"MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" (2019) Review

"MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" (2019) Review

Last year, Sony Pictures had announced its intentions to add a fourth entry to the MEN IN BLACK" movie franchise. I have to be honest. I did not receive the news with any real enthusiasm. And my feelings had failed to change when I learned the identities of the movie's two main stars.

"MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" only shared a few similarities to the franchise's past three films. One of the co-stars proved to be Emma Thompson, who had returned for her second appearance in the franchise as Q, the MIB agency's director. The agency's Manhattan office also appeared in the film. And the MIB agents were up against another deadly alien trying to conquer Earth. Otherwise, there were major differences in this fourth film. Instead of Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" starred Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson, who had been co-stars in the 2017 Marvel film, "THOR: RAGNAROK". Most of the "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" locations were set outside of the U.S. in London, Marrakesh, Naples and Paris. The last difference featured the circumstances surrounding the recruitment of Tessa Thompson's character into the agency. Unlike Will Smith's Agent J, Thompson's character had become aware of the Men in Black agency years before she joined it. The biggest difference between this film and the previous three movies involved a potential threat within the internal affairs of the Men in Black.

In 1996 Brooklyn, a young girl named Molly Wright witnesses her parents being neuralysed by Men in Black agents, while she helps an alien escape. Twenty years later, Agents H and High T of the MiB London office travel to Paris to stop an invasion of the Hive – a parasitic race who invade planets by merging with the DNA of the conquered species – at the Eiffel Tower using a wormhole included in the original migration to Earth. After being rejected from the F.B.I. and the C.I.A., due to her "delusions" regarding alien life, Molly tracks down an alien landing and follows MiB agents to their New York City headquarters. Caught entering the agency, Molly makes an impression on the agency's director, Agent O and becomes probationary agent status as "Agent M". She is eventually assigned to the London branch.

Agent M's new supervisor is High T, who has become head of the London office. The latter assigns her to become Agent H's new partner, who has developed a God complex, unconcerned with his duties and only keeping his job due to High T covering for him. Both M and H are assigned to guard a royal alien named Vungus the Ugly, during the latter's visit to Earth. A pair of alien twins manage to fatally injure Vungus. The latter gives M a strange crystal before he dies. And the agents of the London office realizes that a MiB agent may have betrayed Vungus to the alien assassins. Due to his lackadaisical behavior, H has become the main suspect. However, this does not last long and M eventually becomes tagged as the agency's traitor. M and H take matters into their hands and decide to conduct their own investigation - an act that leads them to become fugitives from the Men in Black agency.

Following the release of "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL", many critics and fans of the franchise had rained criticism and scorn upon it. Needless to say, the movie proved to be a box office failure, despite making a small profit. It is considered to be the worst film in the franchise. While many blamed the movie's narrative; the majority of the film's negative press seemed to stem from the fact that the movie had not been directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, who was responsible for the franchise's first three films. And there were a handful of disgruntled fans who seemed to resent the presence of Tessa Thompson as one of the film's leads, due to her gender.

How do I feel about all of this? I do have a few problems with "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL". One, this movie is not funny. What I meant is . . . it lacked the twisted and sardonic humor of Barry Sonnenfeld. If I have to be more specific, the film's humor barely generated any real laughs from me. I merely found myself feeling amused by some of the more comic moments. My second problem with "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" was Agent H's fate near the end of the movie. I did not like it. Considering his age and recent mental condition, I thought he was unnecessarily rewarded for his actions in stopping the main villain. My final problem with the film is basically minor. "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" featured the character of Agent O from the 2012 film, "MEN IN BLACK 3". To me, this was an indication that "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" was a continuation of the previous three films. If so, I thought screenwriters Art Marcum and Matt Holloway could have hinted on the fates of Agents J and K from the first three movies. What happened to them?

Despite my complaints about the film, I did not dislike "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL". In fact, I enjoyed it very much. And this was due to certain aspects of the film. One, I found some of the movie's special effects rather impressive, thanks to the visual effects team, Stuart Dryburgh's cinematography and Thomas Brown's art direction team. I was especially impressed by those scenes featuring Vungus' death in London, H, M and Pawny's escape from Marrakesh and especially their final showdown against the Big Bad at the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

Another aspect of "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" that I enjoyed was its cast. Personally, I thought it was first-rate. The movie benefitted from a solid supporting cast that included Laurent and Larry Nicolas Bourgeois (aka Les Twins), who did an excellent job of conveying the silent, yet physical menace of the shape-shifting aliens known as "the Twins"; Tim Blaney, who returned to voice Frank the Pug; Kayvan Novak, who voiced the royal alien Vungus the Ugly; and Spencer Wilding. I found Rafe Spall's portrayal of Agent C of the UK branch rather sardonic, yet entertaining. Emma Thompson was excellent as usual as the Men in Black director, Agent O. Rebecca Ferguson gave an eccentric, yet funny performance as an alien intergalactic arms dealer and H's ex-girlfriend Riza Stavros. Liam Neeson's portrayal of High T, the head of the MIB UK branch, struck as equally off-beat and funny. And I felt that Kumail Nanjiani gave the best voice performance of all as Pawny, the small alien warrior that Agents M and H befriend.

