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Comic book turned film BY ALEXANDRA LEON SENIOR EDGE WRITER
Does anyone ever get tired of watching the story of the gangly, voice-cracking teenage underdog turned badass? The answer is no, especially when said underdog decides to stick up for New York’s underappreciated, becomes a real-life superhero and adopts the moniker “Kick-Ass.” Matthew Vaughn’s hilarious interpretation of Mark Millar’s comic book series of the same name, “Kick-Ass,” follows a similar vein as other contemporary blockbusters. Aaron Johnson portrays Kick-Ass’s nerdy counterpart Dave Lizewski, an average teenager with a big comic book collection and a sad inability to talk to girls, while Christopher Mintz-Plasse, also known as Fogell/McLovin’ from “Superbad,” plays the rich loner who is desperate to join in on his mob-boss father’s business. Before you start gearing up for another stoner flick featuring teenagers that just want to get laid, keep in mind that this movie is rated R for a reason. The film’s controversial portrayal of minors doing drugs, dropping f-bombs and using weapons (bazookas included) may leave many viewers in shock. “Kick-Ass” leaves nothing to the imagination during fight sequences; blood sheds everywhere in unusually grotesque ways (humansized microwave, anyone?). What may be even more disturbing is Nicolas Cage’s character,
Jodi Dellaventura: pro-wrestler of the past, set designer of the future
“KICK-ASS”
RELEASED: April 16 DIRECTOR: Matthew Vaughn STARRING: Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloe Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse Big Daddy. A crazed vigilante with a chip on his shoulder and an NRA membership, he trains (read: brainwashes) his 11-year-old daughter into becoming a knife-wielding dynamo who assumes the name “Hit Girl” in order to help fight off daddy’s enemies. Yet, the main character himself admits that this is not the runof-the-mill superhero movie, asking the audience, “Have you ever seen ‘Sin City?’” Human cruelty, as gruesome as it can tend to be, is not concealed or euphemized, which is probably what makes this film more believable and therefore worth watching. After all, what leads Dave to don his superhero guise to fight injustice is not radioactivity or super-strength, but his ability to be pissed off enough to do something about it. Alexandra Leon may be contacted at aleon@themiamihurricane.com.
COURTESY LION’S GATE PUBLICITY
SPRING HIT: “Kick-Ass” promises an action-packed two hours, pairing hilarity with unadulterated gore, similar to “Sin City.”
KELLY BURNS // The Miami Hurricane
JODI OF ALL TRADES: Jodi Dellaventura keeps her love of performance alive as she builds the set for an upcoming play. She designed the set of “RENT” at the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre. BY KELLY BURNS CONTRIBUTING EDGE WRITER
Hailing from a Staten Island, Italian family, transfer student Jodie Dellaventura’s road to the University of Miami has been anything but ordinary. A laid-back artist with a love for penguins, Dellaventura began with a job at her family’s pizzeria, continued with a career in the local pro-wrestling circuit and is now culminating her professional career in technical design for various productions in South Florida. “While I always love to build things, I expected to stay in the restaurant business or stick to wrestling,” Dellaventura said. Known as Jodi X in the ring, she wrestled for about seven years, worked as a ringside manager and promoter and co-founded Future of Wrestling Incorporated. Dellaventura had not planned to enter into the world of professional wrestling. “I was doing a little managing and suddenly I was getting hit in the head with metal trash
cans and wrestling 200-pound guys,” she said. “I loved performing and basically that’s what wrestling is, a performance.” It was this love for performance that led to a larger decision to go into theater after her company folded in 2003. “When I graduated from high school I thought I was done with school,” she said. “But I took one class at Broward College in stage crafting and I knew it was something I wanted to do.” After graduating with her associates degree, Dellaventura was prompted by her professor and UM alum Michael Williams to put together a portfolio, and then she applied to the University of Miami for admission in the fall 2008 class. Since then, Dellaventura has dived into the world of technical design, inside of the walls of UM and outside. Her work ethic is astonishing. In this semester alone, she designed the entire set for “RENT.” She also designed sets for “Peter Pan” at the Coral Springs Institute for the Arts April 29 - May 12, 2010
and “Going to see the Elephant” with the Women’s Theatre Project. Simultaneously she balanced a full class schedule and a job in the machine shop. “Jodi is good at what she does because she is passionate about her work and strives for excellence,” said April Soroko, resident scenic designer for the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre. “She doesn’t settle for less than what she feels is necessary to tell the story.” Dellaventura will graduate in two weeks with a BFA in technical design, which she says is one of her biggest accomplishments. “Jodi is determined to be a successful designer,” Soroko said. “She is an incredibly hard worker.” The future is still uncertain for Dellaventura. “I’m not sure what’s next, but I’d like to stay in the area, get some consistent jobs,” she said. “I’ll see where theater takes me.” Kelly Burns may be contacted at kburns@themiamihurricane.com.
THE MIAMI HURRICANE
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