After decades of languishing in development hell, The Green Hornet is finally back on the big screen. It’s hard to tell if anyone exists even in the hardcore geek community who still cares about the original franchise outside of Bruce Lee nostalgia. But, if those people are out there, chances are they won’t be thrilled by this blockbuster adaptation of their favorite hero. The film does feature the iconic masks, cars, sidekick, and several characters from the original Green Hornet mythology, but it is in no way a conventional superhero adaptation. Instead the film is more of an opportunity for Seth Rogen and longtime co-writer Evan Goldberg to play around with superhero conventions, while also giving director Michel Gondry a chance to bring his patented visual pyrotechnics to a grand scale and letting Christoph Waltz mug for camera in the afterglow of his Inglourious Basterds Oscar glory. The fact that the movie has all those things going for it elevates it just slightly above standard Hollywood superhero fair, but it’s also a blessing and a curse.
Seth Rogen stars as the slacker rich kid Britt Reid, whose life dedicated to booze and women always disappointed his ethical media empire-owning father. When daddy dies, Rogen is put in charge of the family business with no idea of what to do. He soon befriends his father’s genius mechanic/assistant/martial arts expert named Kato who shows Reid all the weird self-defense equipment that he developed for the company. Reid suggests they use the technology to become superheroes, but never he really fits the bill. He screws up nearly every crime-fighting attempt and Kato always comes in to save the day. Jealously inevitably ensues. It’s a pretty clever twist on the hero/sidekick relationship that Rogen and Goldberg milk for a lot of laughs. The Green Hornet is an undeniably funny anti-superhero movie that works when the comedy takes the forefront and falters whenever there’s a half-hearted attempt at drama. Had the writers made the movie a pure a sarcastic pisstake, it could have reached the giddy entertainment heights Kick Ass. Sadly, it pales in comparison to last summer’s genre classic, most likely due to the studio interference that the Kick Ass filmmakers avoided by producing their movie independently.
The Green Hornet that finally made it to screens is undoubtedly better than the unmade George Clooney edition that was much hyped in the 90s. It’s a rare instance where talented people with left-of-center ideas got a chance to be creative with $100 million of house money. Seriously, who could have predicted that a pair of character comedy specialists and the French art house director behind Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind would get an action movie franchise? But as much as those diverse talents make the film unique, they also harm the final product. There’s much more going on in The Green Hornet than should be expected from a film of this type, but as a result it lacks focus.
When The Green Hornet works, it’s fantastic. Gondry’s thankfully CGI-free action sequences are pure eye-candy and one ridiculously ambitious split screen sequence that he designed is every bit as remarkable as his mind-bending music videos. Christoph Watlz proves he’s no one trick pony with his hysterically deranged performance and will hopefully stick around American films for years to come. And of course, Rogen is his usual hilarious slacker self and has some great chemistry with co-star Jay Chou (who might struggle a little with English, but certainly doesn’t struggle with charisma or ass-kicking). However, these three elements often slot in awkwardly together, occasionally feeling like 3 different movies. Even worse are the obviously studio mandated subplots like a dramatic story arc about Reid’s awkward relationship with his father and newspaper that must have been included as fan service for a franchise that no one remembers. The same can be said about Cameron Diaz’s love interest who might get a few laughs, but her character mostly just drags down the already overlong and convoluted screenplay.
It might sound like I’m being harsh on The Green Hornet, but that’s just because it’s clear that with a few tweeks, this could have been an amazing genre movie. As it stands, the flick is filled with flashes of brilliance and certainly works overall, but just isn’t quite what it could have been. Whether or not the film becomes the hit that Sony desperately wants remains to be seen. Seth Rogen and superhero fatigue have certainly set in with many audiences and that might be enough to keep them away from the theater (much like how the general distaste for Michael Cera killed the box office potential of the superior Scott Pilgrim last August). The Green Hornet is definitely worth seeing for two thirds that work, but be prepared for that missing third. Oh, and the movie clearly wasn’t designed for 3D. That was added in post to try and boost the box office. Save $5 and find one of those old fashion 2D screenings if you can.
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