While Prime Video’s The Boys is probably the most famous and acclaimed superhero satire to date, there are plenty of big-screen movies that also aimed their satirical ire at the genre. One such movie is 2009’s darkly comedic Defendor, a Woody Harrelson vehicle directed by TV actor Peter Stebbings. A downbeat but poignant character study, Defendor sees Harrelson’s unhinged titular vigilante take on the captains of industry in a grim parody of traditional comic book heroism.
2009’s Defendor Deserves To Be Remembered As A Great Superhero Satire
Harrelson’s performance is the proverbial glue that holds Defendor together, as the movie’s eponymous antihero views himself as a Batman figure but soon reveals himself to be something closer to Watchmen’s Rorschach. However, while Harrelson is typically great in the lead, the movie also benefits from stellar supporting turns by the likes of Sandra Oh, Kat Dennings, and Tatiana Maslany. These supporting stars flesh out Defendor’s story, taking it from a one-joke premise to a unique take on the genre.
At its core, Defendor is a straightforward satire whose underlying conceit is the audience’s inability to discern how reliable a narrator Harrelson’s Arthur Poppington is. He seems determined to take down the villainous Captain Industry, who he claims killed his mother, but, despite the presence of corrupt cops and businessmen, it is not clear who this central antagonist actually is until the movie’s third act. By then, the truth about Defendor’s plan becomes clear, highlighting the tragedy the undergirds the movie’s entire twisty mystery plot.
While Defendor’s cast is universally strong, it is Dennings’ revelatory turn as the crack addicted prostitute Angel that ensures the movie is more than just an edgy satire. One of the Two Broke Girls star‘s best performances, this breakout role was aided by consultation by the late real-life sex-workers’ rights activist Wendy Babcock. Humanizing Angel, who could have been a walking cliche in a lesser movie, elevates Defendor’s story and makes the movie’s ending unexpectedly moving.
Defendor Was Overshadowed By Another Superhero Satire
Unfortunately for Harrelson, Dennings, and Stebbings, Defendor has largely been overshadowed by another dark satirical comedy about a delusional would-be superhero from the same era. Before James Gunn ran DC and reshaped the MCU, he directed 2010’s cult classic Super, wherein Rainn Wilson’s equally delusional but well-meaning antihero becomes a surprisingly lethal masked vigilante. Super’s Crimson Bolt has a lot in common with Defendor’s title character, save for one pivotal difference.
Although Super has some truly bleak moments, the movie maintains a tongue-in-cheek tone throughout, and even its goriest, saddest scenes are shot through with the dark sense of humor Gunn honed while working in Troma Studios. In contrast, Defendor is often unexpectedly, genuinely sad, which makes this stellar superhero satire a harder sell despite its great cast and strong story.
