The Green Hornet (2011) User Reviews

The hornet is back...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 26 February 2011]

I watched "The Green Hornet" with a sense of skepticism. Having grown up with the original TV series, this movie really had some big shoes to fill out. And surprisingly enough, it managed to do so in a good enough way. But there were also aspects of the movie that were less than successful.

First of all, Seth Rogen (playing Britt Reid/The Green Hornet). No, no, no. I know he was involved in directing and writing the movie and all, but he is not chiseled out for an action role of this caliber. I do admire his spirit and enthusiasm, but he is more suited for comedy movies. Seeing him in this role didn't go well with me. He did bring along some comedy, but it didn't work so well in this particular movie.

And the scene at the beginning where Britt Reid was bringing home a woman and they went through the garage and sat in all the cars (showing them off for the audience, actually) in high-speed capture, what was up with that? Already at that point, the movie started to falter and crash.

Jay Chou (playing Kato) certainly had HUGE shoes to fill out after the original role was played by Bruce Lee. And actually Chou did a decent enough job, with good acting and well-choreographed action/fighting sequences. So hats off to him for that.

However, the most memorable person in the movie was Christoph Waltz (playing Chudnofsky). He was fantastic as a villain and worked his role very well and very convincingly. Plus there was also a good sense of humor to his role, and it worked well.

The story told in the movie was fast-paced, captivating and interesting enough to keep you enthralled throughout the entire feature length.

For an action movie, then "The Green Hornet" is actually quite good. But for a follow-up to the legacy of the TV series, the movie is a mediocre attempt with good intentions. Had they cast someone else for Britt Reid, it would have worked much better. Now, I am not saying that Seth Rogen is a bad actor, he was just ill-suited for this role. "The Green Hornet" is good entertainment if you are in for an evening of action, corny one-liners and a trip down memory lane.

Campy, corny, but visually entertaining.

[jccwu · 6/10 · 15 January 2011]

I've been keeping my expectations low for this film and I'm glad that I did. I was a big fan of the 60's television show, but I didn't watch any episodes until the mid 90's; so I've been waiting almost 15 years for a film adaptation on the Green Hornet.

The film is campy, the story is corny, the villain is wasted and Seth Rogen wrote the script. Based on the plot and the dialogs, it's not a well made movie; but it doesn't try to be. This movie could have been written more seriously and be on the same map as a Christopher Nolan's Batman film; but instead, it went on the road to be a comedic film with a lot of explosions. Some stuff didn't work, other stuff was clever & visually entertaining.

The stuff that I admired the most are the homage to the original television show. There were some criticism to the 60's show about how the Kato character was just a sidekick, butler, manservant, an aid or a chauffeur to the Green Hornet. Bruce Lee didn't have much dialogs and he didn't have much screen time. It was during the 60's and just having an Asian-American to be an everyday character on a show was a big deal, so I never saw that as an insult. In this movie, they make a HUGE deal about that subject as Seth Rogen & Jay Chou are constantly arguing about Kato's role throughout the whole film.

Other homage to the television show is a drawn image of Bruce Lee, Al Hirt's theme "Flight of the Bumblebee" tune, and there's even a scenario from my favorite episode that has been written into the movie. The Black Beauty is also a very awesome car! The funny thing is that in the TV show, the Black Beauty was a brand new & very recent 1966 Imperial Crown sedan. In the movie, it's the exact same vehicle; but it's now a classical vintage car.

I saw the 3D version and there were very few sequences where the 3D effects was worth the extra price of admission. I recommend saving your money and watch the 2D version instead.

To finally sum everything up; the movie isn't good, but it brought back my love for the characters inside the Green Hornet world. The film is visually entertaining for what it is. I hope there's a sequel, but that somebody else will write its screenplay.

Split Personality

[JohnDeSando · 14 January 2011]

"So this is what you want out of your life? This gives you sense of fulfillment? I spend all night, writing about the corruption in this town, and you do nothing." Jack Reid (Tom Wilkinson) to his son, Britt (Green Hornet Seth Rogen) The Green Hornet is unlike most other comic-book-hero film adaptation: Seth Rogen's slacker Hornet is a dipstick without a clue about navigating the crime world while Kato ( pop star Jay Chou), his valet/associate, pretty much plays the Bruce Lee/kung-fu role as cool, even when he's goofing with the Hornet, which is most of the time. It is also a bromance with Cameron Diaz as Lenore Case, a love interest who helps us get over the homoerotic subtext.

