Movie Review: 'Green Lantern'
Jonathan Hutchings
Seen on: June 15, 2011
The players: Director: Martin Campbell, Writers: Greg Berlanti, Michael Green, Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong
Facts of interest: Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith, and Zack Snyder were all at one point approached to helm this film.
The plot: Hal Jordan (Reynolds), a talented yet arrogant test pilot, is the chosen recipient of a mysterious green ring that grants him both superhuman powers and entry into an elite corps of intergalactic warriors. This group is charged with saving the universe from the evil Parallax.
Our thoughts: Comic book fans have always endured a certain amount of mockery that superhero stories are just for kids or grown-ups suffering from arrested development. Well, "Green Lantern," Warner's staggering $300 million dollar train wreck won’t help matters. Worse yet, director Martin Campbell (who famously resurrected the James Bond franchise) can't decide who his target audience is.
On one hand, the film strives for the earnestness of "Star Wars," but then it undermines its own momentum by trying to hook the "ironic teen" crowd with its snarky dialogue and tongue-in-cheek humor. It also shamelessly tries to appeal to the DC fanboy base by shoehorning lines from the source material at the expense of the screenplay. "Green Lantern" may desperately try to get all of the aforementioned parties onboard, but this ship sinks just as fast as it sets sail.
The film begins in outer space with a bewildering prologue that tries to convey a complex mythology in a few narrated minutes. The universe, we're told, is divided into 3,600 sectors, each protected by a guardian with a ring that gets its power from a lantern that gets its power from a big green reservoir of (what I guess is) good vibes back on base planet Oa. Green, apparently, is the color of will, while yellow is the color of fear. It's also the color of Parallax, a marauding cloud of space vomit that goes around absorbing anyone who gets in its way.
Enter our protagonist, Hal Jordan (Reynolds). Our first glimpse of him is in a cliché ridden opening scene of a guy waking up next to a girl who he presumably slept with the night before. Predictably enough, he wakes up late for work, and runs out the door, barely acknowledging her existence (get it? He's irresponsible and emotionally unavailable!). His saving grace? He’s a damn good pilot.
Jetting through the stratosphere with wing-woman and childhood sweetheart, Carol Ferris (Blake Lively), he proceeds to destroy two costly simulation planes before getting fired (in case you didn't remember what you saw three minutes ago, he’s irresponsible!). Not to worry, though, Hal quickly obtains alternative employment as the first human Lantern—a role he inherits from dying alien Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison) after he crash-lands on Earth.
Banking on the fact that you're stupid and incapable of critically viewing a movie (this is a summer blockbuster, after all), Campbell and company go to great lengths to portray Jordan as a tool who undergoes a profound awakening to recognize his potential (if you can't figure that out, it's okay. He only tells you on FOUR SEPERATE OCCASSIONS that the ring chose him for a reason).
What's baffling, though, is that, barring an unlikely and implausible third-act conversion to that of a noble warrior, Jordan more or less stays a tool. His arrogance, commitment-phobia, and general selfishness make him a hard guy to root for, even when having his clock cleaned back on Oa by a rhino-alien with the unfortunate name of Kilowog (Michael Clarke Duncan).
In a sloppy series of plot points, "Green Lantern" adopts a cheap Freudian psychology for its pseudo-text. It tries valiantly to wax poetic about overcoming fears and anxieties that are products of the past—naturally, there are two sets of patriarchal fathers and insecure sons at the heart of the story. Ultimately, this is the film’s best shot at building empathy for Jordan, who really just wants to make his father proud and redeem his honor.
Furthering this cause, and not to neglect the potential female moviegoers, the film offers up the aforementioned Carol Ferris. As depicted and staged, the evolving romance between she and Jordan is not particularly involving or convincing. It probably doesn't help that there is a distinct lack of chemistry between the stars.
Peter Sarsgaard is assigned with what is (relatively speaking) the film's most fully developed role, the mad scientist Hector Hammond—whose exposure to Parallax turns him into a destructive, psychotic creature. Assisted by decent special effects, Sarsgaard gives the film its only solid performance. Hammond's father, and greedy Senator (Tim Robbins) is totally wasted in a series of brief, almost incomprehensible scenes, which give the impression that his part might have been chopped during the editing process.
Then there's the much talked about visual effects. Being that this film was almost shelved twice because of VFX concerns, you'd expect to be blown away. The effects allow for some decent fighting scenes, big explosions, and fantastical escapades, but the action sequences are directed in a mechanical, impersonal way that are totally removed from the slender plot that Campbell is trying to build.
Jordan repeatedly exclaims: "Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power—Green Lantern's light!" It's one of many examples of Campbell and company feeling a need to remind us what the story is all about. It's as if they know that the audience will get lost in its overblown and overcrowded spectacle (a spectacle that makes "Thor" look like a scaled-down piece of realism), which is no more than an aggregate of sights and sounds.
To be fair, some of the visual and technical elements are lavish and striking, but the editing, pace, structure, and direction are so inconsistent that it turns an already troubled scenario into a chaotic mess. If "The Dark Knight" set the standard for the superhero film, "Green Lantern" marks a distinct devolution—which is probably not the goal of a $300 million dollar film.
Freaky quote: "I'm going to make you look good up there. Don't worry. Now, let's get these pants off and fly some planes." - Ryan Reynolds
The final word: "Green Lantern" is big, loud, and moves at a brisk pace, but it's also yet another reminder that the amount of money thrown at the screen isn't nearly as important as the quality of the story being told.
On the web: http://greenlanternmovie.warnerbros.com/
Article by Jonathan Hutchings
Reader Comments (8)
i couldn't agree more. what a stupid, shameless moneygrab. Reynolds, Martin Campbell, heck everyone involved should be ashamed of themselves! The writing was horrible!!!!!
Great Review! yeah... I love Ryan and all, and his performance did help this movie, but you cannot get past the wretched screenplay.... ugh, what a disappointment!
Thanks, man!
Jonny, when are you going to realize that Blake Lively is the future of the business?
Blake Lively was terrible in this film
I can't believe you'd say that. She delivered the finest female performance since Cathy Downs in The Noose Hangs High.
Phenomenal Cathy Downs reference!
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