And of course, we have the movie's two leads - Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson. Many crtics had been impressed by their screen dynamic in the Marvel film, "THOR: RAGNAROK". This led the producers of this film to cast them together as Agents H and M. And they did not fail. Thompson did a wonderful job as the uber observant and clever Molly Wright, who becomes the agency's newest recruit, Agent M. Hemsworth did an equally fantastic job in portraying Agent H, one of the agency's best agents who seemed to be suffering from some kind of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), following his and Agent High T's defeat of the Hive, three years earlier. Not only did the two leads gave great performances, they also proved that their on-screen dynamic had not dimmed one bit. If I must be brutally honest, I was more impressed by their screen chemistry in this film than I was in "THOR: RAGNAROK".

I realize that many people may not agree with me on this next topic. But if there is one thing that truly impressed me about "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL", it was the screenplay written by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. I found it very original for a movie from the MEN IN BLACK movie franchise. The previous three movies usually introduced the Big Bad either in the opening scene or not long after the opening. I cannot say the same for this film. Both Marcum and Holloway had not only created a mystery surrounding the Big Bad, they also included a possible traitor or mole within the Men in Black agency that might be assisting the main villain. Now this might be normal in a MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE movie or some other spy thriller. But in a MEN IN BLACK film? For the first time, this franchise had created a combination of a science-fiction movie and an espionage flick. It is a pity that many critics and film goers could not appreciate this. Perhaps it would have been easier if the film had followed the franchise's usual formula.

In the end, I realized that I would not waste my time lamenting on the box office failure of "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL". It was not the first box office bomb that I ended up enjoying. And I doubt that it will be the last. Although I found the film's humor rather lukewarm - worthy more of a small chuckle instead of a belly laugh - I cannot deny that I truly enjoyed the film's narrative, along with the exciting action sequences and the talented cast led by Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson, thanks to director F. Gary Gray. Many others may have been disappointed by this film. But I was not.

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Post-Script - I recently viewed the movie on DVD. I enjoyed it even more than I did the first time I saw it. And I realized it was funnier than I had originally believed.

"MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" (2019) Photo Gallery

Below are images from "MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL", the 2019 entry in the "MEN IN BLACK" movie franchise. Directed by F. Gary Gray, the movie starred Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson:




"MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL" (2019) Photo Gallery

"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" (2017) Review

"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" (2017) Review

When I first learned that Universal Pictures planned to release an eighth film for its FAST AND FURIOUS franchise, a collective groan swelled within me. I was not in the mood for this franchise to continue. Hell, I was not in the mood for a seventh film, two years ago. And to be perfectly frank, I was not that impressed by that seventh film, "FURIOUS 7". In fact, I was willing to delay my viewing of this latest film, until it was released on DVD. However, a family member was determined to see "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" in the theaters. And . . . you can assume the rest. 

Directed by F. Gary Gray ("STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON"), "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" began with veteran street car racer Dominic ("Dom") Torretto and his wife, Letty Ortiz, enjoying their long-delayed honeymoon in Havana, Cuba. After winning a local street race, Dom is approached by an American woman named Cypher. It turns out that she is a cyberterrorist who has mysteriously coerced Dom into working for her. When Dom, Letty and their friends are recruited by Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) agent Luke Hobbs to help him retrieve an EMP device from a military outpost in Berlin, Dom betrays the others by stealing the device for Cypher. Hobbs is arrested and locked up in the same high-security prison he had helped imprison Deckard Shaw in "FURIOUS 7". Another character from the seventh film, After escaping, both are recruited by intelligence operative Frank Petty/Mr. Nobody and his protégé, Eric Reisner/Little Nobody, to help the team find Dom and capture Cipher.

"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" was not perfect. Like many other films in the FAST AND FURIOUS franchise, it was filled with silly dialogue and over-the-top machismo, thanks to the characters portrayed by Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and Jason Stratham. Now, I realize that the franchise originated with the theme of street car racing. But what is really necessary to start the movie off with a street race in Havana, Cuba? Perhaps I am being a killjoy, but I cannot help but feel that Dom Toretto is getting a touched too old to be competing in street races. I am also curious about another matter. Is Dom of Italian descent, Spanish descent or both? Because I was surprised to learn that he and Letty were visiting his cousin in Cuba. Cuba?

There were other aspects of the film that I either did not like or rubbed me the wrong way. One, the Elena Neves character portrayed by Elsa Pataky proved to be the plot device used by Cipher to blackmail Dom into assisting her. As it turned out, she and Dom had conceived a son before the events of "FAST AND FURIOUS 6". He never found out about the kid until this movie. Yet, the movie never revealed if Luke Hobbs had ever learned about the baby, considering he and Elena were partners at the DDS between the events of FAST AND FURIOUS 6" and "FURIOUS 7". Frankly, I am confused. Speaking of the DDS, have Dom, Letty and the others become private contractors for the DDS? I was surprised that Hobbs had automatically recruited the group to help him steal that EMP device in Berlin without offering them something in return. 

