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"The Green Hornet Delivers"
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A 2011 film Directed by Michel Gondry inspired by the characters from a radio program in the '30s.
< read all 13 reviewsA MASKED Slapstick Buddy Comedy!
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Jan 14, 2011
- by woopak_the_thrill
- posted in Movie Hype
Rating:
“The Green Hornet” is an idea that debuted as a radio program in the 1930‘s, then it went on to movie serials, a comic book in the 40's, a TV series (in the 60's with the legendary Bruce Lee) that got a cult following, after which it went on to inspire another comic book series and other media. The TV series was known throughout Hong Kong as “the Kato Show”; and paved the way for the late great Bruce Lee to break into Hong Kong cinema. When I heard about the news that director Michel Gondry has been tasked with a re-issue of the TV series with Seth Rogen and pop star Jay Chou, I was less than optimistic. Seems like this is the trend with Hollywood movies these days, remake a TV series, movie or comic book and then flower it up with a comedic approach. No one wants to put real brain power into the creation of a remake these days; comedies are always the way to make a quick buck.
+3
Well, the bad news is 2011’s “The Green Hornet” pays more attention to slapstick humor that it loses the original’s stone-faced vigilante bent on justice thing. Rogen plays the character as a bumbling idiot and while arguably it is part of his charm, I thought it overstayed its welcome. The good news is, Jay Chou proves to be quite charismatic as the character made iconic by a martial arts legend. The direction stumbles at times but it recovers. I guess Gondry’s film isn’t so bad after all…so let’s review this movie as a stand alone product rather than comparing it to the TV Series since it simply borrows the characters established from before.
Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) was a young man who wasn’t exactly raised with love and attention by his father (Tom Wilkinson), a newspaper magnate who becomes killed by an allergic reaction to a bee sting. Britt is rich spoiled brat who never learned to fend for himself, he wastes his time and money in partying and ‘living it up”. Now, seems like he is forced to take over the newspaper his father had built, something he has no clue as to how to run. But with the assistance of Kato (Jay Chou), an expert martial artist who has an uncanny knack for modifying cars, creating weapons and making insanely good cappuccino, Britt realizes that his life has been empty since his childhood and decides to take on the life as a vigilante called the Green Hornet; with Lenore’s (Cameron Diaz) unknowing assistance, the two embark on a new adventure. But now the duo has caught the eye of criminal mastermind Chudnofsky (Christopher Waltz who delivers the campy lines with natural ease), now Britt and Kato may have bitten off more than they can chew…
Let’s cut to the chase; 2011’s “Green Hornet” does not expand on the premise of the original TV series, but it does approach the material with a different flavor. Despite my misgivings with its execution, I have to admit Gondry seemed confident in what he set out to do. The film goes forward and keeps its energy through the delivery of slapstick comedy, displays of cool gadgetry, action complete with cool posturing, and loads of explosions. The premise of a film is very simple, it is a sort of a ‘coming of age’ flick mixed up with a buddy flick as our two adventurers learn to find their true destiny. It was entertaining and I had fun with its ride, nothing wrong with having a movie that you don't have to think about after all.
Seems like the film feels more inspired by a comic book-funny paper as the shots and style feel quite reminiscent of modern comics; it abandons the feel of the TV Series that garnered a following (it doesn't feel like a tribute at all). There is “Kato-vision”, a sort of way of anticipating what one’s opponents may do and it serves as a nice character device to bring Kato's skills to light; there is a tribute scene for the legendary Bruce Lee's patented 1-inch punch and references to his fighting style were highly visible in the film (such as turn and hook kick with ease against multiple opponents) . Of course no “Green Hornet” flick is going to be complete without a very cool car and the “Black Beauty” simply looks awesome. The film’s display of gadgets and costumes prove to be the film’s main ‘spice’ as the direction seems to love such things as Kato’s inventions are on grand display. Since Britt knows next to nothing about fighting, he has a gas-gun and this serves as a great serving of comedy. Chudnofsky’s double-barreled desert eagle is just so weird and yet it proves so cool; and held and delivered with campy dialogue, the film stays solid in its comic book sensibilities, (but it misses the tone and feel of the actual comic series). Despite my reservations of the film being too comical, I liked the way the direction handled the wild mix of humor and it delivers as much PG-13 violence as it could possibly muster. I suppose the film wanted to be one of the ‘funny books’; it works since it feels quite sure of itself and honestly it is just fun to watch.
