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matt_zimmerAlso a review for the latest episode of The Good Place.
Men In Black International
Let's be clear. That was not a great movie. That probably couldn't even be classified as a good movie. But the outraged critics need to check themselves. When it comes to Men In Black, I always come to every film with lowered expectations. The first film was an utter disappointment compared to the hype, and the second is an outright bad film. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised by the third, which remains the only good movie in my eyes. So I knew going in this is not the franchise to demand excellence from. If it were, all three former movies would be great. Even the third is just really good.
So yeah, this isn't less funny than the first two films, the plot isn't worse. Will Smith not being here is definitely a problem as far as the comedy is concerned, but Chris Hemsworth has good comic energy, even if it's a different kind of laid back.
My biggest problem with the film is that it's too predictable.
I don't usually level that complaint against stuff I watch. I have stated in more than one review of something predictable that there is something very pleasurable and satisfying in watching a story play out exactly as it's supposed to. I strongly believe it's good comfort food for your brain. If the story itself is good, and it plays out well, I don't mind it if I've guessed the ending.
You DO realize my exception for that, right? Mysteries!
I knew everything ahead of time here. It was always T, not only because Liam Neeson is the biggest person in the cast outside of Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson. But because he was in the very first scene, and has a very personal connection to H. Plus, he's entirely too helpful, and knows too many things he shouldn't. As a mystery goes, it was lousy. And since this movie is more of a mystery than the other films were, I am not satisfied watching things go down as I thought they would. I'm not surprised the franchise disappointed me yet again, but I would think with the money riding on the film, and the mystery premise, it would do a little more to have a memorable twist. And I suspect without the twist, there was no hook, and the movie bombed. The third movie got a lot of positive buzz because it was very unlike the first two, and surprised audiences. I don't think it did well because the franchise was so beloved people will watch any version of it. It did well because it was an actual good movie. They didn't bother doing that here, and there is no hook to get an audience really invested in the characters, or get itself enough buzz built to even make it a sleeper hit. It's not a bad movie, and it's not the worst Men In Black film. But without Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, the franchise needed to bring its A-game to quiet skeptics, and instead went back to the disappointment it was the entire time. There's only so much coasting a franchise can do. Transformers movies were forgiven for a lot, but the audiences DID eventually get burned out by the cr*ppy quality. You can't just slap a brand on a movie and expect that to draw audiences. In fact, movies are so expensive to make now, not making an expensive movie great is a HUGE financial risk. Even great blockbusters these days as likely to bomb as bad ones. But there is no other fate for the bad ones these days. People are a lot pickier now than they were even ten years ago.
Seeing a movie in a theater costs more money than it should, partly due to the fact that movies are more expensive to make. But if I want to see a movie in the theater to avoid spoilers, the movie needs to make it worth my while, as going to the theater is a bit of a hassle. I saw this movie first on Digital and I don't think it would have been worth spending a ticket on. I own the movie on Blu-Ray at practically the same price, less if you count food and drinks. I understand why people didn't feel the need to see it when it first came out.
One thing I liked is that H being Neuralyzed explained a great deal of his reputation, and why he isn't living up to it. It's clear he's supposed one of the all-time greats, but to the audience, he's a loser. Well, it turns out, he literally ISN'T the same guy, and is missing something because of the Neuralyzer. It doesn't make me feel better about H still being in the agency at the end, but it explains why he is at least.
Also, even though T being the mole was predictable, I did very much like the fact that he was corrupted by an outside source, and it wasn't his fault. I usually hate mind control, but for some reason I like the idea that this specific organization didn't actually let a bad guy slip through their recruitment cracks. Their entire selling point is their success rate, and making T taken over by an alien makes sure the reputation isn't truly damaged. The reputation is so important in fact, that H is willing to take the blame for being the mole if he can't stop T. The reputation of MIB is far more important than his own, which is wholly consistent with the first three films.
I didn't exactly like Pawny, but I like how M seemed to get used to the idea of him right quick. It helps to have a little extra side-eye in your corner, I guess.
Plot hole: How will the Men In Black explain that brand new canyon in that desert? It wasn't there yesterday, and that can't neuralyze EVERYBODY on Earth. Can they? Hmmm.
