Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys is a coming of age story that chronicles our awakening of adolescence and our love for the comic-medium.

Boys focuses on four boys who love comic books. They also go to a rather strict Catholic school and their focus on comics is a release from their feelings of being trapped in the strict school. The boys create superhero alter egos that are made up into a powerful super team. Their leader is Francis Doyle (played by new comer Emile Hirsch). Francis is a brain and loves to chronicle the lives of their super-team. The only person standing in his way is the strict nun known as Nunzilla (played by Jodie Foster).

Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys starts off as a great coming of age story where the kids talk like youngsters and their awakening to comics flourishes. I saw some of myself in each of these boys.

To accent the boys’ imagination, the director has enlisted comic book creator Todd McFarlane to create some animated sequences featuring the characters sprung from the imaginations of the boys. The animated sequences reminded me a lot of the ground breaking animated film, Heavy Metal. The sequences are raw and have a lot of power. I really enjoyed seeing the boys’ imaginations come to life. It would be nice if there were more Heavy Metal style animation made.

Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys lost my interest when the film suffers an identity crisis half way through. The film isn’t sure if it’s a light-and-fluffy coming of age story or a serious story about trials and tribulations of friendships. The whole girlfriend story line really felt foreign and forced when it was placed beside the innocent story in the beginning of the film. I am just not sure if the film’s overall tone is maintained as it enters the film’s third act.

I enjoyed the performances of Hirsch, Kieran Culkin and Jena Malone. I really did like Malone as the troubled girlfriend even if her story seemed a little hard to take in this kind of film. Malone gives the girl a reluctance and withdrawal which does capture her character. I also liked new comer Hirsch who does uncannily like a young Jack Black. Hirsch is a perfect casting because of what he brings to Francis especially when the boy is struggling to fit in with both his best friend (Culkin) and his new love (Malone). I really liked this kid.

Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys isn’t a perfect film but a great memory laden film for any boy who loved to run to the local corner convenience store to get the latest comic featuring his favorite superhero.

(3 of 5) So Says the Soothsayer.