Geeks know the Green Hornet franchise well: radio show from 1936 to 1952; TV show in 1966 by the producers of the campy Batman TV series, while Green Hornet's greatest asset was emerging martial arts star Bruce Lee. Writers Rogen and Evan Goldberg renew that 60's camp but with it seeming out of date, as if the parodic part of the genre cycle had long ago been played out and not welcome anymore. Of course, you could argue that Despicable Me, Kick Ass, Megamind, and Iron Man 2 last year took to parody, but each one of those is more successful at marrying the satire to the action than Green Hornet.

The personality of the film is split—it's either satire or action, Hornet or Kato. The film is a bit away from the accepted concepts of this sub-genre except in Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz), the arch villain whose ironic reactions are an adept amalgam of menace and insouciance.

As he did in Inglorious Basterds, Waltz commands the screen with his charming menace. Actually he is equaled in the opening sequence, the best scene of the movie, when he faces off James Franco in a cameo, two hoods pissing about their territory. Franco is quite good as a semi-clueless drug lord.

Britt has daddy issues, specifically making something of his life while newspaper owner dad. Jack Reid (Tom Wilkinson), is a hero to the city. With dad's death, Britt decides to fight crime as the Green Hornet while letting everyone think he is a criminal (as in the original versions).

The gadgets are Bond-worthy, and Kato has the Bruce Lee charisma; it's just Rogen who seems out of place—not believable as a hero from beginning to end of the film. He can be amusing as a man-kid, but the geeks will never accept him as their hero.

The Green Hornet has lost its buzz.

Surprisingly Good

[michael_wl · 7/10 · 7 January 2011]

Ever since I heard about "The Green Hornet", I expected a bad movie. It didn't seem like it would work...boy was I wrong. I saw a screening of this recently, and walked in with zero expectations, and walked out having laughed throughout the movie and REALLY enjoyed the action and chemistry between Rogen and Jay Chou. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg did a fantastic job crafting this script, which could have been truly horrible, into a fun ride.

The true star of the movie is Jay Chou, aka Kato. His accent was sometimes hard to interpret, but he was surprisingly funny, and Kato-vision (time slows when his heart starts pumping during fights) turned out pretty cool in 3-D.

Thank goodness Nic Cage walked away from this, and Christoph Waltz came in as the bad guy, because Christoph inhabited the role better than Nic could have. I enjoy Nic Cage, but he wouldn't of worked in this movie, and with that character. Nic Cage would have been too over the top, where as Christoph went a subtle route.

The movie isn't perfect, I didn't feel Cameron Diaz added anything to the movie expect being "the hot girl" to create a rift between guys, but if you're looking for a pure escapist fun ride, then look no further than "The Green Hornet."

I was expecting a disaster

[darkmax · 7/10 · 19 January 2011]

Frankly, very few remakes are worth the time. I was expecting a disaster of a movie when I started watching, but was pleasantly surprised.

Seth Rogen is his usual self/character. He needs to learn more than one trick. I found his acting flat and his voice monotonous. So kudos to the screen and script writers for making it interesting enough that Mr Rogen's shortcomings are overcame.

Cameron Diaz.... Of the hundreds of actresses in the movie industry, why her? Is her character written in, in the last minute? Or is there some kind of compulsory need to add a female lead, so that the 2 male leads are not seen as homosexuals? She was refreshing a decade ago, now she is just.... boring and highly predictable.

Jay Chou. Being an Asian-Asian, I personally never like or dislike him. He has a zero-expression face, no matter what movie he is in. Putting him in the shoes of Bruce Lee is a tough order. Of all the characters in the movie, his is the most significant one. Ones with big expectations to fill, and I think he did alright. Do remember this is his first Hollywood movie. Other than that, I still say he can't really act.

Story/plot. The movie is fast pace enough that even the slow moments get by really fast. After a first 15 minutes or so, there is very little dull moments. One of the few things I disliked about this movie is the elevated level of gory deaths. Is it really necessary? As I said before the screen and script writers did a fantastic job in this adaptation.

For pure action entertainment, I'll give it 8 or 9 out of 10. However, overall it should only garner a 7, in my opinion.

Kato carried the film.

[OllieSuave-007 · 4/10 · 26 May 2014]

This is a below average superhero movie where Seth Rogan and Jay Chou star in the movie update to the classic TV series starring Van Williams and Bruce Lee as the masked crime fighting team.

