Read Mixed User Reviews for Brightburn

5

InTrippyEntropyJun 22, 2019

Superman origin story with a Twist. He turns out to be an angry murderous 10 year old super powers. 2 stars for a great original idea, 2 stars for innovative interesting kills and 1 star for good performances. Especially young actor JacksonSuperman origin story with a Twist. He turns out to be an angry murderous 10 year old super powers. 2 stars for a great original idea, 2 stars for innovative interesting kills and 1 star for good performances. Especially young actor Jackson Dunn. When I first heard the premise, I went oh yeah! I guess I'm suffering from Superhero burnout like a lot of people. But it didn't take long to see the flaws in the actual movie making. The first time hour is disjointed and confusing. It should establish the gradual transformation of a normal child into a raging homicidal maniac. It does not do that. One minute he's throwing a lawn mower half a mile away with a flip of a wrist, the next minute he's killing someone slowly with quiet sadistic glee. This transformation is the single most important part of the story. We must be interested in this family and this child. It must break our heart when the warning signs begin to pile up. I'm not sure who to fault, first-time director David Yarovesky, or screenwriters Mark and Brian Gunn. Previous Works include Journey 2: the Mysterious Island and Bring it on again. Not an auspicious beginning for 3 people with such mild credentials. The young man's acting as the titular anti-hero is good. Expect a lot from him in the future. Elizabeth Banks and David Denman as his parents are adequate. And our bad boy anti-hero kills people in some interesting ways. I don't think I have seen things down in this way before. And it also points to the fact that the director may be good at horror movies. Or suspense movies. But even genre movies need well thought-out framework . This would have probably been a very really good 30 minute short film. If you must watch it, fast forward to the last half-hour.… Expand

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

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5

theredskyJun 17, 2019

This film was kinda disappointing to me but it was still a good experience. Here are the positives of the film. Elizabeth Banks and David Denman did an amazing job and have great chemistry together. There is a bunch of gore in this film thatThis film was kinda disappointing to me but it was still a good experience. Here are the positives of the film. Elizabeth Banks and David Denman did an amazing job and have great chemistry together. There is a bunch of gore in this film that is incredibly brutal and works very well for what the film is going for. It makes your entire body cringe in a good way. The tone remains consistent throughout the film. The score for the film is really good also which surprised me. This film also knows how to build tension. It builds and builds and builds until it pays off most of the time. The concept for this film is one of the most interesting I have ever heard of. The Superman origin story but instead he turns evil instead of good. That what makes this movie so disappointing. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t do anything beyond the concept. It’s incredibly basic to the point where it can feel dull at times. Another problem is that you never seem to connect with the child actor. He does an okay job acting but you can’t connect with him. His only motivation is to destroy the world because his spaceship told him to. My main problem is that the last 25 minutes of the film is so dumb. Everything about it is just awful. The visual effects are terrible and it decides to end the film with Billie Eilish’s Bad Guy. Why end a film this dark and gritty with a pop song. The film then decides to show news montages of the Kid’s destruction. It made my score from 7.5 drop to 5.5. Overall, Brightburn has an amazing concept with great acting but does a bad job at execution with a terrible ending. I give Brightburn a 5.5/10.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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5

thatdannerMay 26, 2019

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. To say the least, I was underwhelmed. What the movie promises is not what it is. Fortunately, that doesn't necessarily mean it's bad, but it's not as good as it could've been. It's predictable from the get-go and plays out exactly how I had assumed. The writing is lazy and the acting is terrible from the "pro"tagonist, however the rest of the cast carry him fairly well. The best part of the movie is the gory murder scenes, in which you'll see where the movie thrives. It's somewhat like a Final Destination movie, in that the excitement you get during the movie is in waiting to see the next death. This, like I mentioned, was not what I was expecting from the movie but certainly not how it is portrayed in its trailers either. Misleading ad campaigns really messed this one up. However, for shallow entertainment and a few creepy scenes, it's got what it needs. The director really went in a bold direction for the movie as well, which was a fresh twist that we don't usually get. Hopefully if it gets a sequel, the director will fix his shortcomings and continue on with what saved the movie from being terrible.… Expand

3 of 5 users found this helpful32

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5

KenmeiJun 2, 2019

This is about an average movie as you can get. The script wasn't great and the actors here did the best they could with the material they had. But there was nothing memorable here except the extreme over-the-top gore that came with theThis is about an average movie as you can get. The script wasn't great and the actors here did the best they could with the material they had. But there was nothing memorable here except the extreme over-the-top gore that came with the various deaths. Seriously it's not for the squeamish. This feels like a very mediocre fan fiction for the start of Superman's story. I don't know that it deserves to have a sequel that it was setting up for.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

