The Green Hornet (3D) reviewed
Action comedy The Green Hornet is a real mixed bag. While the film has a refreshing sense of humour for a superhero film, and certainly plenty of amusing moments, the end product features a limp plot and disappointingly lacks the visual inventiveness typically displayed by director Michel Gondry. More importantly, your enjoyment of the film will depend on your feelings towards funny man Seth Rogen, who not only plays the title character here but also co-wrote the movie.
Based on a radio serial that went on to spawn comic books and a television series, The Green Hornet centres on Britt Reid (Rogen), the slacker playboy son of the most powerful independent newspaper publisher (Tom Wilkinson) in Los Angeles. When his father dies, a hardly grief-stricken Britt enlists multi-talented mechanic Kato (Jay Chou) to perform a revenge prank. Events however snowball, with Britt and Kato becoming masked vigilantes out to clean up the streets, while simultaneously pretending to be rivals to crime boss Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz).
The basic distinguishing feature, and genre twist, of The Green Hornet is that the title hero is a bumbling fool whereas his sidekick is the capable one driving the duo’s crime fighting efforts, and frequently saving the day. And boy, the 2011 Green Hornet is a real idiot! Kudos to the filmmakers for refusing to let Britt Reid become a Bruce Wayne or Tony Stark clone – quickly sobering from spoiled playboy to driven crime fighter. Britt is an ass and he remains as ass. However, with Rogen in the role, the dickery does get a bit much at times. Obnoxious, juvenile and utterly self absorbed, Rogen’s Britt is like watching Eric Cartman play superhero for 2 hours.
As a result The Green Hornet could have done with a lot less goofy feuding between partners and a lot more of its incredibly well done fight scenes. Although these sequences utilise an “identify the danger” visual gimmick that quickly grows repetitive, they are very well choreographed and, for once, not hyper-editing into incomprehensibility. I would really have preferred to see more of them, even if it meant less screen time for Britt and Kato’s enhanced super car, the Black Beauty – probably the real star the movie.
What is perhaps most surprising about The Green Hornet is the almost complete lack of Gondry-esque moments in the film, given that the movie comes from the director of Be Kind Rewind and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Although the trademark offbeat sense of humour is there, you can count the number of moments that display Gondry’s distinctive visual flair on a single hand. Sadly, the film’s end credits are one of the most stylish, creative things about it.
It’s also worth nothing at this point that as a 3D movie, The Green Hornet is a complete waste of time. This conversion, while certainly not as shoddy looking and randomly applied as Alice in Wonderland, adds nothing to the movie at all. At any point.
These gripes aside, there is still enough that works in The Green Hornet to keep it clear of turkey-dom. Waltz’s deadly villain is amusingly obsessed with what others think about him, Cameron Diaz is surprisingly good (if underused) in her role as “straight man” to the ridiculous heroes, and Britt and Kato’s first foray into gangland is the funniest moment in the film – particularly when you compare their terror to the bravado of most superheroes. Out of interest, The Green Hornet even features cameos by James Franco and Edward Furlong.
Still though, while featuring spikes in fun, The Green Hornet is unable to consistently deliver. The film's third quarter is especially dull. So in the end, The Green Hornet is just average. It provides some light amusement but is nothing special. And considering the glut of good to excellent movies at cinemas right now, there are better things to spend your money on than The Green Hornet.
Based on a radio serial that went on to spawn comic books and a television series, The Green Hornet centres on Britt Reid (Rogen), the slacker playboy son of the most powerful independent newspaper publisher (Tom Wilkinson) in Los Angeles. When his father dies, a hardly grief-stricken Britt enlists multi-talented mechanic Kato (Jay Chou) to perform a revenge prank. Events however snowball, with Britt and Kato becoming masked vigilantes out to clean up the streets, while simultaneously pretending to be rivals to crime boss Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz).
The basic distinguishing feature, and genre twist, of The Green Hornet is that the title hero is a bumbling fool whereas his sidekick is the capable one driving the duo’s crime fighting efforts, and frequently saving the day. And boy, the 2011 Green Hornet is a real idiot! Kudos to the filmmakers for refusing to let Britt Reid become a Bruce Wayne or Tony Stark clone – quickly sobering from spoiled playboy to driven crime fighter. Britt is an ass and he remains as ass. However, with Rogen in the role, the dickery does get a bit much at times. Obnoxious, juvenile and utterly self absorbed, Rogen’s Britt is like watching Eric Cartman play superhero for 2 hours.
As a result The Green Hornet could have done with a lot less goofy feuding between partners and a lot more of its incredibly well done fight scenes. Although these sequences utilise an “identify the danger” visual gimmick that quickly grows repetitive, they are very well choreographed and, for once, not hyper-editing into incomprehensibility. I would really have preferred to see more of them, even if it meant less screen time for Britt and Kato’s enhanced super car, the Black Beauty – probably the real star the movie.
What is perhaps most surprising about The Green Hornet is the almost complete lack of Gondry-esque moments in the film, given that the movie comes from the director of Be Kind Rewind and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Although the trademark offbeat sense of humour is there, you can count the number of moments that display Gondry’s distinctive visual flair on a single hand. Sadly, the film’s end credits are one of the most stylish, creative things about it.
It’s also worth nothing at this point that as a 3D movie, The Green Hornet is a complete waste of time. This conversion, while certainly not as shoddy looking and randomly applied as Alice in Wonderland, adds nothing to the movie at all. At any point.
These gripes aside, there is still enough that works in The Green Hornet to keep it clear of turkey-dom. Waltz’s deadly villain is amusingly obsessed with what others think about him, Cameron Diaz is surprisingly good (if underused) in her role as “straight man” to the ridiculous heroes, and Britt and Kato’s first foray into gangland is the funniest moment in the film – particularly when you compare their terror to the bravado of most superheroes. Out of interest, The Green Hornet even features cameos by James Franco and Edward Furlong.
Still though, while featuring spikes in fun, The Green Hornet is unable to consistently deliver. The film's third quarter is especially dull. So in the end, The Green Hornet is just average. It provides some light amusement but is nothing special. And considering the glut of good to excellent movies at cinemas right now, there are better things to spend your money on than The Green Hornet.
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