As with any superhero movie, there are plenty of fight scenes and alter-ego suspense. The special effects were quite good and the story is average, nothing too exciting or impressing about it. Jay Chou made a pretty good Kato with his serious and die hard attitude and his skillful martial arts moves. Seth Rogan made an awful Green Hornet - obnoxious, loud, annoying and unsympathetic. His gruff, raspy and incredibly irritating voice made me glad that Kato delivered him several good punches. Cameron Diaz looked like she was thrown in for good measure.

When you end up rooting against the lead superhero, there's really not much enjoyment in this movie.

Grade D-

Pass me the fly-spray

[Lejink · 1/10 · 13 May 2012]

Well, I recently treated myself to a 3D TV and this was the first 3D film I watched on it. Being a comic book fan too, although never having read or seen much of the original Green Hornet, either in print or on the 60's small-screen version, I vaguely anticipated an eye-popping night of superhero fantasy.

Was I ever wrong?!

This film was an absolute mess. I know nothing of lead Seth Rogan and if you told me he was indeed a top comic, my next call would be to Trade Descriptions. He absolutely ruins this film, hogging the camera and mugging mercilessly. He neither looks the part (too fat, too unkempt, too unfit) and has no chemistry either with Kato or Cameron Diaz's unashamedly eye-candy supporting role. The plotting is weak, the comedy dire, characterisation non-existent and the action sequences as underwhelming as they are overlong.

I wanted to blame my new TV for this car-crash of a movie and felt like taking it back to the shop but realised I would only have been shooting the messenger. Never mind 3D, I wish I had a 4D TV to get back the time I lost watching this nonsense all the way through.

Great parody, rather than a classic super hero movie.

[scarlatov · 8/10 · 17 March 2011]

If you don't know what to expect and you haven't even seen the trailer than i believe you are going to have great fun. The movie is not a classic main stream super hero movie but a very nice parody making fun of the way super hero movies are made, emphasizing on their blank spots. Do not expect a meaningless script like "super hero movie". Green Hornet has its own storyline that is consistent, but the characters and situations are hilarious. I haven't laughed so much for a long time, which makes the movie a success judging by the result. I believe it is a great way to spent an evening if you want to relax and watch an easy entertaining movie.

A fun movie...simple as that.

[reijeanmiles150 · 7/10 · 9 February 2011]

I went to see this in the middle of the day on a weekday, and ended up being the only person there, which makes little difference in light of the fact that I enjoyed it.

A lot of reviews I've seen that are in the negative about the movie all seem to be coming from people who act like every single movie that comes out is supposed to have some deeper life altering meaning beneath it. For those people, I'm sorry to tell you, but this is simply the sit back and have fun watching popcorn movie.

It was campy, sometimes corny, but absolutely fun. It didn't take itself so seriously that felt weighed down at any point, considering it clocks in at around roughly two hours, it seemed pretty well paced to me. The story does play with the viewers consciousnes of the Hornet/Kato relationship in how it was originally portrayed in the TV show, with who the viewers saw as the star of that show, in the way that Chou's amazingly adept Kato and Rogen's somewhat Bumbling clueless Hornet interact on the regular.

Movies are supposed to be a fun break from reality, and suffice to say with the action, comedy, and camp homage made throughout this film. This is a really good break to take if you feel like one.

I saw it in 2d, which was how it was originally filmed and it was visually engaging the whole time. So either way I think you're in for a treat.

Not a Bad Way To Start 2011

[aaronjbong · 7/10 · 4 February 2011]

It's still four to five months before "Thor" starts playing and of course, movies that go on theaters before May are not usually super anticipated. However, January's "The Green Hornet", with Seth Rogen and international pop star Jay Chou is is one good, action movie. Action? Yes. Comedy? Yes. Worth to watch? Hell yeah!

First, "The Green Hornet" is about this one guy named Britt Reid (Rogen) who is the son of the boss of a large company that runs newspapers. One day, while Britt is still having fun with his girls, his dad's name James Reid rolls on TV with the years "1948 - 2010". He's dead in the age of 62. Britt becomes the leader and meets Kato (Chou), his father's assistant who's talented in martial arts, making coffee but not in swimming. Together, they fight crime in several unexpected and silly ways against Chudnofsky aka Bloodnofsky (Waltz).

The trailer, with Jay Chou speaking English, cool cars, Britt knocking himself out and others is quite interesting. Especially when it's in 3D. The pictures themselves look exciting and with idiotic Britt Reid, it seems like it's not a bad movie.

The action. Yes, you will definitely enjoy this movie. Britt's fighting will give laughs that will make you howl like wolves and Kato's martial arts skills will leave audiences breathless. It's definitely going to make this movie likable and I'm sure you'll love the action scenes with the explosions. Oh yes, and blood.

