The Green Hornet 3D (2011)

Directed by Michel Gondry

Starring: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz

Rating: 5/10


"The Green Hornet" already gets a few notches down for being in 3D. I could probably eventually see it in 2D, but then I wouldn't be able to continue my hatred for 3D. That being said Michel Gondry's latest film was a hit and miss. A good cast along with a director I've enjoyed for years should equal to a pretty damn good movie. "The Green Hornet" fell a little short in many areas but was at the same time pretty entertaining. The 3D aspect of it all took away from the quality of the film, like it does with any other movie, so I'll take that out of the picture.

"The Green Hornet" is based on the series with the same name about a "superhero" and his sidekick, Kato, that take down crinimals. Kato, originally played by Bruce Lee, is the asian kick-ass part of the equation while the Green Hornet is more the leader. After his father's death Britt Reid decides to take some initiative and reduce crime along with Kato, his father's trusty friend. Britt finds taking over the family newspaper business is boring and so the essence of The Green Hornet starts.

Seth Rogen stars as the Green Hornet/Britt Reid and was also a big part of the writing for the film. I was somehow unaware of this coming into the movie, but after I noticed it in the credits, I was not surprised. He has SO many lines that at times I thought he was the only person in the movie. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of Seth Rogen. His awkwardness is true and he's just plain funnier than a lot of actors out there today. A million lines and all, his performance was the only one that made sense to me.

Apparently there were other people in the film though. Christoph Waltz plays the "villain" as Chudnofsky. He's humorous and a great actor, but the movie didn't allow him to really do anything. He's in three scenes maximum and I don't really understand him at all. The only thing I know about Chudnofsky is that he has a badass double barrel shotgun/handgun thing that I want. I guess there does have to be a villain to every hero story.

Jay Chou plays Kato and is exactly what I expected him to be. He's the asian sidekick that beats everybody up. Fortunately he isn't portrayed as the "sterotypical asian", because that just gets plain old boring. He plays his part well but like the others he isn't given much and there's not a real story behind where he really came from. Speaking of not doing much, Cameron Diaz was in the movie. She plays a new hot assistant at Britt's newspaper company that looks into all the crimes involving the Green Hornet. Nothing against her, but her part can be completely cut out and the movie would be better. Not by much, but at least we wouldn't have to fit her into some absurd love triangle with the Green Hornet and Kato.

I guess I would have to place a lot of the blame on Michel Gondry. Being the director I would assume there would be an actual story behind the film. It seems like it goes; action scene, pointless drama, action scene, confusing plot jump, and then a final action scene. To be honest, I was surprised after loving Gondry for films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Maybe I expected too much out of it. The bottom line is the plot was a mess and some of the characters were leaning toward pointless. If you like Seth Rogen and the original Green Hornet series you will at least be entertained. As a movie, "The Green Hornet" is one you can eventually rent. There are plenty more movies out right now that are more enjoyable.