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Revision as of 02:37, 30 October 2006 by 205.188.116.73 (talk) (→Tagline)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) 2000 film| The Specials | |
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 DVD box cover for The Specials | |
| Directed by | Craig Mazin |
| Written by | James Gunn |
| Produced by | Mark A. Altman Dan Bates Rick Mischel |
| Starring | Thomas Haden Church James Gunn Rob Lowe Jamie Kennedy Judy Greer Sean Gunn Paget Brewster Jordan Ladd Jim Zulevic Kelly Coffield |
| Music by | Brian Langsbard |
| Distributed by | Regent Entertainment |
| Release dates | September 18, 2000 (USA) |
| Running time | 82 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,000,000 |
The Specials is the title of a 2000 comedic, cult movie about a group of superheroes on their day off. The Specials were created by James Gunn. According to the film, the Specials are the sixth or seventh most popular group of superheroes in the world.
Unlike most superhero movies, The Specials has almost no action or special effects; instead it simply focuses on the lives of these hapless heroes.
The film was written by Gunn and directed by Craig Mazin.
Main cast
- Thomas Haden Church ... as The Strobe/Ted Tilderbrook
- James Gunn ... as Minute Man/Tim Tilderbrook
- Paget Brewster ... as Ms. Indestructible/Emily Tilderbrook
- Rob Lowe ... as The Weevil/Tony
- Sean Gunn ... as Alien Orphan/Doug
- Jamie Kennedy ... as Amok
- Judy Greer ... as Deadly Girl
- Kelly Coffield ... as Power Chick/Nancy
- Jordan Ladd ... as Nightbird/Shelly
- Mike Schwartz ... as U.S. Bill
- Jim Zulevic ... as Mr. Smart/Seymour
- John Doe ... as Eight
- Brian Gunn ... as Eight
- Barry Del Sherman ... as Zip Boy/Jerry
- Melissa Joan Hart ... as Sunlight Grrrll
- Michael Weatherly ... as Verdict
- Jenna Fischer ... as College Girl
- Taryn Manning ... as Autograph Hound
Plot
The Specials tells the story of a day in the life of a ragtag group of misfit superheroes with unusual powers. The day begins with the welcoming of Nightbird, the group's newest member -- a teenage girl with "bird-like powers". Nightbird -- who idolizes The Specials -- soon realizes her heroes do not have a harmonious relationship and the cracks begin to show as they prepare to attend a dinner in their honor, thrown by Kosgro Toys, who are releasing a line of action figures based upon the group. The action figures end up being horrible, and, worse, the leader of the Specials, The Strobe, discovers his wife, Ms. Indestructible, is cheating on him with the most popular member of the group, The Weevil. In a fit of anger, the Strobe disbands the group, and the members go on their own way. Minute Man goes on a quest for love with the new girl, Nightbird, but instead falls into the arms of his best friend, Deadly Girl. Meanwhile, Amok, Power Chick, Alien Orphan, and Mr. Smart indulge in a night of drinking, dancing, and debauchery.
Tagline
Not As Good As Other Superheroes. But definatly Better Than You.
The Specials membership
- The Strobe: The leader and founder of the group. He has the ability to shoot laser beams out of his arms.
- Ms. Indestructible: The Strobe's wife and secretary/office manager of the group. She has indestructible skin and cannot be injured anywhere but her eyes. She is having an affair with The Weevil.
- The Weevil: The most popular member of the group. Like his father before him (who was also called The Weevil), he possesses enhanced abilities proportionate to that of an insect. He is having an affair with Ms. Indestructible and looking to move up in the business of super-heroism.
- Deadly Girl: A Goth who has the ability to enter the "world of the dead" and travel through it, reappearing anywhere she chooses. She can also summon demons to do her bidding, something she says "makes you feel good about yourself." She considers The Strobe to be her best friend.
- Alien Orphan (a.k.a. "Doug"): an alien who crash-landed on Earth. He can shape-shift and dance, but often has trouble communicating. His favorite drink is a bloody mary.
- Minute Man: Has the ability to shrink himself to a minute size. He is irritated by people constantly mispronouncing his name and mistaking him for a minuteman. He is smitten by Nightbird.
- Power Chick: An openly lesbian woman with the ability to change her body into any material with which she comes in contact. She considers herself to be Alien Orphan's guardian.
- Mr. Smart: Claims to be the smartest man on Earth. He is an inventor of devices such as a winged rocket and a machine that amplifies his sense of smell 3,000 times.
- Eight: Believed to be the result of a CIA experiment, this hero consists of eight separate individuals of both genders and several ethnicities, who all share the same consciousness, allowing him/her to literally be in eight places at the same time. Acts as a mentor to the team.
- U.S. Bill: Possesses super-strength, but appears to have very limited intelligence. He has managed to keep his real identity secret from his teammates, but it involves little more than living with his mother.
- Amok: Possesses blue skin, the ability to shoot antimatter, as well as a bad attitude. He was formerly a super-villain.
- Nightbird: The team's newest member, a teen with very sensitive hearing, an affinity with birds, and the ability to lay eggs which contain various weapons.
- Stretchie Boy: Former member of the group, now deceased, who possessed stretching powers, apparently due to exposure to fluoridated water. He died several years before the events of the film from cancer, which is common among elastic superheroes.
- Zip Boy: Former group member who quit to become an entrepreneur; his business is finding "normal" job placements for superheroes. Possesses superspeed.
External links
- The Specials at IMDb