In the end, I want to clearly point out that this isn't worse than most of the Men In Black films. People acting like it is are seeing the franchise through rose-colored glasses. The entire enterprise has been sloppy and lazy from the start, with lame plots saved by lazy, but admittedly funny jokes. This is the first film Men In Black film to actually be negatively judged on its merits. And as long as Barry Sonnenfeld, even if he's just producing, just phones it in, he might as well not bother. The audiences didn't. **1/2.
Alien Shopping Network!:
Two ads and infomercials. Blah. Overall: **1/2.
Alien-cestry.com:
This was nice if only because Frank the Pug only had a cameo in this film. ***1/2.
The Neuralyzer: Like It Never Happened:
I didn't like this because there's no canon explanation I'd accept. The alien ancestry website was already pushing it. **.
Deleted Scenes:
A LOT of stuff was cut, which is never a good sign, but particularly worrying for a film with a huge budget. Overall: **1/2.
Do Not Turn Around!:
A little of the morning after H's alien tryst. Good cut. H looks like heel. *.
We Need To See The Queen:
I'm not sure that the logic of the twin bad guys secretly being twin good guys the entire time holds up entirely, and this scene doesn't shake that. If they WERE good guys, why did they assassinate the alien protecting the device? He was good too. They could have simply revealed to him T was the mole. He already suspected somebody anyways. If there's anything worse than a predictable mystery, it's one that doesn't track. This was somehow both. **1/2.
Extended Nightclub:
All of this cut footage was not just extraneous. It was shockingly and noticeably extraneous. So much so I can't believe they bothered filming that much nonsense. It would have bored the audience to tears. How did they only realize that in the editing room? Sloppy. 0.
How Did They Recruit You?:
The scene is too long, and the timing and pacing suck, but it was really interesting to learn H was a car thief in real life, and was recruited after stealing T's car. This is not a good scene, but I think they probably should have put that information in elsewhere, even in a shorter scene. ***.
Ready For Riza's:
There were a lot of establishing outdoor shots in the movie. They are sort of taking advantage of the International premise, but by the same token, nobody watches these movies to get a world tour of Earth. I'm thinking they didn't need to go quite so grand and cinematic for the establishing shots. ***.
Pawny Holds Court:
This was admittedly kind of funny. ****.
I'm Not Quite Feeling Myself:
A scene of T acting unstable and C acting concerned. I don't know which point of the film it was deleted from so I can't tell if it would be helpful to the audience or spoil too much ahead of time. **1/2.
History Repeats: Itself:
The bullet points of this are already in the film. This extra scene just hits you over the head with it. And the movie is predictable enough. **.
An Annoying Friendship:
Alternate ending. This film's ending was better. **1/2.
Gag Reel:
I'm weird about Gag Reels. Personally, I think the longer a Gag Reel is, the less I like it. Unless the reel itself is partly planned like they've done for some of the recent Muppet movies, the more the mistakes there are, the more I think the film is unprofessional, and that people aren't taking their roles seriously. Let me say that it felt refreshing that this was a trim two minutes. I could laugh at some goofing off without feeling there was too much of it. One of the nicer things about the home video release. ****.
The Good Place "You've Changed, Man"
I can't believe Jason told Sean he used to be cool. And yet, on another level, I totally can. It's totally in character for him to be that clueless.
Sean's not so bad. He just has fun battling Michael. That's actually cute and relatable.
Speaking of which, I'm having a hard time reconciling the fact that I used to think the Judge was funny and lovable. I can no longer stand the character. And yet she's not all that different personalitywise. It makes me question my own judgment.
Timothy Oliphant thinks the world begins and ends at Timothy Olyphant. You know what? That tracks.
I am having trouble with Chiti and Eleanor's ship with no obstacles. The best example of a will they won't they ship that worked after they got together was Jim and Pam from The Office. They were right for each other which was the precise reason Sam and Diane sucked together, and so did David and Maddie. I don't think Chiti and Eleanor are wrong for each other. And yet even if their ship isn't openly contentious, or a case of opposites attract, a large part of the appeal to me was that they were starcrossed lovers fighting time and eternity and Heaven and Hell for a happy ending that doesn't seem possible. Now that they're together and it looks like a happy ending IS possible, their ship just lost a ton of its tension and appeal. I like Chiti and Eleanor together when they are being tortured. When they aren't, it's just not the same, even if they are still sort of right for each other.
