‘We Can Be Heroes’ feels like it was made by kids (and that’s mostly a compliment)

Posted on January 8, 2021

By MARK VIOLA

Director Robert Rodriguez is one of the oddest directors working today, if only for how opposite one half of his filmography is from the other. He is mostly known for gritty, blood-soaked action films like “Desperado,” “Sin City” and “Machete.” However, he also makes goofy, special-effect laden kids movies like “Sky Kids” and “The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl.”

One of the only other directors that I can compare him to is George Miller, who is well known for his high-octane “Mad Max” series, but also gave us the “Babe” and “Happy Feet” franchises as well.

As for Rodriguez, one of his most recent jobs was directing an episode of the second season of “The Mandalorian,” which featured some of the best action of the series.

So, of course, he followed that up with the Netflix film “We Can Be Heroes,” which I somehow missed when previewing new releases for Christmas Day (sorry about that). The movie is a loose sequel to 2005’s “The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl,” in that it is set in the same world and features their daughter as a side-character (although you, and more importantly your kids, don’t need to have seen that movie to enjoy this one).

So, let me get this out right away. This is not a great movie, or really even a good one. It’s a goofy adventure with loud, often subpar, special effects, some acceptable acting and a plot that is paper thin. I do not think many adults will enjoy it. But, and this is a big but, the movie should entertain kids just fine.

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