We already talked about some of the bizarre films that James Gunn’s career had before his jump to the superheroic mainstream, with gems like ‘Slither’ or ‘Super’. But when he was already an acclaimed director he also allowed himself to set up projects that betrayed his origin as a devotee of darker genres. This is the case of this ‘The Son’ that he produced in 2019 and that has just arrived on Netflix, where he turned the Superman myth around.
That is, as in the celebrated story of the son of Krypton, here we have a baby fallen from space that when he grows a few years begins to develop powers.
The difference is that here the child has no intention of using them to do good, but has much more sinister plans. What would happen if the whims of a teenager were backed by an absolutely unstoppable power?
With tremendous simplicity and without any hitches, the script by Brian and Mark Gunn (brother and cousin, respectively, of the director of ‘Suicide Squad’) excises the sinister elements of every superhero story, with special emphasis on how helpless we humans are before creatures of extraordinary power, and how superbeings are creatures with every right to feel alone and threatened. That is to say, what ‘The Boys’ has developed to a great extent and with great success.
In the same way that James Gunn does with his films, ‘The Son’ develops at breakneck speed and opens multiple themes and ideas that it leaves in the air, favoring the feeling of chaos and unpredictability of the film, in perfect harmony with the terrified attitude of the parents.
A stand-alone film, connecting to (much lighter) nineties hits of demonic children devastating seemingly normal homes, it has not been followed up (either literally or in spirit) despite its considerable success, and offers one of the most sinister experiences in recent superhero cinema.