Mystery Men

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2:18

Mystery Men

PG-13

1999

2h 0m

Fantasy

Comedy

Action

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

59%

Tomatometer

103 Reviews

57%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

Champion City already has a superhero, the appropriately named Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear), but that doesn't deter the city's seven quirky amateur crime-fighters, who use the Captain's capture at the hands of villain Casanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush) as motivation to prove themselves. The only problem is that their strange powers -- silverware hurling, bowling, shovel skills, incompetent invisibility and deadly flatulence -- aren't doing them any favors.

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Critics Consensus

Absurd characters and quirky gags are brought to life by a talented cast, providing this superhero spoof with lots of laughs.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/26/2010

3/5

Witty comic-book story is edgy, with lots of potty humor.

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Lisa Alspector

Chicago Reader

07/15/2010

The characters have been designed to make fun of themselves, disguising the craft of writer Neil Cuthbert and director Kinka Usher in getting us to laugh at them.

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Derek Adams

Time Out

06/24/2006

Usher's amiable spoof of superhero movies takes a brave stab at rewriting the mythology from the inside out, with lots of witty, mildly subversive stuff.

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Danielle Solzman

Solzy at the Movies

02/20/2023

3/5

Mystery Men is admirable for its effort but falls short of the standards that we've come to expect in the spoof genre.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

11/25/2022

2/4

A colorful but flavorless dud.

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John Lui

The Straits Times (Singapore)

04/02/2020

4/5

A story that sparkles with emotional warmth, strong jokes and great performances from Hank Azaria, Janeane Garofalo, Lena Olin, Eddie Izzard, Greg Kinnear, William Macy, Geoffrey Rush and Ben Stiller.

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Kass H

01/06/2024

hilarious movie that will have you laughing your ass off

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Eric S

@PeachWolfer365 Jul 24

I can’t believe this movie has a 6/10 rating with critics and audiences. For what it sets out to be it is a perfect film, its a 90s masterpiece and I can feel and see the spirit of the American 90s in every line, every joke, every set, its solid gold cinema. I don’t know what people were expecting walking into this. All I know is it is a one of a kind film reel and it deserves to never be forgotten.

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Joel H

@786Joel Jun 5

Much like the misfit group of less-than-super heroes in the movie, Mystery Men doesn’t quite reach the heights it’s aiming for. The premise is fantastic, and there are definitely some funny moments, but it feels like someone put the script in the Psycho-frakulator and stretched it out. It probably should have been about a half-hour shorter. I also think if it was released in 2019 instead of 1999, it might have made a bigger impact. William H. Macy and Janeane Garofalo are the stand-out performances here. I love almost every line they deliver. Hey now, it’s not an all-star, but Mystery Men is okay.

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Emlyn O

@RT67073679 Apr 17

Absolutely underrated. A fantastic cast. Hilarious.

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Andrew O

@RT08565986 Feb 26

Hilarious parody of super hero movies, before they were as big as they are now. Strongly recommend a viewing. I've owned this on VHS, DVD, and blu-ray, and watch it regularly.

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Matt B

@VLVLArt Feb 26

Mystery Men hit theatres in 1999. It continues to be one of my favourite movies, and a great concept: What if Supervillians threatened your city and when help arrives - its just Superhero rejects.

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Kinka Usher

Director

Hank Azaria

The Blue Raja

Janeane Garofalo

The Bowler

William H. Macy

The Shoveller

Kel Mitchell

The Invisible Boy

Paul Reubens

The Spleen

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Superhero Auditions

1:50

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Superhero Training

3:02

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Confronting Casanova

2:55

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Rallying the Team

2:06

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Captain Amazing's Idea

1:14

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Mr. Furious Holds Back

1:30

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Silent and Deadly

2:06

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Dinner Full of Bicker

2:48

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Capturing Captain Amazing

2:23

Mystery Men: Official Clip - Mr. Furious Gets Mad

2:13

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Mystery Men: Trailer 1

2:18

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Synopsis

Champion City already has a superhero, the appropriately named Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear), but that doesn't deter the city's seven quirky amateur crime-fighters, who use the Captain's capture at the hands of villain Casanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush) as motivation to prove themselves. The only problem is that their strange powers -- silverware hurling, bowling, shovel skills, incompetent invisibility and deadly flatulence -- aren't doing them any favors.

Director: Kinka Usher
Producer: Lawrence Gordon, Lloyd Levin, Mike Richardson
Screenwriter: Bob Burden, Neil Cuthbert
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Dark Horse Entertainment, Lawrence Gordon Productions
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Fantasy, Comedy, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 6, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 10, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $29.8M
Runtime: 2h 0m
Sound Mix: Surround