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6

JoeCoolMay 27, 2019

Not bad. Pretty predictable if you saw the trailer, otherwise the ending might surprise you. The biggest problems with this movie are continuity and pretty bad acting from the lead. Kids will be kids. The rest of the cast does a decent job ofNot bad. Pretty predictable if you saw the trailer, otherwise the ending might surprise you. The biggest problems with this movie are continuity and pretty bad acting from the lead. Kids will be kids. The rest of the cast does a decent job of making him look at least sorta ok. However continuity from scene to scene is where the movie shows its low budget. One minute something terrible happens and everyone's in total and utter shock and a minute later it's as if nothing happened. It's as if they were going to shoot scenes in between those and those all got cut or edited out. I think it's probably just due to poor direction however. Yarovesky probably just hasn't quite gotten the hang of it yet. Not off to a terrible start, but he still has a way to go.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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5

MattBrady99Jun 10, 2019

"I'm the bad guy...duh".

When 'Man of Steel' first crash landed in cinemas, one of the biggest backlash that the movie faced was Superman causing more collateral damage than the main villains - making him seem heroic instead of a creepy"I'm the bad guy...duh".

When 'Man of Steel' first crash landed in cinemas, one of the biggest backlash that the movie faced was Superman causing more collateral damage than the main villains - making him seem heroic instead of a creepy alien.

'Brightburn' basically takes some inspiration on 'Man of Steel' reception and ask "what if Clark Kent was a serial killer" with the Gunn family having heavy involvement in the writing.

Although the concept is interesting, but the exaction is seriously lacking and rather disappointing.

The movie was surprisingly short and I wish it was a little longer to expand on reasons why the kid turns evil. The performances from everyone was fine, but Elizabeth Banks playing the delusional mother in a horror movie is a repetitive trope, and makes you the audience member annoyed at her.

The death scenes were incredibly brutal, which I also didn't expect at all. I think the only character that's worth caring for is the father (David Denman) who is alerted immediately when trouble starts occurring.

Overall rating: Bruce Wayne was right.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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6

DubeauJun 22, 2019

Not sure about this one. This is kind of a dark superman movie in horror style. The story is somewhat shallow. You get nothing regarding the space's pod and it's origin. Even less about the voices. You feel like the budget was limited and theNot sure about this one. This is kind of a dark superman movie in horror style. The story is somewhat shallow. You get nothing regarding the space's pod and it's origin. Even less about the voices. You feel like the budget was limited and the CGI scenes had to be short. The acting was really decent even from the kids. The music was ok. And horror scenes were well done. It's hard to recommend this movie for the story. For me, it felt like there wasn't that much substance in it. I give it a 55%.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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4

jnbayridge2288Jun 22, 2019

I thought this movie was really boring and it wasn't scary and not much really happened.

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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6

PhilipBlakeSep 2, 2019

The Omen meets Superman in this funny horror flick from the family of director James Gunn (Slither, Guardians of the Galaxy).
The gore sequences was truly amazing and the overall experience is really enjoyable. The worst part came from actingThe Omen meets Superman in this funny horror flick from the family of director James Gunn (Slither, Guardians of the Galaxy).
The gore sequences was truly amazing and the overall experience is really enjoyable. The worst part came from acting and particularly from the kid who is just annoying as hell. Otherwise this is a really decent production.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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5

Noobik12316Jun 5, 2019

First of all, this film is a horror film, but it's not quite scary, and there is almost no plot in this film.

1 of 5 users found this helpful14

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6

bfoore90Dec 6, 2019

The main issue with Brightburn is that "Chronicle," and "Joker" exist, both movies astutely tell the origin story of a bad guy and succeed where Brightburn stumbles. The cast, especially Elizabeth Banks and David Denman do really good hereThe main issue with Brightburn is that "Chronicle," and "Joker" exist, both movies astutely tell the origin story of a bad guy and succeed where Brightburn stumbles. The cast, especially Elizabeth Banks and David Denman do really good here and there is enough here to possibly make sequels and potentially do something more with this premise. The horror and slasher elements, violence and gore are also top notch with the film refusing to pull back many times when it could have. All and all, Brightburn is just OK.… Expand

