Brightburn

"He's not our son. He is some...THING we found in the woods!" - Kyle Breyer

release year: 2019
genre: horror/fantasy
viewing setting: home Bluray 4/27/20

synopsis: A couple in a small farming town finds and keeps a crash-landed alien baby, who then breaks bad at age 12 after discovering his origin and powers.

impressions: Imagine Superman gone bad, at age 12. That's about it. You could blame the combination of the weird signals from the remains of his ship, bullying at school, and the sudden discovery of his true origin. Or maybe he was just destined to be evil. There are some scary moments, and some grim ones. At some point, you realize that this kid's beyond hope, and then you realize that he can do whatever he wants and no one can stop him.

plug for similar work: If you want to see this done in a not-so-hopelessly-evil way, check out the Supreme Power comic series, specifically issues 1-18 by J. Michael Straczynski.

acting: Elizabeth Banks is the mom, who's a bit naive and overprotective until it's too late. David Denman is the dad, who figures things out ahead of his wife. Jackson Dunn is the kid, and he's kind of wimpy until he discovers that he has super-strength, heat vision, and can fly.

final word: This is the dark side of the entire Superman concept.

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