The Specials Take A Bite Out Of Sandwiches; Crime, Not So Much

The Specials is a movie from 2000 that you may not have heard of, but the premise is a somewhat familiar one. A rag-tag team of misfit superheroes copes with being second bananas in a world where superheroism is a commercialized commodity. What sets The Specials apart from the likes of Mystery Men is the fact that we never see anybody in the Specials actually fight any crime, and rarely see anybody even use their superpowers.

Sound dull? It isn't. It's actually quite funny, and it's interesting to see an indie-style superhero movie that relies on characters and genuinely humorous dialogue rather than action and CGI. In many ways, the film can be seen as a sort of “slice-of-life” flick that happens to include people who could shoot lasers from their hands…if they wanted to.

The movie is very much driven by its cast of diverse heroes, which includes foul-mouthed antimatter slinger Amok (Jamie Kennedy), cheerful lesbian Power Chick (Kelly Coffield), self-absorbed supergroup leader Strobe (Thomas Haden Church), and a masked heartthrob known as the Weevil (Rob Lowe).

The Specials might be difficult to find at your local video or rental place, but there are plenty of DVDs available online at a significantly depowered price.