GFF 2011: Griff the Invisible

From an unfinished synopsis, it feels natural to compare Griff the Invisible to fellow self-styled superhero Kick-Ass (plus there's also a slither of Wanted, another Mark Millar comic, in the juxtaposition of a monotonous office job with the secret thrill of life as an action hero). By day, Griff (True Blood’s Ryan Kwanten) lives a lonely, mundane life; by night, he’s a daring Batman-modelled vigilante, complete with red phone with a direct line to the commissioner and a Joker-like nemesis.

The latter scenes mimic the flat-panel colouring of comic art, echoing Dick Tracy’s production design on a budget, as Griff stomps out crime and catches the eye of fellow misfit Melody (Maeve Dermody). Yet, without spoiling anything, similarities to Millar’s creations are ultimately slight. Unfortunately, the film only finds a stable tone in the last half hour, closer to quirky sad-sack indies like Garden State than the Dark Knight’s night-watch. But in that final third, it finds a poignancy that no amount of street justice can effect.