MEN IN BLACK 2 (***)
Before MEN IN BLACK 2 came out locally, I had read the reviews of my favorite movie critics (Ebert, Turan, Wilmington, Berardinelli to name a few) grumbling about its lack of freshness or creativity, making it tiresome. After seeing it today, I only have this to say... did I see the same movie they were talking about?
I'm not quite sure what they wanted to see with this sequel (Did they even want to see it?). They're correct when they say it lacks originality. The story is basically a repeat of its predecessor, just with a different bad guy (or gal in this case). But a sequel is not necessarily bad even if it repeats itself (see: LETHAL WEAPON). If it does a good job, it may even seem fresh. And MIB 2 sparkles with humor and flair. Like SPIDER-MAN, it's great entertainment. It's not good as the first, but it's far from being bad.
As in the first installment, an alien villain lands on Earth, looking for a powerful artifact that will assist its global, galactic, or universal domination (depends on their priorities I guess). This time the villain is Serleena (Lara Flynn Boyle or RED ROCK WEST) a serpentine alien who morphs into a Victoria Secret model. The artifact in question is 'The Light of Zartha'. She joins up with her henchman Scrad and Charlie (both played by Johnny Knoxville -- and by the way, "henchman" not a grammatical error, and if you see the movie, you'll know why) who's been stationed on Earth. Agent Jay (Will Smith of INDEPENDENCE DAY) tries to locate Agent Kay (Tommy Lee Jones of THE FUGITIVE) to try and bring his memory back (through deneuralyzation) since Kay is the only one who knows where and what the light is.
Though both MIB series both have similar storylines, their makeups are quite different. The first installment was more of an oddity, having a more laid back type of feel. What made the first MIB outing special was that it showed us something what we had never seen before. It capitalized on our paranoia of secret government agencies concealing alien activity, and the ridicule we put on that paranoia. It also poked great fun at certain celebrities and personalities who would most likely be from other planets.
This MIB version has a bigger attitude. It's like a childhood cousin who has more toys than you do. The guns are bigger, the aliens are more varied, the cars are sleeker (a Benz instead of a Buick), the action is wilder, and the jokes come at a faster pace. Everything seems shinier, more kinetic, and more comic. But its wit is still in the right place, and it still has the same peculiar spirit of knowing that anybody could be an alien.
I had a few minor complaints about the picture. I wish they didn't use to much CGI with respect to Serleena's snake extensions. They're too obvious, and draw too much attention due to their lack of convincingness. But other than that, the special effects are great. The opening credits featuring scenes of Serleena's spacecraft blowing up planets is a nice way to warm up the audience to the plot (how it generates enough power to do that would be nice to know). There are other action sequences worth noting, such as Jay's attempts to subdue a gigantic subterranean worm (with lots of teeth), and the air chases between Serleena's and Kay's vehicles.
One sequence which I found astonishing and profound was the unlocking of Kay's locker, which holds a miniature world of aliens ("All Hail Kay!") all guided by his watch and a telephone card. It's easily the film's best scene and you have to see it to believe it.
Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones have got to be one of the most memorable action/comedy pairings in movie history. They have incredible chemistry and their characters are perfectly suited for each other, enabling them to bring out very funny performances. I love Rip Torn every time I see him on screen. He just has this old-coot charm that I adore. He has a scene which would make a wonderful CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON spoof. It's was so unlikely as was Yoda's lightsaber battle that I gasped in hilarity. Another wonderful improvement is giving more lines for Frank the dog (voiced by Tim Blaney). Frank is a scene-stealer not just because he's a talking dog, but because he has the best lines.
All in all, MEN IN BLACK 2 is worth seeing. It's an odd world of aliens existing in a New York where everybody has seen practically everything. I just hope this isn't everything of the MIB series that we will ever see. The critics are right when they say it needs a dose of new ideas. This movie does leave a lot of lose ends dangling, so you can expect a third. I say it's time we see the MIB save the galaxy by heading into space. Now that would be something.
Notes: The director, Barry Sonnenfeld plays the father of the family whose house is the weapon's ammo dump for the MIB. He also seems to have a fetish for things black (He also directed THE ADDAMS FAMILY series).
Posted by FLIPCRITIC at July 17, 2002 12:00 AM