The Green Hornet

The Green Hornet
Principle Actors: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz
Directed by: Michel Gondry
My Rating: 3/5

I was actually quite disappointed in this movie. I gave it a higher rating than it probably deserves, mainly because of Jay Chou. He played his character well, had depth and timing. By far the best acting in the entire movie.

Seth Rogen was a major disappointment. Almost all of his attempted humor relied on latent homosexual Freudian slips. There were so many of them that one began to wonder if the character was actually a closeted gay. Rogen's character was also totally unlikable. First, he was a total idiot. Second, he was a major chauvinist. His treatment of both Chou's and Diaz's character were atrocious. And the worst part of it is, they apparently thought it was funny.

There was one scene in which Kato and Reid got into a fight. I found myself thinking, "Yeah! Give it to him Kato! Beat the crap out him! Teach him a lesson!" And this character is supposed to be the hero of the movie, the one everyone is rooting for! If the movie had focused more on Kato, it would have been much better.

The action was.... pretty good. Could have been better. The finale, which takes place in the building where the newspaper is run, was absolutely ridiculous. And not in a good way. I actually hung my head in shame for everyone involved in that particular scene.

I suppose the finale struck a nerve that's been bothering me for some time with regards to action scenes. There's no reality left in them anymore! There's no thought of collateral damage, no rational thinking. If you've got a character, based in the real world, shouldn't they be constrained by real world thinking? For example, if someone is trying to escape in a car, would they really make the decision to drive through glass windows and through the lobby of a building? Or put that car on an elevator? Or try to drive said car after the back end was chopped off by the rising elevator?

I love action movies. I do. I love the explosions, the car chases, the gun fights, the fist fights, sword battles, and ninja-ike skills of the heros and villains. But, there is a point when it goes from really awesome (something that's totally crazy but still in the realm of possibility), to just laughably ridiculous (a la The A-Team and The Green Hornet).

What I would love to see is a totally new Green Hornet. One with a main character that isn't such a douchbag. Failing that, it could focus more on Kato. And please, more reality less stupidity in the action sequences.

My recommendation: Skip the theater, maybe rent it or just wait for it to hit the small screen.