Secret Headquarters review: Owen Wilson is a superhero with family issues

Movies like Spy KidsAnd Catch That KidThese movies, which place children at the centre of huge blockbuster-esque plots are a challenge. It’s hard for a movie to simultaneously appeal to kids and to an adult audience — harder than it might appear. The movie becomes a glorified kid-friendly adventure that doesn’t have enough substance. The movie may be out of touch with its intended audience if it focuses too heavily on the adult content. Paramount Plus’ superhero adventure Secret Headquarters The latest movie to fit this category is “The Happy Movies”

Ariel Schulman, director Henry Joost (whose collective work includes CatfishAnd Parasite Activity 3 And 4The movie is a worthwhile addition to the family-friendly film genre. The visuals might be more striking, but the plot sometimes drags as adults battle each other. However, the heart of the film is still very good. Secret HeadquartersThe family remains strong with their kid heroes, and in the heart of its central relationship.

[Ed. note: This review contains slight setup spoilers for Secret Headquarters.]

Photo: Hopper Stone/Paramount Pictures

Secret HeadquartersThe story begins with Jack Kincaid, an ordinary father (Owen Wilson), discovering an extraterrestrial energy source that instantly bonds him. Jack is now the Guardian of the Earth, an enigmatic superhero. However, Jack has disengaged himself from his family. He and his wife have divorced, and he only sees his son, Charlie (Walker Scobell), during custody visits — which he frequently cancels when superhero-related business comes up. Charlie, though, is the Guard’s biggest fan. After a “work emergency” calls Jack away for a couple of days, Charlie decides Not to call his mom to pick him up, because he wants to invite his friends over to an empty house for a small party, and instead stays at his dad’s place.

While exploring that place, Charlie and his friends — his bestie Berger (Keith L. Williams), social-media-savvy Lizzie (Abby James Witherspoon), and rebellious Maya (Momona Tamada) — accidentally stumble upon the Guard’s secret headquarters (ba-dum tss!) in Jack’s home. At first, it’s all fun and games as they mess around with the high-tech gadgets. But soon, they catch the attention of defense mogul Ansel Argon (Michael Peña), who wants to harness the Guard’s tech for himself.

The movie’s biggest flaw is the bland design. The Guard’s entire visual aesthetic absolutely draws inspiration from the Marvel Cinematic Universe version of Iron Man, from the HUD display as Jack flies through the sky to the center-of-chest arc light and the armor plating. His costume looks pretty cool, but it’s also familiar. Similar sentiments can be applied to the secret headquarters that is also felt like a repurposed asset. The fact that the bulk of the movie’s conflict takes place in that HQ doesn’t help. Because it’s so dimly lit and cramped, the action scenes blend into one another. Thankfully, they pick up when the fight transitions to Charlie’s middle school on the night of the big school dance. The scenes where the Guard faces off against his adversary in a school gym full of dance decorations are some of the movie’s most memorable, juxtaposing the high-stakes fight with the more familiar backdrop of the school’s hallways.

Photo: Hopper Stone/Paramount Pictures

Secret HeadquartersIt is easy to fall into the same trap. Enola Holmes And Secret Society of Second-Born RoyalsThese movies introduce heavier topics without actually addressing them. ( those latter two movies, it’s “Oh man, maybe it’s bad that Parliament is exclusively ruled by rich, white, landowning men, but we’re not actually gonna do anything” and “Oh huh, I guess I shouldn’t rally for my country’s monarchy to be dissolved, now that I patched things up with my sister!” respectively.)

In Secret Headquarters, Argon points out that one person shouldn’t be in charge of saving the whole world. But it’s made clear early on that he’s mostly saying that to manipulate other people, and his primary concern is making a profit. This hypocrisy can be addressed in a later part, but the film’s main focus is on Charlie and Jack’s fractured love story. As the film’s main driver, the family drama keeps the stakes small, yet totally realistic, which allows the movie to be relatable even if none of the people watching have secretly superpowered dads.

Photo: Hopper Stone/Paramount Pictures

Even though Jack is absent for the middle of the film, Charlie continues to grapple with his mixed feelings about his father’s secret identity. Without Jack around, the focus shifts to Charlie and his friends, and that ends up being the movie’s strongest aspect. While the gadgets are fun to try, they’re only used for minor purposes like winning games and passing exams. All the kids have fun and well-rounded personalities, which make them a great team. Lizzie could fall prey to the popular-girl stereotypes. However, she is the brightest and most educated of the cast, as well as being adept at escape room techniques. If they use their innovative thinking to evade the bad guys, the movie is similarly fun — but it slogs when the fight focuses more on the adults and sidelines the kids.

When Secret Headquarters It is a delight to see kids enjoying the thrill of superpowered gadgets. When it narrows the focus to the conflict between Charlie and his dad, and the toll that being a masked vigilante takes on family life, the movie stands out from other entries in the “kids discover superpowers and/or super-gadgets” subgenre. Although it could have a bit less emphasis on serious issues for adults, Joost and Schulman manage to keep the plot at a lower stakes with more silly antics. Secret Headquarters It is a heartwarming, fun, and entertaining romp.

Secret Headquarters Paramount Plus will have it available on August 12.