The comedy. I know it seldom appears but when it appears, it's going to make you laugh your head off. Such as Chudnofsky being said not scary and later scaring whoever said it. Or because Britt knocked himself out with his Gas Gun.

The 3D. This was weak. There were no eye-popping effects, just depths because as I sometimes take off my glasses to compare the movie in 2D and 3D. 3D works perfectly fine without the glasses, not blurry at all, very inconspicuous. So, I recommend 2D better.

Overall, "The Green Hornet" is not a bad movie. It's not a waste of time and it's possibly a good way to start out the 2011 movie season.

Thank you for reading and hope this review is useful.

Funny action, but not going to blow you away

[justind-thompson · 6/10 · 16 January 2011]

What I expected from a Seth Rogen film. I enjoyed the goofy humor mixed in with very cool weapons, and kick butt martial arts action. I would have to say this movie targets guys and people under the age of 30 or so. You have to take the movie for what it is worth, if you are a serious person looking for A+ acting with a top-notch storyline then you should skip this movie. However, if you still have a kid inside you that enjoys laughing, not taking things to seriously, and comic's/super hero action then you will enjoy this film. The villain Christoph Waltz who also starred in Inglourious Basterds also helped make the film worth seeing in my opinion, and he had one of the sweetest gun's I've seen in a movie. Other big actors in the film include Cameron Diaz & Tom Wilkinson.

Even though I liked this movie, I think most people would not feel liked they missed out on anything too special if they waited for DVD. It's a fun movie, with good special effects, fight scenes, and a laid back attitude, but nothing that will blow you away.

Read other reviews at: http://thompsonreview.wordpress.com/

Uninspired

[CSHaviland · 6/10 · 15 January 2011]

The Green Hornet is a very old hero character, dating back to radio dramas in the 30's, playing alongside The Shadow, Buck Rogers, and The Lone Ranger. (In fact, the Green Hornet was a spin off of The Lone Ranger... The Lone Ranger was the Green Hornet's grand-uncle, in the radio world.) Like his contemporaries he appeared in other media, including television. The television series, which featured 1/2 hour segments, starred Bruce Lee as Kato, and was his boost into celebrity. The great Bruce Lee martial arts movies might never have happened if it weren't for his gig on the Green Hornet.

The Green Hornet may have also been Bob Kane's inspiration for Batman in 1939. There are many similarities, which need not be listed here.

But alas, this feature film remake is a dull take on this old character, which deserved better treatment. I don't know exactly how Seth Rogen (who played Britt Reid and who has a writing credit) got a hold of it, but it's as though someone behind the scenes mistook the Green Hornet for a farce comedy like Get Smart and then failed to even make it funny.

The dialog had no horsepower at all, and while there were a few funny moments, after a while I got aggravated at the desperate attempts to make me laugh. Sometimes it seemed like the actors were derailed, trying to improvise, and it wasn't working.

There were two cool things about the TV series. 1) Kato, because he kicks butt. They got lucky, because Bruce Lee really was one-of-a-kind. 2) Black Beauty, their armed car that flips up from the garage floor and has guns built into it. While both of these aspects remained pretty cool in this movie, they were also elevated a little too far into the realm of fantasy. And it didn't need to be that way.

Not a good offering by director Michel Gondry, who gave us the brilliant and original Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind years ago, and it may mean that he's one of those directors who cannot improve -- or does not see improvements in -- a script. He therefore shines when he gets a great script and fails when he gets a bad one. Tim Burton falls into that category.

The movie villain was played by Christoph Waltz, whose character was no less dumb than Seth Rogen's. A bad choice for an actor who just won an Oscar for his brilliant role as Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds. What was his agent thinking? In all fairness, Waltz and his agent couldn't have known beforehand that The Green Hornet was going to be a sloppy script, and a sloppy execution. The super-hero wave is a big one at the movies these days, with one hit after the other, but they fail to remember other sloppy remakes of old radio heroes, such as The Shadow in 1994 starring Alec Baldwin, and The Legend of the Lone Ranger in in 1981 starring Klinton Spilsbury (who??).

The Green Hornet should have been a much more serious period movie set in the 30's about a man who is inspired to fight the mob in the fashion that his grand-uncle did as the Lone Ranger years earlier. That would have led to a serious Lone Ranger tie-in (a prequel as it were). Missed opportunities.

Save your $8, this movie isn't worth it.

