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    read more: #special, #movie, #indie, #michaelrapaport, #dark, #comedy, #superpower, #drugs

    Can Fake Drug-Induced Superpowers Cure Depression?

    Michael Rapaport thinks he can fly, even when he’s landed face first on the floor. But at least he has a sunnier outlook on life. In new indie flick Special, Rapaport plays Les Franken, a meter maid whose unremarkable life gets a much-needed dose of excitement when he enrolls in a trial for an experimental antidepressant. A dark comedy about pharmaceuticals, Special may be the perfect antidote to Hollywood's superhero mania.

    The drug Les takes soon has him feeling groovy, but it’s not the increase serotonin levels. It makes him think he’s gained superpowers, even in the face of overwhelming evidence that he hasn't.

    In his mind, Les begins developing powers of levitation, mind reading, and walking through walls. And, like so many comic book fans, Les decides that these new powers morally obligate him to don a parka and fight crime. His superhero antics quickly come to the attention of the drug company, who, fearing unwanted publicity, send their agents to keep him in check. Of course, Les' drug-addled brain interprets these "Suits" as his new nemeses, bent on using him to create an army of evil supermen.

    Writer-directors Hal Halberman and Jeremy Passmore began showing Special on the festival circuit in 2006, and it will be opening in limited theaters on November 21.

    [Special Movie via Biology in Science Fiction]


    Send an email to Lauren Davis, the author of this post, at lauren@io9.com.