Superhero movies are done, this film says, and I liked it for that, because it’s true. Even if you appreciated the achievement of some of the recent Batman / Dark Knight franchise, or had a bit of a good time with “The Avengers” – if nobody would release any more superhero movies starting today, I would probably realise five years from now. I would not miss them.
Seth Rogen seems to think so, too, and together with Jay Chou (did he know what he was signing up for? Seems some language challenges pertained…) engages in some form of satirical deconstruction of the genre. The “Green Hornet” is a dick, as is almost everybody else in the film apart from Cameron Diaz (who is not overwhelmed with complex acting requirements, however). But he is a kind of dude-ish dick, not very dissimilar from the last 20 roles Rogen played, just with more money at his avail and somebody who does the thinking for him. That is rather funny at times (and he can be very funny! Especially if you only watch one out of every 10 films he makes), unless you don’t like him. Then it’s hard to endure.
Trouble is that After the Green Hornet has been established as a character, the requirement was felt to have him and Cato engage in action and shooting and racing, and that’s where the film falls into its superhero trap. A car chase and a shootout is not funny, and if your film runs on the premise of being funny, well… then it starts to get a tad boring when the guns are ablaze. Did Michel Gondry want to prove he can direct big budget crashes and explosions? I would rather he goes back to what he did before, to be honest….
I am not complaining about the film, it caters to the needs and desires of the Seth Rogen audience and the superhero / action audience. I only wished that they had dared to push that envelope a bit more and do away with the action for good. A rich-boy-come-Batman dude who plays with expensive toys, while forgetting to fight the fight of the righteous and smoking a bong instead … something along those lines.
Audience Alert: film contains less dope than you would expect from a film (co-) written by Seth Rogen.
thomas4cinema 