That was great. I expect good things from the last few episodes. ****.
Men In Black International
Let's be clear. That was not a great movie. That probably couldn't even be classified as a good movie. But the outraged critics need to check themselves. When it comes to Men In Black, I always come to every film with lowered expectations. The first film was an utter disappointment compared to the hype, and the second is an outright bad film. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised by the third, which remains the only good movie in my eyes. So I knew going in this is not the franchise to demand excellence from. If it were, all three former movies would be great. Even the third is just really good.
So yeah, this isn't less funny than the first two films, the plot isn't worse. Will Smith not being here is definitely a problem as far as the comedy is concerned, but Chris Hemsworth has good comic energy, even if it's a different kind of laid back.
My biggest problem with the film is that it's too predictable.
I don't usually level that complaint against stuff I watch. I have stated in more than one review of something predictable that there is something very pleasurable and satisfying in watching a story play out exactly as it's supposed to. I strongly believe it's good comfort food for your brain. If the story itself is good, and it plays out well, I don't mind it if I've guessed the ending.
You DO realize my exception for that, right? Mysteries!
I knew everything ahead of time here. It was always T, not only because Liam Neeson is the biggest person in the cast outside of Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson. But because he was in the very first scene, and has a very personal connection to H. Plus, he's entirely too helpful, and knows too many things he shouldn't. As a mystery goes, it was lousy. And since this movie is more of a mystery than the other films were, I am not satisfied watching things go down as I thought they would. I'm not surprised the franchise disappointed me yet again, but I would think with the money riding on the film, and the mystery premise, it would do a little more to have a memorable twist. And I suspect without the twist, there was no hook, and the movie bombed. The third movie got a lot of positive buzz because it was very unlike the first two, and surprised audiences. I don't think it did well because the franchise was so beloved people will watch any version of it. It did well because it was an actual good movie. They didn't bother doing that here, and there is no hook to get an audience really invested in the characters, or get itself enough buzz built to even make it a sleeper hit. It's not a bad movie, and it's not the worst Men In Black film. But without Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, the franchise needed to bring its A-game to quiet skeptics, and instead went back to the disappointment it was the entire time. There's only so much coasting a franchise can do. Transformers movies were forgiven for a lot, but the audiences DID eventually get burned out by the cr*ppy quality. You can't just slap a brand on a movie and expect that to draw audiences. In fact, movies are so expensive to make now, not making an expensive movie great is a HUGE financial risk. Even great blockbusters these days as likely to bomb as bad ones. But there is no other fate for the bad ones these days. People are a lot pickier now than they were even ten years ago.
Seeing a movie in a theater costs more money than it should, partly due to the fact that movies are more expensive to make. But if I want to see a movie in the theater to avoid spoilers, the movie needs to make it worth my while, as going to the theater is a bit of a hassle. I saw this movie first on Digital and I don't think it would have been worth spending a ticket on. I own the movie on Blu-Ray at practically the same price, less if you count food and drinks. I understand why people didn't feel the need to see it when it first came out.
One thing I liked is that H being Neuralyzed explained a great deal of his reputation, and why he isn't living up to it. It's clear he's supposed one of the all-time greats, but to the audience, he's a loser. Well, it turns out, he literally ISN'T the same guy, and is missing something because of the Neuralyzer. It doesn't make me feel better about H still being in the agency at the end, but it explains why he is at least.
Also, even though T being the mole was predictable, I did very much like the fact that he was corrupted by an outside source, and it wasn't his fault. I usually hate mind control, but for some reason I like the idea that this specific organization didn't actually let a bad guy slip through their recruitment cracks. Their entire selling point is their success rate, and making T taken over by an alien makes sure the reputation isn't truly damaged. The reputation is so important in fact, that H is willing to take the blame for being the mole if he can't stop T. The reputation of MIB is far more important than his own, which is wholly consistent with the first three films.
I didn't exactly like Pawny, but I like how M seemed to get used to the idea of him right quick. It helps to have a little extra side-eye in your corner, I guess.
Plot hole: How will the Men In Black explain that brand new canyon in that desert? It wasn't there yesterday, and that can't neuralyze EVERYBODY on Earth. Can they? Hmmm.
