Broken heroes
March 10th, 2008
It is the photo above that first drew my attention to the Matt Ogen documentary Confessions of a Superhero. Struck by the clash of the bright and iconic costume of Superman with miserable drab green reality, I first thought that it was a portrait amongst a series of photographs.
It could be a fair mistake to make as the film does rely very heavily on the imagery of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and the Hulk set against the backdrop of Hollywood. Not the glitzy, glamorous Hollywood that is sold to the world as a foundation stone of the American dream, but the stretch of broken dreams.
In fact Ogen’s photographs from the film were part of the 2007 Images of the Year by American Photo magazine.
The documentary provides snapshots of the lives of four ‘performers’ who dress up as comic book characters and pose with tourists for money on Hollywood Boulevard.
Superman (Christopher Dennis) is a former meth addict who is obsessed with the Man of Steel and has a passing resemblance to Christopher Reeve. He is the veteran of the group and gives advice to the others which includes the fact that Superheroes don’t smoke in public (to a less than convinced Ghost Rider who he himself was less than convincing). He claims to be the son of an actress though her family deny it. Something obviously has hurt this man in his past so much so that he escaped into Superman. One sequence has him talking about the death of Reeve as he holds back the tears, Reeve being his Superman of choice.
Batman (Maxwell Allen) has a much more than a passing resemblance for George Clooney, surprisingly so given the right angle. When I say that Superman has had something bad happen to him it is nothing like what I can only imagine has happened to Batman. The hurt and sadness is clear behind his cowled eyes, he is an angry man who talks of his violent past. If even half of what he says is true it is a miracle that he can deal with life on a day to day basis let alone put on the Batman suit. His wife is really interesting as she talks about him.
Wonder Woman (Jennifer Gehrt) sits alone in her sad little apartment and talks of her former life as a Prom queen. We get to watch her get married in Vegas and the eventual break down of her whirlwind marriage. She is going on auditions and claims that all she wants to do is act, even if she gets no great money from it, she is doing what she loves. Wonder Woman though doesn’t really speak about the character she is performing or even her life as a character.
The Hulk (Joe McQueen) sold his Super Nintendo to get a ticket to LA and follow his dream of acting. What he found was homelessness and a giant green costume that he occasionally passes out in due to the heat. The Hulk is possibly the most tragic of the four as he doesn’t appear to have any psychological problems and is acutely aware that he is pan handling but tells himself that it is performing.
The film is paced and steady. It is gorgeously shot as the film maker captures the odd world that these people inhabit. I find that there is no way that I can make fun of these people, they are tragic but seem to take the roles that they perform seriously if not naively.
This is a quiet, subtle film that has left me thinking. It has left me confused about how I feel about it but I know that it is beautiful.
*updated - I had the names turned around for Batman and the Hulk, something that Maxwell himself pointed out! Sorry guys! I’ve fixed it now.
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Categories: Comics, Movies | Tags: american photo magazine, Batman, broken dreams, christopher dennis, christopher reeve, confessions of a superhero, george clooney, heroes, hollywood boulevard, hulk, man of steel, photos, superheroes, wonder woman | 19 Comments
