some with high expectations may have been disappointed, but this movie is a lot of fun, and kind of sweet.