In the end, I want to clearly point out that this isn't worse than most of the Men In Black films. People acting like it is are seeing the franchise through rose-colored glasses. The entire enterprise has been sloppy and lazy from the start, with lame plots saved by lazy, but admittedly funny jokes. This is the first film Men In Black film to actually be negatively judged on its merits. And as long as Barry Sonnenfeld, even if he's just producing, just phones it in, he might as well not bother. The audiences didn't. **1/2.
Alien Shopping Network!:
Two ads and infomercials. Blah. Overall: **1/2.
Alien-cestry.com:
This was nice if only because Frank the Pug only had a cameo in this film. ***1/2.
The Neuralyzer: Like It Never Happened:
I didn't like this because there's no canon explanation I'd accept. The alien ancestry website was already pushing it. **.
Deleted Scenes:
A LOT of stuff was cut, which is never a good sign, but particularly worrying for a film with a huge budget. Overall: **1/2.
Do Not Turn Around!:
A little of the morning after H's alien tryst. Good cut. H looks like heel. *.
We Need To See The Queen:
I'm not sure that the logic of the twin bad guys secretly being twin good guys the entire time holds up entirely, and this scene doesn't shake that. If they WERE good guys, why did they assassinate the alien protecting the device? He was good too. They could have simply revealed to him T was the mole. He already suspected somebody anyways. If there's anything worse than a predictable mystery, it's one that doesn't track. This was somehow both. **1/2.
Extended Nightclub:
All of this cut footage was not just extraneous. It was shockingly and noticeably extraneous. So much so I can't believe they bothered filming that much nonsense. It would have bored the audience to tears. How did they only realize that in the editing room? Sloppy. 0.
How Did They Recruit You?:
The scene is too long, and the timing and pacing suck, but it was really interesting to learn H was a car thief in real life, and was recruited after stealing T's car. This is not a good scene, but I think they probably should have put that information in elsewhere, even in a shorter scene. ***.
Ready For Riza's:
There were a lot of establishing outdoor shots in the movie. They are sort of taking advantage of the International premise, but by the same token, nobody watches these movies to get a world tour of Earth. I'm thinking they didn't need to go quite so grand and cinematic for the establishing shots. ***.
Pawny Holds Court:
This was admittedly kind of funny. ****.
I'm Not Quite Feeling Myself:
A scene of T acting unstable and C acting concerned. I don't know which point of the film it was deleted from so I can't tell if it would be helpful to the audience or spoil too much ahead of time. **1/2.
History Repeats: Itself:
The bullet points of this are already in the film. This extra scene just hits you over the head with it. And the movie is predictable enough. **.
An Annoying Friendship:
Alternate ending. This film's ending was better. **1/2.
Gag Reel:
I'm weird about Gag Reels. Personally, I think the longer a Gag Reel is, the less I like it. Unless the reel itself is partly planned like they've done for some of the recent Muppet movies, the more the mistakes there are, the more I think the film is unprofessional, and that people aren't taking their roles seriously. Let me say that it felt refreshing that this was a trim two minutes. I could laugh at some goofing off without feeling there was too much of it. One of the nicer things about the home video release. ****.
The Good Place "You've Changed, Man"
I can't believe Jason told Sean he used to be cool. And yet, on another level, I totally can. It's totally in character for him to be that clueless.
Sean's not so bad. He just has fun battling Michael. That's actually cute and relatable.
Speaking of which, I'm having a hard time reconciling the fact that I used to think the Judge was funny and lovable. I can no longer stand the character. And yet she's not all that different personalitywise. It makes me question my own judgment.
Timothy Oliphant thinks the world begins and ends at Timothy Olyphant. You know what? That tracks.
I am having trouble with Chiti and Eleanor's ship with no obstacles. The best example of a will they won't they ship that worked after they got together was Jim and Pam from The Office. They were right for each other which was the precise reason Sam and Diane sucked together, and so did David and Maddie. I don't think Chiti and Eleanor are wrong for each other. And yet even if their ship isn't openly contentious, or a case of opposites attract, a large part of the appeal to me was that they were starcrossed lovers fighting time and eternity and Heaven and Hell for a happy ending that doesn't seem possible. Now that they're together and it looks like a happy ending IS possible, their ship just lost a ton of its tension and appeal. I like Chiti and Eleanor together when they are being tortured. When they aren't, it's just not the same, even if they are still sort of right for each other.
That was great. I expect good things from the last few episodes. ****.
