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Released by: Magnet
Released on: 10/6/2009
Director: Ernesto Diaz Espinoza
Cast: Marko Zaror, Maria Elena Swett, Ariel Mateluna, Ivan Jara, Mauricio Pesutic
Year: 2007
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The Movie:
This screwy Chilean action film from writer/director/editor one man wrecking crew Ernesto Diaz Espinoza is a pretty bad ass movie, despite some spots where the low budget shines through and the plot falls prey to clichés.
The film follows a man named Maco (Marko Zaror) who was orphaned when his parents were brutally killed by a gang of ruthless criminals, an act that left his younger brother in a mental institution. Now making a living as a bouncer, Maco has only his fists and his wits to rely on. He lives alone and doesn't have much of a life outside of his job until one day he comes across a robbery in progress. He intervenes and helps stop the bad guys, saving a foxy female television reporter named Carol in the process.
Rather impressed with her savior's combative abilities, she does a story on the masked man who saved her skin, a story that makes its way to her brother inside the hospital where he lives. Inspired by this, his mental state starts to improve, which in turn causes Maco to embrace his new superhero side and take on a new life as a superhero named… Mirageman, hoping to clean up the city and win the heart of the reporter he's starting to crush on.
Mirageman pulls from a few different big budget superhero films and uses their clichés in its own quirky way but ups the violence of a Batman or Spider-Man film considerably. Marko Zaror's martial arts skills are pretty impressive and while there's nothing here on the level of Ong Bak or Drunken Master, the fights are well shot and hit hard with a really impressive authenticity to them. There's no playing with camera speeds or rapid cut editing here to hit the performer's abilities (or lack thereof), instead it's all shown in what appears to be real time which makes it all the more satisfying to watch.
Zaror's acting may not win over legions of fans but he plays the loner type well and looks the part he's required to play. His interactions with Carol sometimes feel a little forced as do the moments with his brother, which are likely supposed to be sympathetic and touching. Mirageman isn't a film that does drama particularly well but it doesn't really matter when you've got a half-crazy guy running around in blue pajamas punching bad guys in the face. There's also a pretty cool sense of realism to some of the superheroics. Without the money or a Bruce Wayne or the brains of a Peter Parker, Maco is left to his own devices, meaning that he'll have to stop in the middle of a fight to take care of real world problems like wiping the fog off of his glasses or he'll have to hide behind a dumpster in an alleyway to change before trying to surprise the bad guys he's been stalking. These moments add humor to the picture that helps elevate it a bit above your standard B-movie fare.
Ultimately, however, this is a film to watch for the ass-kicking. There's plenty of it, and it's handled really well.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The anamorphic 1.78.1 widescreen transfer on this DVD is very nice indeed, doing justice to the film's fast moving cinematography and replicating the color scheme nicely, especially the blues of Mirageman's outfit. Skin tones look good and while some scenes that have more natural light in them look a little soft and a few more look fairly grainy, detail stays strong for the most part. The transfer does a good job of bringing the film's unsettling atmosphere to your home theater set up and there's not much to complain about here in terms of the visuals.
Mirageman is presented in its original Spanish language track or dubbed into English in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound with optional subtitles provided in English only. This is about what you'd expect from a modestly budgeted modern feature. The rears are used during a few of the more intense scenes but seem to be more concerned with the score than anything else. Bass response is alright, though it could have been stronger but the dialogue is always clean, clear and audible.
The only extra of any substance on this disc is a behind the scenes featurette, though at only 3:11 in length it's really little more than some random stunt footage with periodic input from those in front of the camera adding some minor context to it all. It's kind of neat to see how some of the fight scenes were choreographed but this really could and should have been much longer.
Rounding out the extras are some trailers for other Magnolia releases, animated menus and chapter selection options.
The Final Word:
A well made and action intensive low budget feature with a good sense of humor about itself, Mirageman is a whole lot of fun. It's surprisingly violent and features some pretty memorable stunts and fight scenes and plays up the superhero angle a little differently than most other costumed crusader pictures manage to. It's not a perfect film, but it's definitely a really enjoyable one, particularly for those who appreciate low budget action pictures.