In the fictional city of Batavia, crime is at an all-time high. No matter where you turn, crime is there rearing its ugly head until one day, a vigilante rises in the form of Valentine: The Dark Avenger.

Now, to be clear, this 2017 Indonesian take on the blockbuster genre is nothing to do with Marvel or DC, but instead based on Indonesia’s own superhero series by Skylar Comics and comes from their own production company.

This film tells the origin story of the studio’s most popular hero, Valentine. After losing her father who was murdered a few years prior, Srimaya (Estelle Linden), who is also an expert in hand-to-hand combat, tries to get by with her mother and brother as a waitress whilst also dreaming of being an actress. Bono (Matthew Settle) a film director is looking for a leading lady to star as Valentine the Vigilante in his movie that keeps getting palmed off by studio directors. When he comes across Srimaya in her restaurant as she destroys sexually abusive thugs, a relationship is born. In order for him to sell the idea, he gets Srimaya to battle local thugs and films it to put online in a bid to gain viral status (at this point, think Bowfinger meets Kick-Ass) until they get tangled into a bigger picture of the sinister Shadow and his henchwomen.

Even though the film lacks the juggernaut budget of that of other superhero movies, this is a solid attempt at creating something fun and enjoyable. It is competently directed with crisp and clear framing and in some cases has the sheen that you expect from western films of this ilk and although the CGI lacks in areas, it never full detracts that audience from the film but instead possesses a kind of unique charm making it seem a tad more like an actual comic book come to life as some scenes pop off the screen.

With the film being made in Indonesia, one would assume that the title is subtitled, but instead, is completely dubbed in English by the cast – this is quite jarring in places, especially when, in the films more sombre scenes, the voice acting didn’t quite line up to what was on screen. In terms of the action set pieces, the choreography was solid and fast-paced, but musical and sound choices meant that the fights lacked any real vigour. The stylistic choice to have multiple cuts and quick zooms also detracted from some of the key battle sequences.

To its detriment, these issues, along with a messy third act and a twist that is very predictable and popular in these kinds of stories, may alienate a large viewing audience mostly, one would assume, from the west. However, in terms of ambition and style on a low budget, the filmmakers must be commended on trying their best and it’s clear to see that all involved were having a lot of fun during its production and has given birth to a fantastic actress in Linden who stole the show throughout.