Matthew Blackheart: Monster Smasher Reviews

Though it nudges viewers in the ribs a little too often, this comic adventure picture is surprisingly imaginative and self-deprecatingly funny. At a 1999 comic book signing in Manhattan, Matthew Blackheat (Robert Bogue) takes exception to his biography, which was written by teenaged Jimmy (Jay Baruchel). Jimmy relies on flashbacks to Blackheart's super-savior past to justify his biographical flourishes. In 1944, FDR commissioned Dr. James Franken (Kenneth Welsh) to construct Blackheart from the bodies of dead heroes; the resulting monster smasher was to be America's secret weapon against the Nazis and whatever bogeymen the future held. After a series of preliminary victories, Blackheart fell victim to the diabolical Dr. Mortas (Christopher Heyerdahl), who zapped him into a state of suspended animation in Patagonia. Thawed out 55 years later, Blackheart is a fish out of water in modern-day New York, and he wasn't made to deal with the new breed of monsters camouflage their designs on freedom with glib political rhetoric. Mayoral candidate Ruskin Stern (John Novak), who puts on a fine show of being patriotic, seeks the gullible Blackheart's assistance. But Stern is actually a pawn of Dr. Mortas, whose power base now rests on an army of genetically designed fiends. Mortas's man-made monsters can assume human shape, like that of philanthropist Helen Goldsmith (Una Kay), the most influential fundraiser in New York, or Stern himself. Fortunately, the naive Blackheart also has allies; adolescent graphic novelist Jimmy turns out to be Dr. Franken himself, rejuvenated by a youth serum. Blackheart's approach may be dated, but it's up to him to dust off his monster-smashing skills and annihilate Mortas's legion before they defeat the American Way. The style of this captivating chronicle of a good Golem's destiny approximates the bold strokes of an actual comic book, and its pop-art profile and cheerful WWII nostalgia help it glide through the script's repetitive moments.