The first act of the film is aimed at our two leads, as they find each other and learn the rules of brotherhood, it breezes by rather quickly. The script by Rogen and Evan Goldberg) does throw in some easy twists about jealousy and rivalry as they wonder who the real sidekick was, and they both seem to like the same girl. There are also some bits of politics and journalistic integrity thrown in. I am not sure, I saw the direction struggling to keep the film moving in the middle parts, it loses some of its established comedic pacing as it experiences a need for a tonal shift as the middle part of the film gets a sober stage. Grondry does manage to keep the film going, but there were times that the comedy appears to have overstayed its welcome. Gondry struggles but he manages to keep it together as Chudnofsky declares himself the new improved “blood-nofsky”; the joke was good as delivered by Waltz, but it felt a little out of place. There were also moments when the good parts were too far in between.
Rogen can be a very funny guy and this film does have his character down as an idiotic, former stoner rich kid whose eyes became brightly-lit with optimism and dreams of making a difference. The actor is good for what his character demanded, but the script does overplay his comedic persona a little too much. Jay Chou (The Treasure Hunter) steals the show despite his limited English-speaking skills; I was somewhat resistant in seeing him as “Kato” but he does pull it off, as he makes his flaw part of his screen charm. His action sequences were assisted with mild slow motion and while he doesn’t have the skills of a Bruce Lee, I thought his portrayal was the perfect fit to coincide with Rogen’s character. Chou has that quiet and yet, confident enough to know what he is capable of and this is the true image of a martial artist. Chou and Rogen make a good team; and this film was built on their chemistry, the comedic riffs Rogen gives off was helped along by Chou’s screen presence.
As for the 3D, I thought the film could’ve done well without it. “Green Hornet’s” release was delayed because of its additions of 3D, but you wouldn't miss the 3D even when you saw it in DLP (took off the 3D glasses twice to see what it looked like and it almost looked the same without them). Gondry did seem to have the expansion to 3D in mind (notice some perspective-focused action sequences), but the touches didn't exactly enhance the cinematic experience as with "Avatar" or "Resident Evil Afterlife".
“Green Hornet” has enough ‘zing’, spark, energy and charm to keep the film above the bowels of mediocrity. Gondry appears capable of handing bigger budgets and I was surprised that after his “the Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind”, he seemed quite at home with this project that his fans would see his signature amid all the whimsical touches of rolls of newsprint, “kato-vision”, cars sliced in half and weird elevator windows. I am happy to report that 2011’s “Green Hornet” may not be inventive nor is it groundbreaking nor does it surpass the TV Series, but it does work as a laugh-out-load re-issue (if only for a little while). It was almost great but not quite; it was a pleasurable fun, but too bad it didn’t quite get to where it should be.
RENT IT ! [2 1/2 Out of 5 Stars]
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About this movie
The Green Hornet is an upcoming 2011 action-comedy film, based on the character of the same name. The Green Hornet is an American pulp hero and masked vigilante - created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker with input by radio director James Jewell in 1936. Since his radio debut in the 1930s, the Green Hornet has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of media. The character appeared in film serials in the 1940s, a network television program in the 1960s, multiple comic book series from the 1940s on, and a feature film in January 2011.
Directed by Michel Gondry, the film stars Seth Rogen in the title role, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Evan Goldberg. Supporting actors include Jay Chou as Kato, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz, Edward James Olmos, David Harbour and Tom Wilkinson.
The film will be released in the United States on January 14, 2011, and the United Kingdom April 8, 2011, which will also include RealD Cinema and IMAX 3D. The film has been dubbed as a re-issue of the TV series rather than the serials or the comic books. After all, it has strong tibutes to Bruce Lee's portrayal and even gives homage to his one-inch punch. Jay Chou knew he couldn't play the role like Bruce, but the references to his movements were all there.
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Directed by Michel Gondry, the film stars Seth Rogen in the title role, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Evan Goldberg. Supporting actors include Jay Chou as Kato, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz, Edward James Olmos, David Harbour and Tom Wilkinson.
The film will be released in the United States on January 14, 2011, and the United Kingdom April 8, 2011, which will also include RealD Cinema and IMAX 3D. The film has been dubbed as a re-issue of the TV series rather than the serials or the comic books. After all, it has strong tibutes to Bruce Lee's portrayal and even gives homage to his one-inch punch. Jay Chou knew he couldn't play the role like Bruce, but the references to his movements were all there.
Director:
Michel Gondry
Genre:
Action,
Adventure
Release Date:
January 14, 2011
MPAA Rating:
PG-13
Screen Writer:
Seth Rogen,
Evan Goldberg
Runtime:
108 minutes
Studio:
Sony Pictures
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the problem with adaptations or remakes is this; they don't know (or too lazy) to build characterization and so they thought comedy is the easy way to make a quick buck.
If anything the movie takes a little here and more on the TV Series, anyone can see that. It does have some comic book movie sensibilities in the way some shots were framed and the comedy is like a bad edition of Batmania but it is more inspired by the TV series than anything.
Hey guess what movies I am going to watch tomorrow?