1 of 18 users found this helpful117

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6

GrantD243Sep 4, 2019

Brightburn is exactly what the trailers portray: a film about what would happen if Superman was evil. The execution, however, is hit or miss. I enjoyed the moments where Brandon goes crazy and kills people using his powers, but the rest ofBrightburn is exactly what the trailers portray: a film about what would happen if Superman was evil. The execution, however, is hit or miss. I enjoyed the moments where Brandon goes crazy and kills people using his powers, but the rest of the characters in this film and how utterly stupid they are dragged down the enjoyment level for me. It's only an hour and a half, but it feels longer.… Expand

0 of 8 users found this helpful08

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6

bataguilaAug 26, 2019

Estan buenas las muertes, pero en si la historia es una mamada, y el niño cae mal.

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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6

AdamNasserJan 19, 2020

Brandon has read way too much Berserk. Kid even ripped off the mark of sacrifice and qualified as an Apostle (for those who dont know about Berserk, i would spoil the movie). A pretty bland movie overall tho

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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5

MarshallCavalliAug 15, 2019

A fascinating premise ruined by an awkward script and poor direction, Brightburn could have been a thrilling experience but lacks the touch of James Gunn to fully realize the vision.

0 of 5 users found this helpful05

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6

Cooperward4Oct 18, 2019

Brightburn is a film with a brilliant concept. The idea of what would happen if a being with god like powers was evil is terrific, and the film gives us an entertaining depiction of this. The film is a compelling blend of both Horror andBrightburn is a film with a brilliant concept. The idea of what would happen if a being with god like powers was evil is terrific, and the film gives us an entertaining depiction of this. The film is a compelling blend of both Horror and spectacle. Offering somewhat effective scares and brutal action throughout. Where this film shines is with its characters. The two parents of the main character Brandon are played exceptionally well by Elizabeth Banks and David Denman. Elizabeth Banks especially is the standout performance throughout. Unfortunately, the film is very rushed in places. Its hard to understand Brandon's motivations for becoming evil because he is given no time to develop his character and to truly portray his turn to the dark side. Also there are certain scenes towards the beginning of the film which take away any possible mystery throughout the film by spoiling the main mystery behind the concept of the film at the beginning. Besides a few minor issues with the film Brightburn is still an entertaining watch which offers a plot with enough depth to keep you invested throughout. Its depiction of its characters and its concept alone are done very well making Brightburn a film I recommend. Just don't expect anything overly amazing.… Expand

0 of 9 users found this helpful09

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5

HarrysmithOct 12, 2019

Brightburn is a movie that has an interesting idea. However it is let down by a pretty bad script. The death scenes are entertaining enough but the overall feel of the film is that it lacks any real depth whatsoever. It's not worth wastingBrightburn is a movie that has an interesting idea. However it is let down by a pretty bad script. The death scenes are entertaining enough but the overall feel of the film is that it lacks any real depth whatsoever. It's not worth wasting your time on, it really isn't.… Expand

0 of 9 users found this helpful09

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5

DMLYxCriticJan 24, 2020

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Brightburn is one of the few, if not the only horror/superhero (or supervillain) film out there, but I definitely could not vouch for the film's quality. Sure, it has the qualities of both genres, but it always came up short. This is a type of film that you really wanted to like , but you end up getting disappointed over and over again as the film progresses. The story provided no backstory as to where Brandon came from, the plot was full of holes that made no sense, and not much came from the acting. The gore sequences was well-handled but the whole CGI thingy was too cartoonish to be taken seriously. The only thing that I found comfort in this film is the eerily composed music and the cinematography. The rest: mediocre.… Expand

0 of 26 users found this helpful026

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4

Rox22Sep 4, 2022

In a nutshell: what if Superman became a psycho when his powers first materialised. No matter how they change the names, this is just evil Superman origin story. With that said, it's barely okay. The plot is predictable and the delivery isIn a nutshell: what if Superman became a psycho when his powers first materialised. No matter how they change the names, this is just evil Superman origin story. With that said, it's barely okay. The plot is predictable and the delivery is about on par with any generic horror movie. No performances of any note from any of the actors and character development relies far too much on people's familiarity with Superman. It's an interesting idea that just fails, in my opinion. Without the Superman mythos behind it, it wouldn't make much sense. On its own it is at best a forgettable horror movie.

Overall:
A below average horror that can't seem to decide if it's a dark parody or a well made deliberate rip-off cash grab.… Expand