Special: Review By B. Alan Orange

Michael Rapaport is one of the most underused actors of his generation. He may be the only New York tough guy carrying the DeNiro/Pacino torch through this Hollywood landscape of fey, young over achievers that now plague our Cineplex. Any time he takes the lead is a welcome treat. And his latest surreal stab at dramatic comedy is certainly that. Special is a great little dusty gem of a movie. Though, it might not be everyone’s idea of a fun time. It does deserve its place on the ever-changing evolutionary ladder of super hero flicks, though. And yeah, I’ll say it: Rapaport gives a performance equal in measure to that of Robert Downey Jr.’s in this summer’s Iron Man.

Special smells like a deft challenge presented to the two filmmakers responsible for this slight left hook. It’s a cinematic jab at commercial pulp fare, and a keen observational report on the idea of drug testing in humans. Hal Haberman and Jeremy Passmore are super nerds at heart, and this is their first directorial exercise. It comes on strong like an unwitting bar bet that seems, at first, impossible to win. “Can a couple of dudes just out of film school make a comic book movie on a limited budget?” Sure they can. All they needed was a willing actor able to run nose first into any brick wall. And Rapaport tackles that task with a certain chutzpa that is quite infectious. It’s better to have him here, where he is allowed to play, then off on some big budget movie that might have restricted his erstwhile talents.

Some may argue that this isn’t a super hero movie. At all. Once that can of worms is opened, many poker table aficionados will spend hours debating is merits towards the cosmic principle. Special is a lot of things. It’s a comedy that sees Rapaport engaging in a lot of psychical stunts. It’s a stunning look at this nation’s obsession with over-the-counter drugs. It’s also a personal quest to gain some much-needed confidence. But those ideas are wrapped up in an undeniable genre blanket of sorts, and its roots are deeply buried in the traditional origin story often associated with the best graphic novels. With little money to make their hero fly and perform feats of astonishing magic, Haberman and Passmore had to generate a $.99 Store means of making their man a believable icon of truth and justice. And they accomplish that goal in supreme waves of watchablity that will wash over you like the best in art house warfare.

Both Iron Man and The Dark Knight have been touted as this year’s comic book to film adaptation pioneers. The masses have screamed in unison about their genre defying ways of intelligent storytelling. But deep down, those two dark fictional accounts utilized the same structuring that every comic movie has upheld before it. Special, on the other hand, actually does something brand new with the notion of being a super hero. It is a slight revisionist take on the subject mater, and it is as unique as M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable. Its something we’ve never seen before. And the two directors are able to level the off-balanced nature of their story; bringing some much needed equilibrium to the task at hand.

Rapaport plays Les Franken, a fan store addict with low self-esteem. During the day, he is a meter maid that allows himself to be talked out of tickets. On a whim, he joins a drug-testing program, and is given the new antidepressant Specioprin Hydrochloride. The drug is supposed to take away any fear or self-doubt that a patient may be harboring. But it has an adverse effect on Les’ subconscious. The more he takes the tiny pill, the stronger his belief becomes that he is a living, breathing superman of sorts. He develops special powers like telekinesis and the ability to “Bamf!” through walls like the X-Men’s Nightcrawler. But these ego-boosting side effects may not be what they seem.

Franken dives into his closet and constructs an outfit out of an old leather jumpsuit. He then takes to the streets to fight crime. Special comes on like a quaint mix of Rapaport's own cult classic The Naked Man and John Ritter’s 1980 attempt at the super hero genre Hero at Large. Is he a delusional vigilante? Or is he an actual mutated super human? The narrative does a brilliant job of leaping between both consents. Half of the time, we are seeing this strange new world through Les’ eyes. The other half of the time, we are seeing it through everybody else’s. The two directors set up Franken as a whack job, but then they continually pull this obvious rug out from under our feet. At times, we’re not sure if we are watching a cerebral mind trip, or if the medication really is having a performance enhancing effect on this everyman. The end results will surely surprise and enlighten you.

Special is the second film in Magnet’s 6-Shooter Film Series, an anthology of films that are proving to be quite outstanding. Hal Haberman and Jeremy Passmore’s genre twisting tale is every bit as good as that first flick in the barrel Let the Right One In. Magnet has certainly picked an octet of genre worthy fare for the masses. If you are so inclined, you should definitely seek this one out. You won’t be disappointed.

Special gets a big Whoop-doo!

(All of B. Alan Orange’s reviews are based on the Boo! or Whoop-doo! evaluation system.)