Otherwise, "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" turned out to be a pretty decent movie. I was more impressed by it than the previous film. Chris Morgan really stepped up his game by creating a surprisingly original tale in which Dom found himself opposing his friends . . . against his will. This twist in the narrative not only provided something new in the franchise, but also dialed down the machismo aspect of the Dom Toretto character and made him a more ambiguous character . . . well, at least until the film's last act.

One cannot talk about a FAST AND FURIOUS movie without bringing up the topic of action sequences. And "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" featured some pretty first-rate action sequences. Mind you, I was not that impressed with the Havana street race and the Berlin sequence. But I did enjoy the movie's final action sequence in Russia in which Letty, Roman and the others attempt to stop Cipher and Dom from disabling and hijacking a nuclear submarine to trigger a nuclear war. I also enjoyed how Morgan interacted this sequence with Deckard and Owen Shaw's attempt to save Dom's son from Cipher. But for me, the best action sequence occurred in New York City where Letty, Roman and the others try to stop Dom and Cipher from stealing a Nuclear football from the visiting Russian Minister of Defence. If I must be honest, I found that particular sequence rather mind blowing and tense . . . especially since it was filmed on the streets of Manhattan and at the same time, Dom had to make an important contact with Magdalene Shaw behind Cipher's back. Director F. Gary Gray really outdid himself in this particular sequence.

Earlier, I had expressed my contempt toward the air of machismo featured in "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS". That contempt still stands and it was really rampant in a few scenes featuring Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and Jason Stratham. This was especially apparent in the Havana street car sequence and the scene that featured Shaw's attempt to escape from prison and Hobbs' attempt to stop him. Thankfully, the machismo level in "THE FATE AND THE FURIOUS" was few and far between. All three actors - especially Diesel - managed to prove that yes . . . they can be first-rate actors when given the chance. For Johnson, this was especially apparent in a scene in which Luke Hobbs was torn between being with his daughter during her soccer match and embarking upon a mission for the DDS. Stratham proved that his Deckard Shaw is more than just a macho man in his scenes with Luke Evans, as he played big brother to Evans' younger brother. And in the same sequence, he proved to be both funny and tender as his character rescued Dom's son from Cipher's clutches. As for Diesel, his character's situation - being blackmailed by the main villain - allowed the actor to prove that he can give a subtle and skillful performance. And aside from a few scenes, his Dom seemed like a . . . well, like a complex human being. I have to give kudos to Michelle Rodriguez for her emotional performance as Letty Ortiz-Toretto, who is torn between her confusion over her husband's behavior and her determination to get him back. 

There were other performances that impressed me. Charlize Theron really impressed me by her portrayal of the villainous Cipher. I thought she skillfully conveyed Cipher's manipulative and cold-blooded personality with great ease. I regard Theron's Cipher as among the best villains in a franchise filled with first-rate villains. I was upset to see that screenwriter Chris Morgan had continued his portrayal of the Roman Pearce character as the franchise's clown. I just recently watched 2003's "2 FAST AND 2 FURIOUS"and found myself longing for that younger Roman, who was verbose, impulsive and belligerent at times, but certainly not a clown. And yet, Tyrese Gibson went on to prove that despite Morgan's depiction of his character, he was still the best actor among the franchise's long-standing cast. Once again, Kurt Russell provided a much-needed sense of sharp wit and class when he reprised his role as government honcho Frank Petty aka Mr. Nobody. 

Despite the fact that her character had been used as nothing more than a plot devise, I have to give kudos to Elsa Pataky for giving an emotionally satisfying performance as Dom's former lover, Rio cop-turned-DDS agent, Elena Neves. Helen Mirren provided a good deal of sharp humor as the Shaw brothers' domineering mother, Magdalene Shaw. The movie also featured satisfying performances from Chris Bridges and Nathalie Emmanuel as Tej Parker and Ramsey (from "FURIOUS 7"), Luke Evans as Owen Shaw, and also Scott Eastwood, who portrayed Eric Reisner aka Little Nobody, Agent Petty's assistant. Speaking of Mr. Eastwood, I was surprised that he and Gibson managed to create this . . . interesting and rather funny screen team during the film. I mean . . . it took me completely by surprise. And if you look real sharp, you just might spot both Tego Calderón and Don Omar as Tego Leo and Rico Santo, last seen in 2011's "FAST FIVE".

"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" is not perfect. There were scenes and some dialogue that I found somewhat off-putting. And if I must be honest, I found myself missing the late Paul Walker. I found it odd that the Luke Hobbs character was able to recruit Dom and his friends for a mission that really had nothing to do with them. But I must admit that I really enjoyed the story created by Chris Morgan. Like "FAST FIVE", it went beyond the franchise's usual shtick of the later films. And thanks to F. Gary Gray, it also featured at least two or three first-rate action sequences and surprisingly excellent performances from a cast led by Vin Diesel. Personally, I thought it was one of the franchise's better films.

"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" (2017) Photo Gallery

Below are images from "THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS", the eighth installment in the FAST AND FURIOUS movie franchise. Directed by F. Gary Gray, the movie stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Dwyane Johnson and Charlize Theron: 


"THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS" (2017) Photo Gallery