Green Lantern Review

After the release and subsequent enormous success of 2002’s Spider-Man, Marvel Comics opened their floodgates to an enormous superhero vault just waiting to be adapted for the big screen. Successful adaptions of Blade, Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, Ghost Rider, Iron Man and Thor all opened within the span of the next nine years, with Captain America’s film debut just around the corner. It makes sense then that with the huge box office numbers and critical rave that greeted Batman’s last big screen outing, Marvel competitor DC Comics would do the same. Here we are with Green Lantern, the big-budget, big screen adaption of a DC serial that’s always played second in the DC universe to bigger heroes Batman and Superman. Director Martin Campbell signed onto the job, who’s had previous success in igniting a franchise with Casino Royale in 2006. Star Ryan Reynolds was cast in the coveted role of Hal Jordan, a move which pleased fans of the original comic greatly, and big stars Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong and Tim Robbins were all cast in key roles. On top of all this, the film had a ridiculously large budget. Green Lantern had everything going for it, so it’s very puzzling as to what went wrong and turned this potential next-big-franchise for DC into a mindless, directionless only sporadically entertaining (and almost always disappointing) comic book adaption. 

Naturally, the film follows Hal Jordan, the unlikely earthling chosen to wear a legendary ring (after its wearer is killed by a mysterious villain) and become one of more than three thousand galactic protectors known as Green Lanterns. After some experimentation with his newfound abilities, Hal is whisked away to the planet Oa to learn the ins and outs of being a Lantern. After accepting the existence of millions of alien species, planets, and will-powered magic rings in a matter of about thirty seconds, Hal meets some other members of the Green Lantern Corps, none of which greet him with much enthusiasm, as a human has never harnessed the power of a ring before. When an ancient evil and seemingly unstoppable creature called Parallax threatens to basically kill everything in the universe, the Green Lanterns, led by veteran Lantern Sinestro take it upon themselves to put an end to the threat. The setup is fairly incomprehensible, but that’s pretty much in line with the comics. The problem with the story is the way it’s told. The film moves along at much a breakneck pace that few main points are properly explained and almost nothing is clear throughout the movie’s hour-forty-five minute runtime. It’s strange then that the movie feels so much longer. In an era where any film under two hours is considered fairly short, a movie of Green Lantern’s length should feel quick, but instead the story ends up feeling so convoluted that it contorts the film’s length and tricks the audience into thinking that they’re watching a film much longer than Green Lantern actually is.

The beginning of the movie is actually done well. It centers around Jordan, a test-pilot for a company hoping to sell their new artificially intelligent android jets to the US air force. There’s a fairly spectacular simulated sky battle between Jordan and the android planes that feels much more tangible than any other action scene in the film (odd, considering that it’s more or less the only fight scene in the movie with no imminent threat). It’s interesting to get a piece of Hal’s life, which is most obviously falling apart, and his family interactions and tragic past make the basic setup even more intriguing. Then the alien dies, Hal gets the ring, and the film falls apart. The second half of the film actually feels more like a biopic than a superhero film, centering around Hal’s harnessing of his powers and the transformation of Dr. Hector Hammond into Evil Dr. Hector Hammond due to exposure to a piece of Parallax. Speaking of Hammond, his character ends up feeling rather pointless. His villainous side takes a back seat to the far more overarching threat of Parallax, and his backstory, though rather sad, isn’t explored to great enough lengths to craft a character deep enough to care about. In fact, I’m really not sure why the filmmakers decided to include his character in the film for anything other than some filler scenes.

As the movie approaches its climax and the already not-all-that-interesting box of ideas begins to run dry, the ridiculous setup takes its unbelievability to the next level with earth invasions, soul-sucking monsters and some cringe-worthy dialogue and pathetic attempts at comic relief that suck the remaining life out of an already mostly lifeless film. By the time the unintentional laughs had ended and the credits began to roll, I couldn’t help but wonder, what went wrong during the film’s production? What turned this wannabe colossal hit into a steaming pile of failed concepts, wreaking of creative deprivation? 

Green Lantern honestly and simply fails on almost all fronts. The big-budget thrills are dry, sloppy and unoriginal, the humor is bland and usually unfunny (“Watch your back, Hal.” “That’s impossible, Bob.”), and none of the characters are even remotely interesting to watch evolve. Though Reynolds gives his all, he can’t save a script fit for a low-budget TV movie and a group of supporting actors that mostly feel miscast. I wanted to like Green Lantern. I wanted to sit down in the theatre and be treated to another emotionally resonant, action-packed superhero movie. Instead I was greeted by this. Take my word for it and wait for a suitable adaption of DC’s emerald hero. Don’t fall victim to this disappointing, utterly forgettable version. As an added bonus, you’ll never have to hear Ryan Reynolds desperately scream at the audience to  “Beware my power, Green Lantern light!” in an attempt to ward off negative reviews. 

Final Score:

3.5/10
"Bad"