WARDEN – A Movie Review for a Documentary Style Superhero Film

In a world saturated with superhero stories WARDEN is a unique and almost realistic twist on the origin of a Superhero, and what that means. This Superhero film is done in a documentary style, thereby allowing the audience to truly ponder how our world would react to a person with unlimited power.

Overall Story

WARDEN begins where all superhero origin stories begin: how the hero became super. Daniel Dias grew up in Brazil in Nova Sao Paul. He lived an average life until he began to develop powers. Over the course of the “documentary” we meet many people who have encountered Daniel AKA WARDEN. From his childhood friend, to his father, politicians, police, and more. However, we never hear directly from Daniel. His lack of direct presence creates a mystery throughout as to how he evolves once given “God like” powers. 

This documentary begins with Daniel wanting to help those who need it. He also wants to fix the system that has failed so many. However, nothing stays that simple in comic books, or the real world. Laws and Due Process make for a civilized society. While all the comic book classics touch on these issues, there is something that is incredibly different for Daniel Dias. Not only does he live in the “real world” he’s also the only one with powers. Which means there are no super villains. So, without supervillains, where does a superhero fit in? 

WARDEN’s Documentary Style Elicits a Lot of Emotion

The way this film was done in a documentary style made for such a realistic feel. I found myself getting emotional, and forgetting this was fiction. The powers Daniel has are clearly pure science fiction. However, the issues he, and the world are dealing with in this, are not.

We live in a world where power feels incredibly off balance. Daniel Dias is just that. A literal incredibly powerful person. With great power may come great responsibility. Yet, it’s not always clear who that responsibility is to, or what that entails. Or how that power changes a person, or simply just changes how they fundamentally view the world once they’re in a position few will ever reach.

Check out another movie review from Lauren: Captain America, Brave New World.

Overall Grade: 7.5/10

All in all this was a fantastic thought provoking and unique film. One of the things I loved the most was that comic books are incredibly relevant to the story. They’re a how to. Daniel grew up reading comic books, and then became the first ever real life superhero. While we’ve seen legal and political issues come up in superhero stories in books, the small screen (Fisk Can Fix It), and the big screen, it has never been done like this. WARDEN truly felt like how the world would react if a real life superhero emerged tomorrow. 

WARDEN was directed by Marcus Alqueres, and developed by Steve Tzirlin and Jeff Juhasz. The cast features Giovanni de Lorenzi, Alli Willow, Antonio Saboia, Kukassa Kabengele, James Turpin, Brian Townes, and Nathalia Florentino.

The film can be rented or purchased today at home on many different streaming services, including Fandango at Home.

Stay tuned to ‘Hops GEEK News’ for an upcoming interview with the director of WARDEN, Marcus Alqueres that will be dropping on all podcast platforms & You Tube. 

Have you seen WARDEN? What did you think? Let us know!