"Kick-Ass" leavens its violence with lots of laughs

There were times while watching Matthew Vaughn's "KICK-ASS" last night -- particularly the action scenes featuring Chloë Grace Moretz as Hit Girl -- when I couldn't help but see an homage to such films as "DAI-BOSATSU TÔGE (SWORD OF DOOM)."
Flashing swords and spurting blood these films have in common; the difference is laughter.
Kihachi Okamoto's 1966 samurai epic features a nihilistic Tatsuya Nakadai character sowing annihilation with his sword.
Moretz brings down the bad guys with a wide array of weapons and some classic one liners.
Much has been made of the violence in "Kick-Ass," but that aspect is only a facet of the film (and shouldn't come as too big a surprise, if you have ever seen the blood-drenched comic from whence it came).
The real secret to the success of "Kick-Ass" (a five-star review from the GUARDIAN here and a man-falling-out-chair review from the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE here) is the comedy.
"Kick-Ass" is a really funny movie. I love "Sword of Doom," but it checks its chuckles at the door.