If you’ve never seen He Never Died and She Never Died (reviews here) by writer and director Jason Krawczyk, you haven’t lived. The filmmaker took to the internet recently, inviting reviewers who loved his previous films to preview his newest title, Sunset Superman. Also known as Don’t Mess With Grandma, Mother of Movies has as many misgivings about the title as the prolific auteur. Not because there is anything wrong with the movie, it’s just that messing with Grandma, doesn’t sound all that ominous.
Krawczyk’s previous films created a universe where individuals have immortality that is unexplained by the narrative it is contained within. A commonality between the trilogy of supernatural themed films, where the heroes have a unique mythology.
JT aka Sunset Superman is no different. What is different is the previous two films are dark, violent, and mysterious. Don’t Mess With Grandma still introduces some essential blood spatter as JT calculates how to rid his Granny’s house of unwelcome guests. But nevertheless, this title hits a bit different.
The film’s setting in 1984 and its blend of funky yet violent scenes make it a standout in Krawczyk’s filmography.
Set in a quaint homestead somewhere kind of remote, the story revolves around JT, the grandson of Granna, who has just lost her husband.
Despite an opening act filled with cartoonish humor and music, the film quickly shifts tone with the introduction of masked thieves who invade Granna’s home. Wearing pig masks, these people want something located inside the house.
Granna, who has a knack for telling what JT thinks are far fetched stories about her taxidermy collection, remains blissfully unaware of the danger thanks to JT’s efforts.
The humour is led by each of the villains and their theories about who JT is and what they need to do to kill him. They each have thoughts. They are perpetuated by plots involving satanism, goatsluts and other explanations, however. Added to that is the idea that this one man, can hold off a barrage of people trying to both kill and get inside the house.
There’s a certain Home Alone aesthetic that douses the Big Trouble in Little China sheen across bones of this home invasion genre film. But all the ingredients make sense on screen.
Don’t Mess With Grandma | Sunset Superman Takes Punches Like A Pro
JT, is eventually revealed to be immortal, and takes on the intruders one by one, under the alibi of fixing Granna’s leaky sink. Only he really does want to simply complete the maintenance for his beloved nanna. If only these murderous individuals would take their adventures somewhere else.
His character, described as having 40 pounds of surplus muscle mass, is a marksman, and drinks hooch, (mostly Rum flavored) on a regular basis, adds a unique flair to the traditional immortal human.
“I’m not drunk enough for this,”
Quote from the movie Don’t Mess With Grandma 2024
The intruders, refe to JT as “Terminator dude,” but keep their motives hidden for most of the movie. This group of casual ransackers become more of a running gag than worthy side characters. But Krawczyk’s films have never really been about the side characters.
Despite that, Billy Zane makes an excellent leader of the crew, and leader of their subsequent downfall while trying to rob a sweet fragile old lady is a nice change to an old trope.
“Why don’t you come over here and wrap your lips around this sweet justice.”
Quote from the movie Don’t Mess With Grandma 2024
Overall, Sunset Superman is a wild ride that combines elements of horror, comedy, and action, making it a must-watch for fans of offbeat cinema.
Michael Jai White JT) Black Dynamite (2009)
Jackie Richardson (Granna) Catwalk (1992)
Billy Zane (Stan)
Ess Hödlmoser (Pam) Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora (2023)
Rebecca Auerbach (Jan)
Trivia
Why Did Jason Krawczyk Writcast Michael Jai White as JT?
He wanted to see him punch as many people as possible in 80 minutes.
Don’t Mess With Grandma 2024 is rated
3.5 Trilogy film universes out of 5
Where to Watch Don’t Mess With Grandma 2024
Distributed by Tubi Movies, the film will be available from late September.
Don’t Mess With Grandma is streaming on:
Powered bySunset Superman (Don't Mess With Grandma) A Movie That Channels Kurt Russell ... If He Was Immortal
Director: Jason Krawczyk
Date Created: 2024-09-20 16:27
3.5