Rogenized

[TourettesPersonal · 6/10 · 22 January 2011]

"The Green Hornet" is your same old typical Hollywood remake. Non-stop explosions, CGI, shot in 3D. And it is also your same old typical Seth Rogen comedy. Seth Rogen acting like a retard and scattered raunchy humor. While "The Green Hornet" is a ridiculous movie it's also an enjoyable one. It's not painful to watch. The action scenes were awesome. It's not really as bad as anyone else is saying. "The Green Hornet" is completely fun and ridiculous.

The biggest problem here in "The Green Hornet" is Seth Rogen's portrayal of Britt Reid. He's not playing Green Hornet. He's just playing himself all the time with fighting. If he's not around in one scene the movie is quite serious. The slow-mo fights and the car chases were awesome. How about the 3D? The 3D was good especially when there are sparks coming out the screen.

The merit here is Jay Chou. He practically steals the show although he needs to improve his accent. Christoph Waltz is like playing Hans Landa again in a different manner. Cameron Diaz is too old for her role. Overall "The Green Hornet" is entertaining, hilarious and absurd. It's the same old Seth Rogen comedy with explosions. It's a good movie to watch... For a while.

Not groundbreaking, but an entertaining superhero movie nonetheless

[HideYoKidsHideYoWife · 8/10 · 10 February 2011]

Despite some impeding flaws, The Green Hornet not only delivers as an action film, but goes one better by providing comedy and is an enjoyable movie overall. Comparing it to other superhero movies is an invalid way to assess the quality of the film; it's a more light-hearted take on the genre without becoming a fully fledged comedy, allowing it to fall into a class of its own.

Superhero movies usually consist of the main character(s) either having superhuman powers, or just money and initiative. This film falls into the latter category and is unique in the sense that they're heroes who pose as villains in order to fight real villains, but the concept doesn't advance any further than that. The idea isn't revolutionary, but good enough to be entertaining and in a sense, unique.

The wealthy and immature newspaper publisher Britt Reid teams up with his butler Kato to form a crime fighting duo, who begin by cruising the street to find criminals to beat up. Kato is essentially both the brains and the brawn, doing most of the fighting, creating their equipment and filling their cars with ejector seats, explosives and guns. Britt on the other hand is rather incompetent, but still arrogantly considers himself to be just as valuable to the duo and provides most of the humour. Both of the main characters are likable and the contrast between their actual superhero ability is often amusing. The plot eventually evolves enough to end in a standoff between the duo and the main villain, after some not very surprising plot twists.

The action sequences contain fighting with and without guns, the majority of it being Kato jumping in slow motion and kicking people in the face. The balance between the two different types of fighting is excellent; too many gunfights would ruin the not-so-serious nature of the movie. The action scenes aren't repetitive and keep things fresh with varied environments, Kato's ability to identify danger (weapons glow red while Kato surveys the situation in slow motion), martial arts expertise and creative use of their Chrysler turned killing machine.

Superhero movie buffs might consider the film to be 'lame' or say that Seth Rogen wasn't fit to play the role of a superhero, but it's supposed to be more light hearted than other movies of the genre. Most heroes intend to help society with their superhuman powers or avenge the death of a loved one etc., whereas the Hornet duo fight crime because they're bored. Those expecting a deeper storyline will be disappointed, but this film accomplishes what it's supposed to. It doesn't take itself too seriously and despite a few issues, it's an entertaining movie overall and definitely something to look into if you're willing to appreciate it.

Reckless, but Amusing

[Samiam3 · 6/10 · 14 January 2011]

The Green Hornet has one of the best cars in the movies. It's bullet proof, fire proof, has built in war heads and machine guns, its tires can't be shot out, and it has an ejector seat which could shoot you half way to the moon...and yet an elevator door can cut the vehicle in half. The car is a good metaphor for the movie as a whole I think. The Green Hornet, is fast an exuberant but it feels overstuffed and structurally flimsy. I'd say it could use a rethinking, but as it stands, it's not unwatchable.

The best I can say for this movie, is that it's amusing. It is able to sustain it's energy for a hundred plus minutes, with a fair dose of humarous action, sprinkled with some delicious visual effects shots. The picture I think lends itself quite nicely to a 3-D transfer.

