I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

This is a little neglected gem of a movie that i have very fond memories of staying up way past my bedtime to watch on TV. I was around ten years old, and it was a school night, but i was intrigued by the thought of a superhero musical starring Dracula himself: Sir Christopher of Lee! At that age i was into anything and everything superhero related: every Marvel and DC comic i could find, the Bill Bixby 'Hulk' series, the Nicholas Hammond 'Spider-Man' flicks, and even the old 'Batman' and 'Superman' movie serials that used to run on morning TV during the school holidays. But nothing could quite prepare me for the warped genius of 'The Return of Captain Invincible'!From the dropout ex-hero's drunken ramblings of how he intercepted Skylab as it plummeted through he atmosphere ("I attempted to catch it... but it was moving... at great speed!"), through his rehab programme to become a fit and active caped crusader again and foil the plot of the diabolical Mr Midnight ("Hold on / Sit tight / You never, ever did right / Roll on Midnight / You're spoiling for the big fight!"), to the perfidious villain's tempting of the good Captain will the delights of alcohol ("Choose yer booze!") this was an unremitting joy that still lingers in my mind years later. Shame that it's apparently still not out on R2 DVD, but i may well try and seek out a region 1 copy if it's cheap enough, just to relive this little classic.I'm insensible for Captain Invincible!

The Return of Captain Invincible tries too hard to be something really wacky and crazy and subversive as a spoof on super heroes, but it doesn't (ahem) fly. Some of it may just be my fault, that the film reminded me just too much of other films (the opening newsreel, for example, is so much like The Incredibles as to boggle the mind thinking Brad Bird may have even watched this for inspiration, and don't get me started on the flying scenes with Invincible). But some of it falls on the director, Philippe Mora, and even on Alan Arkin. I usually enjoy Arkin a lot in his performances, and can be very funny and affecting in roles. Here he's not given a whole lot to make Invincible worth trying to make likable (an ex-drunk brought back into service and is a big-ass magnet who can sometimes but not always fly) or worth a damn. And, a bigger problem, he's just not that funny in the part.True, little things do make up for it... or make that one big thing, and that's Christopher Lee. As Mr. Midnight, a diabolical villain with a deformed creature as his minion and with lots of baddies and other mass weapons at his disposal (and a bad-ass cave with diagrams of New York City to boot), he steals the show. This is putting it mildly, perhaps, since there isn't much show to steal from him. Mora tries to build around his two leads with a lot of awkward pacing and jokes that fall flat (the 'Bull-s***' song by one of the generals in the war room is overreaching), and at other times dialog is just off-balance alongside the directing.Another problem is this: if you have a kooky comedy-musical, make good songs, that's it, or at least have interesting musical numbers. The song cues that come up here are just badly staged and not clever or entertaining... that is, except for the ones where Christopher Lee shows up. This isn't simply a case of favoritism, though Lee is amazing when given a small opportunity. He somehow gets the material better than even the director does, and when he puts on those two numbers in his cave (or one and a half if you count the one where he and Arkin split the number), one of which near the end and all about making fun of Invincible for being a drunk and tempting him, it's brilliance! If you must, if nothing else, do watch his scenes on Youtube; perhaps someone will do everyone a favor and edit together Lee's scenes, which is worth stopping doing whatever it is at any moment of the day to watch and absorb.The rest of the film, sadly, is kind of a bust. It's too dull, lifeless, and Mora, for all of his little tricks with the camera (a dutch angle here and there, some intentionally silly green-screen effects) can't overcome the material being so wobbily and uninteresting. If you have to watch a comedy about a drunk superhero, just watch Hancock - or (if you're reading this post 2014) Birdman.

This is a film that could have become a cult classic with better editing. Some bits just don't work - in the BBC TV showing these were edited out; if you can, get that version rather than the full version on DVD. If you do have the DVD version watch it once through then just skip the bits that left you cold.The humour is mostly pretty low-brow, with some appalling puns, but there's more than one level; if you're a fan of DC or Marvel comics, watch sci-fi movies or know Australian and American politics and history there are some fine little gags buried in here.There are also some very subtle sight gags - a film to watch the backgrounds as well as the foregrounds...My particular favourite is what Christopher Lee eats in the film; watch the meal scenes and you'll see what I mean.Don't worry too much about the plot - it is there and it makes sense, but it's a comic-book plot not a big story. Also, don't worry about some of the odder characters - they are ALL there for a reason, but if you haven't read/seen the right things you'll never work them out.The songs are generally very clever and, despite the singing not being the best, well delivered. "Drinking Song" is probably the highlight, with Christopher Lee doing what he does best - showing his teeth and megalomaniac glare, although his "singing" is on a par with certain other actors (William Shatner and Telly Savalas come to mind). "Mr. Midnight" is also funny; shot as two scenes; Chris with leathers and whip, surrounded by scantily-clad dominatrices, Alan on a train trying to be anonymous whilst singing and dancing.This is also Terry Pratchett's favourite film - I actually have one of his books signed "to the OTHER person who likes Captain Invincible". So there are at least *four* people in the world who loved this film - granted, the other two are my kids and they may be humouring their old man.

I first saw this film when I was but a young lad, and loved it - the fact that some of the film was set in Australia played something of a major part in this - although some bits frightened me for no apparent reason. On repeated viewings, however, I have to say the film still holds up in the manner it was intended: over the top, extremely silly, fun.The casting is superb; Christopher Lee and Alan Arkin skine, and I'm one Australian who wouldn't have minded seeing Graham Kennedy as the real Prime Minister...Although they're quite well written - the "Hypno-Ray" song still sticks in my memory - the songs do seem a bit out of place, but when you're watching the story of an alcoholic ex-superhero who's retired to Australia, well... Frankly I think the sillier the better!