Green Lantern (2011)
Directed by Martin Campbell
Written by Craig Berlanti, Michael Green, Marc Guggenheim, Michael Goldenberg
Starring Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgard, Mark Strong, Angela Bassett, Tim Robbins
Release Date June 17th, 2011
Published June 16th, 2011
"Green Lantern" is the latest superhero story to hit the big screen following the spring adventures of "Thor" and the summer spectacular that was "X-Men: The First Class." "Green Lantern" however, is the first of these superhero flicks to feature a big star as the big hero. Ryan Reynolds, long on the road to superstar status, plays the heroic Green Lantern and while the casting is alright there was little any star could have done to improve the rather limp story.
Hal Jordan, Our Hero
Hal Jordan is a bed-hopping, test-pilot with serious daddy issues. So serious, in fact, are Hal's unresolved issues with his late father, that he nearly crashes his plane as he distractedly recalls his dad's death. Naturally, Hal comes through the crisis alright but not without angering his best friend, and would be love of his life, Carol Ferris (Blake Lively.)
Putting aside Hal's daddy and romantic issues, he is a special guy and we know this because a purple alien guardian from another world carrying a very powerful green ring and a green lantern tells us so. Of the billions of people on earth Hal Jordan has been chosen as humanity's protector, the newest member of the universal force known as the Green Lantern Corp.
The Green Lantern Corp
Soon, Hal has a special suit and mask that are made from -- well we aren't quite sure what. The suit seems to generate directly from Hal's own skin and the fewer questions asked about the suit's (ahem) functionality (?) the better. Through his alien ring and lantern Hal can now create anything he wants using only his mind.
If we go with Hal to his training on a distant planet we are just asking for this plot description to grow far too unwieldy and since the plot isn't great to begin with let's just leave it at special voice appearances by Geoffrey Rush, Michael Clark Duncan and go to bad guy Mark Strong as sort of a good guy.
Peter Sarsgard is creepy
Back on earth Hal will have to defend humanity against a former colleague and friend, Dr. Hector Hammond (Peter Sarsgard) who has contracted an alien infection that somehow managed to make him even creepier than the massively foreheaded, dweeby, community college professor he already was.
There is also a good deal of nonsense related to a giant monster cloud of what I believe is fear energy combined with some all powerful alien creature. Honestly, I stopped caring so early on in "Green Lantern" that I tuned out whatever wasn't Ryan Reynolds being cute and Blake Lively flashing her beautiful, "Gossip Girl" half smile; truly is there a woman in the world who is so attractively bemused?
Fanboys Only
"Green Lantern" was directed by Martin Campbell who is an immensely talented director. Here, however, Campbell hits the wall with far too much fanboy nonsense and not nearly enough stuff that's interesting to people who aren't in fealty to the D.C Comics legend. I assume, because I am not familiar with the comic, that much of the stuff I found goofy and nonsensical was some kind of homage or nod to the faithful? How else do you explain it?
The thing about a great superhero movie like "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight" or "Spiderman 1 & 2" or the "Iron Man" movies is they were good movies first and comic book movies second. The best of the genre add the fan touches on the sides in the periphery. "Green Lantern," like "Thor," places the comic book stuff first and in doing so leaves the non-comic fan distracted and waiting for the actual story to kick in.
Not Recommended for General Audiences
When the story never really kicks in it only serves to magnify why the filmmakers included all of the comic book stuff, they didn't have enough of a compelling original story to push the fanboy stuff to the sides. I liked Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively and the voice of Geoffrey Rush, as some kind of muscled up alien fish, but in the end that is not enough for me to recommend "Green Lantern" to a general audience.
Now, if you are a fan of the comic book Green Lantern, I do recommend the movie. You are going to get it on another level. You will enjoy the stuff I found goofy and or needless. You will get the stuff that I found distracting. You, Green Lantern fan, may just really enjoy this movie and bully for you. Enjoy.
