Subject: Review: Men In Black (1997)

From: [email-masked] (Matt Petras)
Date: 29 Dec 1997 05:24:12 GMT

Men in Black(1997)
	©1997 Matt Petras

Official Site:
	www.meninblack.com

Rating: *** out of ****
Length: 98 min (1:38 hours)
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Producer(s): Laurie MacDonald, Steven R. Molen, Walter F. Parkes,
Graham Place, Steven Spielberg
Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Linda Fiorentino, Vincent
D'Onofrio, Rip Torn, Tony Shalhoub

	Aliens!! Well, that is what this movie is about. Computer
generated aliens. OK, the movie is not just about computer generated
aliens. It's about computer generated aliens and a secret organization
known as MIB. If one wasn't green and running around the other would
not exist as it's known. The computer graphics in this movie are
spectacular, they make you want to believe that aliens like the ones
depicted exits. Since seeing this movie I have to agree concede that
Denis Rodman is an alien, he simply has to be. Well, in all
seriousness the aliens created here are not only of the monster
variety but are also of the soft, squishy and cuddly kind. Just adds
something of a lighter note to the movie where it could have become
very dark.  
	Along with aliens comes the humor and in a pretty decent way.
J, well soon to be J, a smart ass cop(played by Will Smith) runs down
what he thinks is a would-be villain and gets some attention from the
MIB and K in particular. K aims to recruit our poor J, but that is not
the whole point of this movie. The main duty of the MIB is to police
the extra terrestrials on earth who have chosen it as a home or a
refuge. That's also the main point of this movie: protect the earth
from the scum of the galaxy. Some of the scum from space is awfully
bad and just down right nasty. Color commentary abounds when forced to
deal with alien scum and none other than Will Smith and Tommy Lee
Jones are there to deliver the punch. The dialogue is witty to say the
least. This wittiness lets the movie flow well from scene to scene
developing the characters to the extent needed for this movie. 
	Tommy Lee Jones(as K) and Will Smith(as J) provide both the
action and the comedy beautifully. The characters they play don’t seem
to be wrong in any way nor does their performance as them. I would
have to say that K is more amusing than J, but what's one without the
other. Both roles complemented each other very well and the script
seemed to be written for these two actors. The story also goes deep
enough to provide a proper background so the audience is not totally
clueless. Altogether good performances were put in by all the cast and
the director blended everything marvelously with the necessary special
effects to create a good movie. A movie well worth seeing if you are
up for some lighthearted and witty humor. 
	As most movies have their good things they also have their bad
things. The character development in this movie was not all that grand
because it didn't need to be. But if there was more character
development and if there was some development of the alien characters
that might have added quite considerable to the movie. Especially the
evil alien, he did need some work. Though this could have been worked
on, the movie was what it proposed to be a rather shallow and witty
comedy. That was achieved rather well, with some interesting
commentary and observations. A movie worth a view, but keep in mind
what the movie is and if you are not fond of Will Smith's form of
humor then I wouldn't go. 

Originally written after original release. 
Totally rewritten December 26, 1997

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