Director: Michel Gondry
Rating: PG-13
The Bouw-Man.
Superhero films are usually a pretty safe bet in today’s society. With “The Green Hornet” you have a marketable product that has been around since 1936. With a following in radio, comic books and television programming, it has been able to be part of several media sources to maintain its appeal. However, there has been a significant time gap since the television series ended in 1967 to 2011’s motion picture. This did not matter much for 2008’s “Get Smart,” with Steve Carell. Even though the television series ended in 1970, the 2008 film offered a modern-day version without completely forgetting about its origin. Although some purists complained, most accepted the film, and the $130 million domestic box office suggests it accomplished what it set out to do.
The main difference between “Get Smart” and “The Green Hornet” is the star. Whereas Steve Carell was a natural choice for the lead, Seth Rogan is not. It’s been well documented that he wasn’t the first choice (or second or third…) for the role, yet there he is with the enormous responsibility of headlining this potential blockbuster. In the end, the story and/or the special effects better hot the mark, because I don’t think Rogan has the ability to carry this film on his own. It will be interesting to see what happens this weekend regarding “The Green Hornet.” Most agree that 2010 was a disappointing year for movies, and if “The Green Hornet” bombs in early 2011, then it sets a negative tone.
Prediction.
This one can go any number of ways. I’m thinking with competition from “The Dilemma,” name confusion with this summer’s “Green Lantern” and the struggles they have had bringing this to the big screen, that “The Green Hornet” may have problems generating a huge following. I think plain old curiosity will help “The Green Hornet” bring in around $28 million this weekend. After that, however, it better be a good product to attract audiences into February.
Opening Weekend Gross: $28 Million
Noodles: Prediction
There has been a huge marketing blitz surrounding Green Hornet for months now. Every time I see a new piece of footage from the movie, or some new exclusive scene, the more ridiculous this film appears. I'm a big fan of satire, or a clever spoof, like 'Black Dynamite' but the fun of a movie like that is that the film is mocking itself in a hilarious way. This Hornet movie looks like a comedy trying to be an action film and doing both poorly. Since I always write these reviews before I see a film I hate to sound too harsh because I understand that sometimes you can't judge a book by its cover. So I'll cross my fingers for the film makers and keep my $10 bucks this weekend.
Green Hornet's biggest asset is that its competition is light right now for action movies. Despite tepid reviews I think it will garner a pretty decent percentage of the weekend's box office. Perhaps it will be the "First blockbuster of the Year', or at least it will be promoted as such, but I don't think it will make a dollar past $28 Million by Monday.
Opening Weekend Gross: $27.9 Million
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