As a superhero satire, The Green Hornet, works in pieces but the big picture seems off. Whats ironic is that this movie about an egomaniac is written somewhat egotistically. Seth Rogan seems more like a burden than a benefit to the production. He tries way too hard to hog the spotlight. The Green Hornet has been written so that the majority of the humour is based off him. That would be fine if he was funny, but he's not. He is juvenile, and nasty, and as a superhero, he is painfully useless without his partner Cato and his car. I suppose that in itself, is kind of humorous, but it makes me wonder if his intention is to have the viewer laugh at him not root for him. Rogan gets most of the one liners, but a few are given to the villain he fights. I like my villains with a little humour or wit, and judging from Inglourious Basterds, anyone can see that Christoph Waltz is the man to do this. But he doesn't get it right here. He doesn't crack jokes, he IS the joke. Waltz' function is stripped down pretty much to satirical narcissism.

The film has an ending which makes me think that the makers just got lazy, but at least they avoided the mistake of asking the audience to anticipate a sequel. The Green Hornet is kind of fun to drive around with, but it only works on a superficial level, and is not nearly clever enough to be memorable. If nothing else, at least offers a way to spend two hours on a Friday night in the season of cinematic junk and apocalyptic hodgepodge.

The Green Hornet as a comedy

[the-movie-guy · 6/10 · 7 January 2011]

(Synopsis) Playboy Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) becomes the new publisher of Los Angeles' "The Daily Sentinel" after the sudden death of his father. Britt's party life is about to change when he and his driver and kung fu expert, Kato (Jay Chou), stop a robbery. Britt gets an idea how he can finally do something meaningful with his life. Britt gets Kato to build "The Black Beauty," an indestructible car with every weapon a car can hold. With the help of Kato, Britt starts a new career of fighting crime as the masked superhero "The Green Hornet".

(My Comment) The first thing about this version of the Green Hornet is that it was written as a comedy. Why they did that is beyond me. The storyline of the Green Hornet as a masked superhero was fine without changing it. The movie opens with a fascinating, but silly storyline. The evil villain Chudnofsky, played by Christoph Waltz, is the criminal mastermind. This part will only make you laugh, because he tries to make himself scary, and if you are not scared of him, he will kill you. The movie gets going once Britt and Kato join forces to fight crime. However, there is a competition between them for the attentions of Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), Britt's secretary. But Cameron's role was only a small part. The best scenes were those with the cars and gadgets used by Kato. The storyline seems lacking, but as a comedy, you will laugh during the movie. (6/10)

The Green Rogen

[flapdoodle64 · 7/10 · 17 January 2011]

Surprisingly, this film is actually pretty good. Not in the same league as Superman I/II, or the 1989 Batman, but fun and exciting. Definitely better than the recent Fantastic Four films.

It moves quick, and the dialogue is snappy and funny, the fight scenes are good, and the CGI tends not to be obvious. There are very good car chase sequences, and the Black Beauty is actually a supporting actor here. The plot is actually fairly clever, and there is a little bit of substance to it, to my surprise.

Seth Rogan plays Seth Rogan, he's not Al Hodge or Van Williams, and I accepted this from the start. I was OK with this, as I find Seth likable. The whole notion of a grown man becoming a super-hero is a pretty risky notion as far as credibility goes, it could easily become too ridiculous for the audience to sustain credibility. This problem is resolved by having the eponymous character being a goofy guy with questionable judgement.

Also, I tend to prefer the more 'fun' type of comic book movie, like the Iron Man films Vs. the Chris Nolan Batman films, which IMO hit you over the head every 2 minutes trying to show how serious they are...I know I'm in the minority, but I find Nolan's Batman films to be oppressive. Also, IMO they take themselves too seriously, thus becoming unintentionally funny. I prefer the humor to be intentional.

The film is worth seeing by a comics fan because of Kato and the Black Beauty, and if you can handle Seth Rogan as a hero. It's worth seeing in a theater if you see it in 3D and are in the mood for escapism. If you don't want to pay for the 3D, I advise waiting for home video or the el cheapo cinema in your area.

"Nice Appetizer"

[kimi_layercake · 7/10 · 22 May 2011]

"The Green Hornet" is an action-comedy film, about a young millionaire heir Britt Reid who, following the death of his father teams up with his late dad's assistant Kato to become a masked crime fighting team.

Cast wise, Good choice except for Cameron Diaz. Seth Rogen is infallible as the young party-loving millionaire who became a masked vigilant adamant on justice, whatever be the price. His acting, expression and assent are very good. Jay Chou is good as his unnamed sidekick. The shining star is Christoph Waltz, who is exceptional in his bad-man role. His performance is reminiscent of his equally brilliant act in "Inglourious Basterds". The exception is Cameron Diaz,who looks very old and totally out-of-place for the role. It was a pathetic casting choice. Not to forget the brilliant cameo of James Franco.

