"The Green Hornet" is a wanna be superhero movie trying to be original by following the scheme of Seth Rogan's character Britt Reid to become a superhero that is perceived as a criminal to the public. The problem is that Britt Reid doesn't even deserve to be a superhero because his coffee maker Kato (Jay Chou) is the one with "super powers". The only things Britt Reid can do is be very obnoxious and use his money and power of the press to sensationalize his character while giving no credit to Kato. The origin of this story comes from "The Green Hornet's" debut in 1936 on the radio. The character was created by George W. Trendle and Frank Striker and has taken a journey through various mediums in time including a comic book and television series in the mid 1900s. However, its newest medium in 3D fails to capture the spark that lit the character's way to fame. The lackluster film begins with showing the bad relationship that Britt had with his father James Reid (Tom Wilkinson) when he was a kid. This scene is followed by a very special cameo appearance of James Franco while establishing the ego of the character of criminal Benjamin Chudnofsky (Cristoph Waltz, "Inglourious Bastards") and his aspiration to rake over the streets. Chudnofsky later changes his name to "Bloodnofsky" in order to sound scarier in his pursuit to take down Britt's alter ego "The Green Hornet" which forms after his father dies from an allergic reaction to a bee sting. As Britt's alter ego begins to take over the street solely because of Kato who does not receive any recognition and their car "The Black Beauty", a secret about Britt's father unfolds along with a love triangle between Britt, Kato and Britt's new secretary Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz)
The most memorable scene in the film is James Franco's cameo of the criminal mastermind of the city. He receives a little less than five minutes of screen time with Cristoph Waltz's character Chudnofsky who work together to create a scene with great acting and a subtle comedic undertone. After this scene it is an uphill battle for the characters of Kato and Chudnofsky to salvage the remains of the film. Kato does this with his skill and gadget repertoire while Chudnofsky strives to boost his ego with decent one-liners.
The problems with the film do not necessarily stem from the subject because the film really could have been a decent superhero movie. Instead the two biggest problems fall into the categories of casting and entertainment. Seth Rogan is actually a very funny guy and a decent actor when he is cast in the right film as a supporting character ("The Forty Year Old Virgin", "Funny People"), but when the spotlight is on him in a film outside his genre repertoire bad things happen. Rogan is completely out of his element with the role of Britt Reid and is not able to do anything about it. He is not a likable character at all and is completely overshadowed by Kato. The film should have been saved from its entertainment factor, but fails on this account as well because the film is downright boring.
Boring is the word of the day when it comes to "The Green Hornet" which should have abused the 3D medium with "The Black Beauty" and Kato's heightened senses. However, a better name suited for the film is one spoke of by Britt himself when he talks about his alter ego being named "the Green Bee" exemplifying a boring undertone that would help keep you away from theaters and waiting for DVD.
The most memorable scene in the film is James Franco's cameo of the criminal mastermind of the city. He receives a little less than five minutes of screen time with Cristoph Waltz's character Chudnofsky who work together to create a scene with great acting and a subtle comedic undertone. After this scene it is an uphill battle for the characters of Kato and Chudnofsky to salvage the remains of the film. Kato does this with his skill and gadget repertoire while Chudnofsky strives to boost his ego with decent one-liners.
The problems with the film do not necessarily stem from the subject because the film really could have been a decent superhero movie. Instead the two biggest problems fall into the categories of casting and entertainment. Seth Rogan is actually a very funny guy and a decent actor when he is cast in the right film as a supporting character ("The Forty Year Old Virgin", "Funny People"), but when the spotlight is on him in a film outside his genre repertoire bad things happen. Rogan is completely out of his element with the role of Britt Reid and is not able to do anything about it. He is not a likable character at all and is completely overshadowed by Kato. The film should have been saved from its entertainment factor, but fails on this account as well because the film is downright boring.
Boring is the word of the day when it comes to "The Green Hornet" which should have abused the 3D medium with "The Black Beauty" and Kato's heightened senses. However, a better name suited for the film is one spoke of by Britt himself when he talks about his alter ego being named "the Green Bee" exemplifying a boring undertone that would help keep you away from theaters and waiting for DVD.