The Green Hornet
Starring Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz
Directed by Michel Gondry
I've never read The Green Hornet comics. I'm not all that into cars, plus in terms of superheros, I pretty much stick to the DC universe. That being said, I'll watch anything based on a comic book (with one exception, not gonna get into that). I knew the basic premise going in, rich kid's dad dies, leaves irresponsible son in control, son spends money pimping out a car with an Asian guy who can pretty much do anything, then fights crime. Even with my limited Green Hornet knowledge, I coulda seen the very opening scene of the movie coming from a mile away. Poor little rich boy's dad was always disappointed in him, telling him "Trying is never hard enough!" while coming across as the face of integrity (integrity is the odd theme throughout the movie) as he tells a politician, no, I will not lie to the American people blah blah blah. Right off the bat, we know two things are true: 1.) It will be revealed at one point, that his father was not the man of integrity that he seems, and 2.) Seth Rogen is gonna try his hardest to be the opposite of his father, and only end up exactly like him at some point during the climax. Still, The Green Hornet did a 180 by following up the very very bad opening scene with one of the best in the movies.
And here is the point in this review where I have to say, Quentin Tarantino, wherever you are, if you stumble upon this blog know this: I owe you a fucking drink for bringing Christoph Waltz into the mainstream and essentially giving him the villain role in this movie. Waltz, who won the Best Supporting Oscar in 2009, proves that he is not only one of the great actors out there, he is also fucking funny as hell. His bad guy, Chudnofsky (it's a running joke no one can pronounce his name) steals every single scene he's in. The opening alone, where he confronts a cameo by James Franco, was enough to make the movie.
Chou's character of Kato is another stand-out. Well, I should say, Rogen's interactions with Kato. Rogen treats Kato like the greatest action figure in the world. Which, to be honest, he kinda is. Cameron Diaz has a shallow part as both the boys love interest, and manages to do a pretty bad job of it, displaying no chemistry with either of them. Tom Wilkenson has a small part as Rogen's father and you can tell he's obviously underwhelmed by it. Eddie Furlong (if you know me pretty well, you know I have a weird attraction to him) returns to actual movies and is in two scenes as a meth cooker and does an amazing job. The Green Hornet herself is fucking beautiful. I don't like cars and I can tell you that I was drooling a little. The Green Hornet would beat the Batmobile in a fight and actually look a little cooler doing it. However, this is Seth Rogen's movie. He co-wrote it with his Superbad friend and scribe, Evan Goldberg. I have to admit, it makes me a little bit proud watching how much Rogen's grown since his Freaks and Geeks days. The script is far from flawless, and his acting is far from Oscar-worthy, but the man is fucking funny. Beyond that, as a writer you can tell that the script was written by someone who truly loved comics and as an actor, he gave his co-stars, particularly Chou and Waltz, plenty of room to shine.
The Green Hornet is a lot of fun to watch. It's funny and way too violent to be PG-13, and a good action/comedy is enjoyable if nothing else. The acting and directing was solid across the board, with a few standouts. It had a fucking great soundtrack with everything from 50's hits, classic rock, to the White Stripes. In terms of superhero action movies with a strong layer of comedy, it beats out Iron Man 2 by a lot, but doesn't quite amount to the first Iron Man or Kick-Ass. Some favorites from the cast:
Seth Rogen- Observe and Report
Christoph Waltz- Inglorious Basterds
Michel Godry- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Cameron Diaz- Vanilla Sky
Eddie Furlong <3- American History X
I'm planning on getting this on Blu Ray used at Amoeba probably a few years after it comes out. Not a high priority, but I'd love to own it.
And here is the point in this review where I have to say, Quentin Tarantino, wherever you are, if you stumble upon this blog know this: I owe you a fucking drink for bringing Christoph Waltz into the mainstream and essentially giving him the villain role in this movie. Waltz, who won the Best Supporting Oscar in 2009, proves that he is not only one of the great actors out there, he is also fucking funny as hell. His bad guy, Chudnofsky (it's a running joke no one can pronounce his name) steals every single scene he's in. The opening alone, where he confronts a cameo by James Franco, was enough to make the movie.
Chou's character of Kato is another stand-out. Well, I should say, Rogen's interactions with Kato. Rogen treats Kato like the greatest action figure in the world. Which, to be honest, he kinda is. Cameron Diaz has a shallow part as both the boys love interest, and manages to do a pretty bad job of it, displaying no chemistry with either of them. Tom Wilkenson has a small part as Rogen's father and you can tell he's obviously underwhelmed by it. Eddie Furlong (if you know me pretty well, you know I have a weird attraction to him) returns to actual movies and is in two scenes as a meth cooker and does an amazing job. The Green Hornet herself is fucking beautiful. I don't like cars and I can tell you that I was drooling a little. The Green Hornet would beat the Batmobile in a fight and actually look a little cooler doing it. However, this is Seth Rogen's movie. He co-wrote it with his Superbad friend and scribe, Evan Goldberg. I have to admit, it makes me a little bit proud watching how much Rogen's grown since his Freaks and Geeks days. The script is far from flawless, and his acting is far from Oscar-worthy, but the man is fucking funny. Beyond that, as a writer you can tell that the script was written by someone who truly loved comics and as an actor, he gave his co-stars, particularly Chou and Waltz, plenty of room to shine.
The Green Hornet is a lot of fun to watch. It's funny and way too violent to be PG-13, and a good action/comedy is enjoyable if nothing else. The acting and directing was solid across the board, with a few standouts. It had a fucking great soundtrack with everything from 50's hits, classic rock, to the White Stripes. In terms of superhero action movies with a strong layer of comedy, it beats out Iron Man 2 by a lot, but doesn't quite amount to the first Iron Man or Kick-Ass. Some favorites from the cast:
Seth Rogen- Observe and Report
Christoph Waltz- Inglorious Basterds
Michel Godry- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Cameron Diaz- Vanilla Sky
Eddie Furlong <3- American History X
I'm planning on getting this on Blu Ray used at Amoeba probably a few years after it comes out. Not a high priority, but I'd love to own it.
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