The strength of "The Green Hornet" is its stylish Direction, good Action sequences(specially the Car Scene), and Christoph Waltz. The drawbacks will be Cameron Diaz casting and less emphasis on character growth.

Overall, "The Green Hornet" is a good movie. Barring Cameron Diaz, it's a very enjoyable watch. It's a great tonic for multi genre fans.

My Verdict: 7/10

childish and stupid

[jseltz38812 · 1/10 · 13 March 2011]

They could have done so much more with this movie. Instead they put out this junk. The movie is very childish and stupid. Someone other than Seth Rogen would have been a better choice. Jay Chou was good, but he had to work against Seth. We thought this would be a fun movie. Instead, it was a wasted evening. Cameron Diaz was OK, but I think that she may regret that she agreed to be in this farce. The cars were great, but they could have shown more of the technical stuff and less of the interactions between Rogen and Chou. Also, the interactions between Rogen and Diaz was down right terrible. Even the old television show as a lot better.

So bad its good

[Get_Murffd · 8/10 · 14 January 2011]

I went into this movie having read reviews talking about how the movie "couldn't decide" what it wanted to be. And they were Absolutely correct, but i couldn't care less. The Green Hornet is so horribly acted and over the top that it easily fits into the category of "SO BAD ITS GOOD", For fans of slap-stick classics such as "Flash Gordon" or anything by Mel Brooks, this movie is a MUST SEE. There are at least 3 or 4 scenes sprinkled throughout the movie that are meant to be completely sincere and serious. They utterly and gloriously fail. Seth Rogan couldn't decide if he wanted to do Iron Man or Pineapple Express, so he just said "To hell with it" and did both. As i said before, he totally failed to produce any kind of real connection with the characters or make any sense with the story, misfit characters are sporadically flung into the mixture and cheesy unoriginal dialogue runs ram-pit through the film, but this movie is not what it seems to be. It succeeds because of how HORRIBLY it fails. Toss in easily the funniest fight scene ever captured on film and best usage of Coolio's "Gangsters Paradise" in cinema and you've got comedic GOLD. Please go into this movie with absolutely NO expectations and i promise that you will leave satisfied.

Amusing enough to cover up its flaws for a solid two-hour diversion

[Movie_Muse_Reviews · 7/10 · 15 January 2011]

When Seth Rogen got his paws on rights to turn the masked crimefighter radio and TV series "The Green Hornet" into a movie, we figured to have it pegged. Rogen would deliver an action comedy "Green Hornet" universe stuffed with his brand of immature moron humor. The only question was whether that combination would work or make Rogen look like an actual idiot.

While we think of Rogen and pal Evan Goldberg as co-scriptors of modern bromance and foul-mouthed humor, their 2008 film "Pineapple Express" was an action film, albeit an outlandishly hard-R version centered around smoking weed. "The Green Hornet," like that film, succeeds at escapist action, remaining exciting and fun enough that the humor offers a nice balance and a reminder that typical superhero movie intensity and catharsis are best sought elsewhere.

Rogen stars as Britt Reid, partyboy son of a major newspaper owner in Los Angeles. When his father dies, Britt reflects on their tense relationship, which stirs him to actually doing something with his life. After striking up a friendship with his father's mechanic/coffeemaker, a Chinese genius named Kato (Jay Chou), a stress-relief venture to decapitate his father's statue turns into a crimefighting epiphany. Using the newspaper to get out the word, they create The Green Hornet, a hero who poses as a villain to get close to and take down the criminals of the city.

Goldberg, Rogen and director Michel Gondry's ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") real handiwork is doing an especially good job of masking or perhaps simply distracting the audience from the hollowness of this plot. That's not intended to be a backhanded compliment: with the exception of a misleading semi-serious beginning, it's clear that the film's quality threshold tops off at "entertaining" and the movie does us a favor in not serving up anything so pathetic as to remind us of its faults.

The subplots and side antics keep the attention off the prototypical story. Goldberg and Rogen have keyed in on the relationship between Britt and Kato, flipping it into — not surprisingly — a superhero bromance. Although the conflicts builds itself on Britt's unlikable childish arrogance and ignorance as to Kato's superior skill, the subplot provides for a strong back-and-forth for comedic purposes and distracts from the half-baked pieces of the film: Britt's relationship with his dad, suspect character motivation across the board and Cameron Diaz being in the movie period.

Basically, the movie does enough for us to care about Britt and Kato. Diaz, for example, while useless to the rest of the film as Britt's secretary at the paper, serves as a device for mounting tension between our two heroes and to comic results. With that humor, the film builds the entertaining diversion that it needs.

