Mirageman is the story of a young man in Chile who decides to be a Superhero. He has no powers, just some martial arts skills or as the byline says, “just his fists and guts”. The film starts with the hero practicing his martial arts while his history is told from newspaper clippings and photos on his wall. He’s a humble guy and apparently living on just enough money to get by. Later he runs across a chance to use his skills to help someone and dons a mask to do so. His story makes it to the news and his sick brother who immediately starts to improve. It is at this point that the main protagonist of the story decides to be a Superhero.
There’s a lot to like about this movie. It’s clearly low budget but somehow contains all the elements of a great Superhero movie. There’s plenty of comedy as Mirageman learns about the superhero business through trial and error; from who he should trust, what clothing he should wear, to how to get around transportation issues. What really stands out here is the martial arts. This was some of the best fighting choreography I have ever seen outside of a Chinese or Japanese film. There’s no slow motion, just awesome, real-looking fight scenes.
As I said before, this film was made in Chile so it is English dubbed but if you’ve ever watched old martial arts movies of the past then getting through this will be easy. The Superhero movement and action is somewhat similar to the old Spider-Man live action television show. It’s a little cheesy but definitely entertaining and fun to watch. The music is good too. I give this movie a 4 out of 5 marks. Check out the trailer: