Anyway, here's the review. Thanks for reading!
Men In Black 3 (2012)
Agent J travels in time to MIB's early years in the 1960s, to stop an alien from assassinating his friend Agent K and changing history. Short synopsis of Men In Black 3 taken from IMDb.com
Ah, Men In Black. I have found memories of seeing it for the first time, in a local theater called the Cinedome 70. The Cinedome was one of those throwback '70s theaters that, though they lacked the Ritz and glamor of truly old time movie palaces, were all about seeing a movie as an experience. The interior of each dome was cavernous, and the screen was huge. I saw some great flicks in that movie theater. I even got the chance to take what would be my future wife there not long after she and I started dating. I believe the show we saw was Serendipity, that one with John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale.
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| I doubt I was in this exact line, but I saw Return of the Jedi in this theater. I recall being so excited. It was such a big deal. Years later, I seem to recall reading that the Cinedome showed Return of the Jedi at a loss for a few weeks after it came out, because Lucas cut a deal that made a huge amount of profit for him on ticket prices. But the film ran for so long that it did make up the balance, eventually. / Source: Bwoodstock.blogspot.com |
Ok, I'm reminiscing and being way too nostalgic, I know. The point is, Men In Black was the sort of film you wanted to see on that big screen, in that big auditorium. It was one of those "big" experiences. I mean, I saw Independence Day in the Cinedome 70. And Last of the Mohicans. Heck, I saw Return of the Jedi in there. It was the sort of movie theater that puts modern multiplex things to shame.
Fast forward to 2002. My wife and I had been married less than a year when the summer blockbuster line up featured Men In Black 2. We went and saw it within the first couple days of its release. What can I say? We were young and had disposable income still. We saw it at the mall multiplex. The Cinedome was closed by then.
What I recall of Men In Black 2 is not so good. For one thing, like many fairly newly married couples, we had our share of growing pains. I recall distinctly that we had a fight that day, either going to the theater or coming home from it. And the movie did nothing to relieve the tension. The film wasn't bad, per-se. It just wasn't good either. Not in this reviewers opinion, that is.
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| The talking dog was one of the better parts of Men In Black 2 (I think his name was "Frank"), but even he got a bit overdone. Men In Black 3 has a couple of cameo images of him, including one in Agent J's apartment. / Source: EnglishMoviez.com |
I am of two different opinions on Men In Black 3. On the one hand, I like it better than MIB2. Quite a bit. I can't put my finger on what makes that second one not so good. We even own it on DVD, though I have rarely watched it. It just doesn't work for me. As though they could have just as easily stopped after the first movie. So I'd wholeheartedly say that Men In Black 3 is better than Men In Black 2. But after watching MIB3 on DVD from Redbox recently, I found myself experiencing what I can only describe as the "Spiderman 2 Effect."
What's the "Spiderman 2 Effect," you ask? This will require a little bit of explanation, but I'll try not to give too much of my life story, if I can help it. You see, when I saw Spiderman 2 in the big theater, I saw it by myself. My wife liked the first one well enough (the Tobey Maguire version I have somewhat recently spoken of in the Amazing Spiderman review). But she decided, for reasons I have yet to figure out, that she flat out didn't want to see Spiderman 2 in the theater with me.
So I went to it by myself. And you know what? I liked it. In fact, coming out of that movie, I thought it was one of the best comic book superhero movies I'd ever seen. So I went ahead and bought Spiderman 2 when it came out on video. Without renting it or anything. I think I held on to it for Christmas or something. The point is, when I finally sat down with my wife, who was willing to watch it with me at home (but just barely, for some reason - again, I don't know why), I expected the same reaction as I had in the theater.
But I was wrong. And my wife, whose instincts I have come to appreciate greatly over the years we've been together, was not.
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| The "Spiderman 2 Effect" has struck me on a few movies since I noted the existence of such a thing. One of the other more memorable ones was The Matrix Revolutions movie. When I saw it in the theater, I thought "hey, that was nowhere near as bad as the second film" (Reloaded). But it was definitely a case of what I was in the mood for that night. My next viewing was much more disappointing. / Source: FanPop.com |
I realized that Spiderman 2 was not as good as I had thought it was. Now don't all you Spiderman 2 fans come and gang up on me. Maybe you like it. Maybe you just defend it because it has one of the coolest villains of all time in it, Doctor Octopus. Maybe you are just crazy. I don't know.
The point is, I discovered that I had no desire to see Spiderman 2 again. Ever. When I saw it in the theater, it fit my mood at the moment. The plot reflected my feelings at the time. But when I saw it again later, it was almost foreign to me.
Now I come back to Men In Black 3. I saw Men In Black 3 at the cheap seats a couple months back. I saw it by myself. My wife had said she didn't care to see the film until it came out on DVD, but I decided to take advantage of my student discount after 9 PM and see MIB3 in the cheap seats theater. And I liked it. It wasn't a case of "greatest sci-fi comedy I've ever seen" or anything, but I came home quite impressed, and intent on writing a review for this blog at that time.
Well, as so often occurs, I got busy and forgot. When I finally got around to trying, I realized I had forgotten too much of the movie. It was not long after this that I started writing some quick notes after viewing a movie, so I could point out things I liked and didn't when I commenced to write a review. And I decided to wait until MIB3 came out on video before reviewing it.