The humor has its rough moments, namely in the action-oriented scenes when Rogen chooses to push the quantity of jokes instead of letting us take in the car chase or gun fight. Otherwise, Chou offers an excellent balance for Rogen's bumbling idiot act. Christoph Waltz as Chudnofsky, the crime lord with some serious insecurities, holds the honor of being the only interesting/amusing supporting character. Taking a page from his experience in "Inglourious Basterds," the actor manages to play the role without going over the top or taking the part too seriously either.

As an action film, "The Green Hornet" surprises the most. Gondry manages to effectively use slow motion rather than do it for the sake of doing it, for example. Yet Goldberg and Rogen deserve the most credit, as they've drafted up some unique sequences, one being the final showdown inside the newspaper building. Almost all action films of this caliber have predictable outcomes, but "Hornet" keeps the "how" up in the air with that creativity. The whole "Kato kicks ass yet Britt is incompetent" dynamic also provides some amusement.

Simply, fans of mindless action and modern comedy ought to find it hard to dwell for too long on the flaws of "The Green Hornet." I might have to toss this one under the guilty pleasure pile, but kudos to Rogen and co. for never letting the film drift into awful or "so cliché it hurts" territory. One bad move and the gleeful distraction would've been lost. Instead, we get a couple solid lead characters, crafty action and several decent jokes.

~Steven C

light entertainment - but terrible dialogues

[villamondial · 6/10 · 22 January 2011]

What do you expect? Light entertainment? That's what you got. --- This is a movie, which is clearly not taking itself very seriously, but rather take some superheroes, comic, action and trash movies of the last decade and mix it to a surprisingly entertaining "flick". Some of the car chasing scenes ares boring, but some action scenes are innovative.

In the very best moments, the relationship between the two main actors (The "Green- Hornet"- Team (!)) could remind of the Closeau-Cato relationship - and, of course that's what they are aiming at... Yet, it falls short to deliver, because the acting of Seth Rogen gets lost in some immature "Hangover"-imitation...

Definitely only 2-3 stars ? *** for the dialogues. Way too much "Hey, Dude - this is awesome" - style, which may just satisfy the average suburban teenager - but it is too exaggerated. I would have even preferred a Terminator-style muteness compared to that jabbering flow of nonsense from the main character.

Nevertheless, most of the well-filled movie-theater in Berlin has been laughing throughout the film.

Tries to be funny, but is just a joke

[cashbacher · 2/10 · 3 March 2020]

While the Green Hornet is not a superhero in the classic sense of the term, he has no powers that he can use, the crimefighting team of the Green Hornet and sidekick Kato are generally included in the group. Therefore, this movie can be considered another in the current bumper crop of movies about such characters. Placed in that bucket, the movie tries to be a joke and succeeds. Seth Rogen plays the son of a wealthy newspaperman (Britt Reid) that is a party animal until his father dies. Suddenly placed in charge of a major daily crusading newspaper, he is clearly out of his league. Even though Reid becomes the Green Hornet with his sidekick Kato, the brains of the group, he never loses his boyish, ignorant enthusiasm. That failed joke characteristic wears on the viewer to the point where you just want it to end. Despite Kato's clear genius in creating effective gadgets, Reid never manages to give him due credit. The closest thing to saving graces of this movie is the power of the villain, an unemotional killer played very well by Christoph Waltz and the incredible competence of Secretary Lenore Case as played by Cameron Diaz. This movie was so poorly received that there was an almost immediate discussion of a more serious reboot. From watching this movie, that makes a great deal of sense.

The Pink Panther meets Kick-Ass

[iva-svobodova2 · 7/10 · 13 January 2011]

The Green Hornet begins with a humorous scene with the local mafia guy (excellent James Franco) and the "big fish" - the main bad guy Chudnovsky (charismatic Christoph "Colonel Landa" Waltz). From this moment you know what to expect. The Green Hornet is full of amusing quotes and hyperbole. Cameron Diaz has to endure jokes at her age (finally!), the boys certainly appreciate nicely equipped car of the main hero Britt (Seth Green) and cool fight scenes. Yes, it's fun and you will like it. But in this movie I miss a little deeper meaning. At any moment you know that it's all just a game. I appreciate, however, showing the power of the media that can make a hero out of anybody.

Rogan is bad.

[jimbokwright · 3/10 · 14 June 2019]

Great cast and solid production work. They could have cast just about any other actor besides Rogan and had a hit on their hands. Every one else fits the part but Rogan was all wrong for the title roll. His character is not likable or believable.