For those unfamiliar with the series, The Airborne Trilogy is a set of three films masterminded by up and coming filmmakers Jordan Imbrey and Eric Ugland [both of whom I know and have worked with and neither of whom may be said to benefit from any bias on my part as a film critic because I find them both utterly contemptible( ;) )].
Over the course of three movies, the pair have told the tale of Clay Rudolph, played by Imbrey, a dweeby high schooler who discovers that, following a bizarre biking accident, he has the ability to sculpt the air to his will, a power that he continues to master and develop with the aid of his fellow comic afficionado Gary Chew, as he battles crime and villainy in his hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina. The first film, Airborne: It Takes More than Powers, was a success in terms of comedy and introducing its characters well, but was somewhat lacking in most other areas. Airborne Part 2: The Pressure Builds, saw marked improvements in terms of its visuals, strong developments in terms of plot and character, and even greater comedy, leaving hardly a moment that was not laugh out loud funny. Similarly, Airborne Part 3: The Secret of Identity builds on and improves every aspect that has come before it, and yet, perhaps because of the nature of the project, once the Airborne Trilogy reaches its peak, it feels like it still has miles to go.
One area in which Part 3 does not go the distance is in answering questions. Now, I am personally of the belief that telling the audience about something that doesn't happen is not to be considered a spoiler, but if you disagree and would rather keep such details unknown, consider this a spoiler warning. With that said, The Secret of Identity reveals nothing of how Airborne, or his bully turned rival Louie, (Alias "Pressure Point") acquired their powers, which is a particularly sore spot for Louie since his powers don't seem to have had any sort of trigger.The story is, on the whole, the real big problem with Part 3; aside from not explaining Clay's power source, the film takes a couple of twists that some may find overly jarring, both the twists and the recurring elements that have been well developed can seem somewhat rushed, and most specifically and worringly of all is the absense of a strong antagonist. There is a villain and a climax and a final showdown, but all of these elements are products of a pretty under developed conflict. Both the character who turns out to be the primary antagonist and his relationship/relevence to our hero were introduced in Part 2 and only get much screen time here in Part 3. Ultimately, this all leads to a film that feels like it may have been long enough, but is somehow incomplete, despite clearly being the last in its series.
As I eluded previously, however, a lot of these issues may be have been caused by the what the Airborne Trilogy's true nature is. In a recent interview, writer/director Jordan Imbrey said that the films were meant to be about a hero who was coming of age and still learning how to use his powers. As such, it would seem that the entire trilogy could be considered something of an extended origin rather than a traditional hero story involving a hero's rise to defeat his antagonist (making it very much like the first Iron Man in that respect). So if all three parts of Airborne could be considered a really really long issue #1, as it were, then it makes sense that not all questions are answered, the antagonist of the day is more of an Angleman than a Darkseid, and that it feels as if Airborne is less riding off into the sunset than he is flying off to further adventures, antagonists, and answers, even if we may never learn of such things.
Furthermore, the aforementioned plot issues really don't do much in the way of preventing one from enjoying The Secret of Identity. The comedy is better than ever (no small feat, given how hard to top part 2's gags were); the characters all go through believable, relatable growth, even if it does sometimes come at an abrupt pace (but hey, isn't life like that sometimes?); and the effects and fight scenes have seen drastic improvements in terms of quality if not necessarily in quantity. The highlight of the whole show for me was seeing Pressure Point kicking butt and taking names towards the end in his awesome reworked costume (I felt the bandana-heavy get up he was sporting in Part 2 was a tad generic), though I felt his powers went somewhat under-expolred, both in terms of his fighting and his overall development.
All in all, Airborne Part 3: The Secret of Identity, and indeed the entire Airborne Trilogy is highly enjoyable if a little rough around the edges in a few areas. In many ways, the nature of the films (and the filmmakers) shines through in the hero's journey: still learning all the tricks of the trade, not as experienced as the house-hold names, flawed in ways that may never be fixed (or perhaps should never be fixed), but if you take a deep enough look, you'll see the heart of a true hero, even if there's still a long way to go before the fame, fortune, and truly trying obstacles. Do your funny bone, your inner child, your sense of adventure, and the art of independent superhero movies a favor, and give The Airborne Trilogy a look; check out the creators at http://vimeo.com/ericugland and http://vimeo.com/redhead.
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