Which brings this story up to the near-present. My reaction to Men In Black 3, after seeing it the second time, is somewhat like my reaction to Spiderman 2. It isn't the worst movie I ever saw, but when I saw it for the first time (back at the cheap seats), it suited something in my mood at the time. And having seen it again... well, let's cut to the chase and say that this is one which makes for a conundrum in rating based on price paid. I'd have said that Men In Black 3 was worth my cheap seats $1.50 ticket. I'd have even agreed - at the time - that a full $3.00 would have been good. I wouldn't have wanted to pay a full theater admission price, as I didn't think at the time that it was that good. But I did like it.
Now, having paid an additional $1.25 or so for a Redbox rental, I still think the price paid was worth it. But the key is, I wouldn't watch it again.
Having gone the round-about way to the movie itself, I'll try to describe its pluses and minuses briefly. Men In Black 3 is a fun little time travel tale, with the charm that Men In Black 1 brought to bear, plus a somewhat more convincing villain than Laura Flynn Boyle and the rest of the shmucks that the second installment had. Boris "The Animal" was suitably evil, though my wife found parts of his appearance repellent (sorry to bring that up again hunie).
And the ending in which (Spoiler Alert, if you haven't already seen it) Agent J discovers that his father was killed by Boris, and Agent K was there to comfort him and then memory flashy-thingy him, was touching, if a bit cliche. Even if the scene was a tad on the trite side, it still had some emotional impact because the characters do mean something to the audience.
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| Another one of the better scenes from Men In Black 3. Wil Smith, as Agent J, after having gone back in time to 1969 to chase down Boris "the Animal", who has killed his partner in an alternate timeline (causing our hero to crave chocolate milk - the mention of which made me crave chocolate milk) jumps up on top of a car to shoot at the fleeing bad guy. The dude in said car does what most ordinary people would do in a situation like this. He drives off. Agent J is unsuccessful in shooting the villain, and the movie proceeds apace. / Source: PopularMechanics.com |
And I liked the 60s groove. Sure, it was a bit cliche too, but the execution was fun. But especially, I liked Griffin, the fifth-dimensional alien who can see all possibilities in time as he lives it. The character was both charming in his almost helplessness and in his child-like delivery. He's like a personable version of the guy from that movie with Tom Cruise, Rain Man. The one where Dustin Hoffman plays the autistic numbers genius? You know what I mean. And I also liked Josh Brolin as Agent K's younger self. He does young Tommy Lee Jones well.
On the other hand, the humor seemed a bit forced in places. Not as bad as Men In Black 2, which was one long train wreck of flat-falling jokes, but MIB3 still suffered from difficult punch-lines in spots. The action also seemed a bit "set piece" too. For instance, the whole scene where our heroes are atop the Saturn V rocket that will send Apollo 11 to the moon. The idea is great, but the falling and jumping and swinging and such from the gantry and the rocket are a bit over-the-top. I don't mean to say it should have been bland, but it all fits the stereotypical "fight scene" scenario. The only novel bit is Agent J's use of time travel to overcome the projectile shooting marksmanship of the version of Boris he is tasked with stopping.
There are some bits of adult language, and the violence level is ratcheted up a bit more than I recall in the previous movies. For instance, Agent J and Agent K are in a sushi restaurant and have a shootout with some thugs who are there to knock them off. The action itself is exciting, but it feels re-tread in some ways. Like you could transplant anybody into the scene and it would be the same. Maybe that is just over-exposure to sci-fi action movies. But I thought it might have been handled a bit better. Somehow. The fish fight scene was about the only "out there" part, and it was also kinda familiar feeling. Seems like we're using previous Wil Smith Men In Black fight scenes over again for effect here.
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| Emma Thompson plays Agent "O" in Men In Black 3. She was also one of the brighter spots of the movie. / Source: Elenastr.blogspot.com |
Now before I really finish up, let me just say, I didn't hate Men In Black 3. The "Spiderman 2 Effect" does not mean I didn't like the movie at all on the second viewing. No, it's more a matter of degrees. I just didn't like Men In Black 3 on the second time around as much as I did the first time. And there are reasons why, as I have said. So there you go.
I guess you could say, in conclusion, that Men In Black 3 didn't really break a lot of new ground or anything, as the first movie did. They kept it safe and made their money, and I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see Men In Black 4 sometime in the next few years. And to be honest, I'll probably watch that one too. That's what happens when you hit gold on the first outing. People keep coming back, just to see if the next one is as good as the first, or how far it falls from the tree.
The parting comment:
A two-for on parting comments today.
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| Source: LolSnaps.com |
This chart does not apply if there really are aliens living on planet Earth. But otherwise, it seems reasonable. Like the time when I was living in Arizona and there was this foot long centipede that was crawling on the kitchen floor, and I killed it with a stray piece of metal that was meant as a threshold cover (you know, those strips of aluminum that hold the carpet down by the front door and make a good place to scrape gunk off your shoes when you are coming indoors?). That thing was huge! And it had way too many legs. And the ichor that came out when I slammed the end of that threshold piece down on its middle... You'd think I slayed a dragon, the way I tell the story. But believe me, it was near as bad as anything you'd see in a Men In Black movie.
"Yes, I'm a pilot." Hi-Larious!
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