From their first semi-successful battle -- located in a nursing home's social hall -- it's pretty obvious that the heroes of "Mystery Men" are not run of the mill.
Unlike typical superheroes, the ones in this comic action film weren't born into their professions. They are commoners in superhero suits -- and as they see it, if Champion City needs superheroes, they might as well do the duty.
After the first scene's fight sequence, it seems as if the city is okay on the superhero front without the three core wannabes. After all, neither Shoveler (William H. Macy), Mr. Furious (Ben Stiller), nor Blue Raja (Hank Azaria) is able to save the seniors in peril even while flinging forks, wielding shovels and spouting anger. Only Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear dressed in a black cat suit covered with company endorsements), the city's true hero, is able to save the day.
But predictably, the relative peace that Captain Amazing has melded in Champion City by ousting all of the city's super villains is short lived.
After complaining to his publicist that there isn't enough fight-able evil to keep up his image, Captain Amazing sends his wealthy and bespectacled alter ego to the city's asylum, where he arranges for Cassanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush) to be released after years of therapy.
When the unreformed villain outsmarts Captain Amazing, it is suddenly time for the motley bunch of not-so-super superheroes to save the day and defeat a not-so-scary, but decidedly evil bunch of bad guys, including a rowdy bunch of sweater-wearing frat guys and a few disco boys.
To prepare for the challenge, the original bunch supplement their team with The Bowler (Janeane Garofalo) whose weapon is a bowling ball molded around her father's skull, Invisible Boy (Kel Mitchell), who is only invisible when no one is watching him, and The Spleen (Paul Reubens), who shoots farts with amazing precision.
As their coach they find the mysteriously caped Sphinx (Wes Studi), who shares not-so-wise witticisms such as, "To learn my teachings, I must first teach you how to learn." The heroes-to-be adopt this maxim with gusto.
Armed with freshly sewn costumes, non-lethal weapons and newly found confidence in themselves and one another, the team sets out to defeat the evil that is threatening to overtake their world.
Yes, this movie's basic story line is predictable -- who ever saw a fight between good and evil when the forces of bad came out victorious?
But when you look past this easy-to-call story line, "Mystery Men" really has a lot to show for itself.
Its heroes are likeable for the very fact that they are just normal people who want to be something special. Shoveler is a family man; Blue Raja is an unmarried 40-something living with his mother; Mr. Furious works in a junk yard.
But when flinging silverware, dressed in intimidating leather outfits and taking on British accents, these commoners take on qualities that make them capable of something that is, well -- special.
Combined with a great cast and a script that pokes fun at many current events as well as the comic book genre as a whole, this movie is definitely worth a trip to the theater.