The Green Hornet movie has been released finally, and there’s been quite a buzz about it. The question, though, is this: is Green Hornet worth a trip to the movies? The movie is billed as an action-comedy, which is an interesting mix. In other words, don’t expect an action movie like the Batman series, which is more drama.
The Movie Plot
As the movie starts, you’re introduced to widower James Reid, played by Tom Wilkinson. James is the publisher of The Daily Sentinel, a newspaper based in Los Angeles. James is wealthy, and has a son named Britt, who is played by Seth Rogen. Britt is something of a playboy and one step removed from irresponsible.
Britt starts changing somewhat when he finds that his father has died, apparently due to an allergic reaction to a bee sting. There wasn’t any love lost, as Britt hated his father, and in the company of his driver/mechanic Kato, played by Jay Chou, goes to the cemetery. But instead of paying their respects, they lop off the head of the memorial statue, after which they are arrested.
At this point, Britt starts changing. He and Kato decide that it’s time to fight crime, but in a highly unorthodox manner. Instead of just being a masked hero like Batman or Spiderman, they will pose as criminals – and the Green Hornet is born. Why pose as criminals? Because this lets the Green Hornet get close to the real criminals so that they can be exposed and arrested. Of course this presents problems, seeing as they become wanted figures themselves.
The plot thickens further when Britt decides to take on the mobster Benjamin Chudnofsky, played by Christoph Waltz. Chudnofsky is trying to unite all the family mobs in Los Angeles under one rule (his, of course). But with no real background, they can’t get close to the Russian mobster.
Ahh, but there’s The Daily Sentinel! Britt decided to hire Lenore Case, played by Cameron Diaz, as an assistant. Lenore has a degree in criminology, and her comments give Britt ideas of how to use the media to raise the Green Hornet’s criminal profile. There are several sub-plots, like Britt thinking that Kato and Lenore have a thing going (so he fires both of them). Not to mention all the scenes with Black Beauty (the infamous car). And as you might guess, Britt finally takes down Chudnofsky…and remains a wanted criminal himself. Which of course leaves this open to a sequel.
Is the Green Hornet Worth Seeing?
The critics were rather critical of The Green Hornet, as the movie was mostly unsuccessful in capturing the spirit of the original series. Not to mention they are getting bored with all the comic book remakes. But those are the critics – what about real movie-goers?
It’s a very mixed reaction – some people loved it, others didn’t, citing that the movie didn’t have enough of a direction. Most people got a kick out of the Black Beauty, though.
If you like the comic book super hero movies, or are a big fan of the original series, then you might want to check out the Green Hornet. Otherwise, you can give it a pass for now.