SXSWORLD

to cast an American in that role, but we met every American under 22, and the name actors in that age group weren't interested. I bet they're kicking themselves now!" The solution arrived from an unlikely source: "Aaron Johnson came in with an American accent. I hadn't seen him before, so he blew me away. I almost had a heart attack when he admitted he was British." With the cast in place, production quickly moved forward. Like Director Matthew Vaughn (right) gives some very specific instructions to Jason Flemyng on the set of Kick-Ass. curial A-lister Nicholas Cage as "Big Daddy." "Working with him was great fun," says Vaughn. "He's a thoroughly decent man and a brilliant actor, and I think people have forgotten how broad his range is. That's Hollywood; people love to pigeonhole you." Less easy to cast was the dream role destined for one lucky teenager: Dave Lizewski, AKA Kick-Ass himself. Awkward adolescent and com- ic-book geek by day, erstwhile superhero by night, the role was always going to attract a lot of attention. Casting agencies went into overdrive as lines of eager young men stretched around the block at auditions. "But none of them came close to nailing it," Vaughn relates. "I vowed pating the public response. When England went bananas for Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, everyone assumed 'Wow, you must have been flabbergasted.' Well, yes and no - the reason we made the film was because I thought there was a chance of (that response). It was the same with Layer Cake; I always knew Daniel Craig was going to be a big star." Further confirmation of that instinct arrived with the casting of mer- most superhero movies, the visual complexity and action of Kick-Ass called for its fair share of special effects work. However, unlike many of them, Vaughn's film treads lightly when it comes to CGI: "I only use it when I have to ... it's better for everyone when you can see what's in front of the camera." By way of example he cites the "big fucking set pieces" of early James Bond films, as well as the hundreds of thousands of extras in Gandhi. "Some of the big stunts still look great, because they did it for real," he says. This refreshing adherence to tried-and-true, old school production values means that Kick-Ass carries a solidity and physical clout that marks Vaughn out as a serious craftsmen of the genre. As he puts it, "Everyone knows when it's CGI. It looks sort of real, but it's not real, is it?" lence, mordant humor and social commentary is a million miles from "the same old factory produce." n The SXSW Film Festival presents the World Premiere of Kick-Ass at 7pm, Friday, March 12 at the Paramount Theatre. Promoting Canadian Music to the World. CANADIAN INDEPENDENT MUSIC ASSOCIATION www.cimamusic.ca Vaughn's tenacity has paid off, but he remains characteristically unflap- pable: "I hope they like it. The fact that Hollywood said 'no' to it made me feel quite confident that the film would have a voice. I just think that cinema-goers are bored with getting the same old factory produce." Raucous, rude and sheer bloody fun, Kick-Ass' deft mix of ultravio- SXSW audiences will be able to decide for themselves whether SXSW ORLD / F EBRUAR Y 2010 27

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