The Green Hornet

[Chilli]

Wouldn't have worked anyway with a character named Britt.

I'm not saying you're wrong for liking the film or having an opposite opinion, but I strongly disagree with that statement. The characters name isn't an excuse for the film turning into a camp superhero comedy.

[Al Shut]

The name thing was only a joke. Is Britt a valid male name in English?

For what it's worth I forgot to mention that I saw the movie in 2d and actually went a few extra miles to do so.

[Chilli]

The name thing was only a joke. Is Britt a valid male name in English?

For what it's worth I forgot to mention that I saw the movie in 2d and actually went a few extra miles to do so.

The only time I've ever heard the name is for Britt Eckland, but I can see Seth and co using the name to defend their approach to the film on Monday when box-office comes in and it's utterly bombed!

[Pacino86845]

When was the last time you two guys were the first Zoners to review a film!?

For such a momentous occasion, a poll's been added!

[Chilli]

VOTE OR DIE!

[Fried Gold]

My review: The Green Hornet is a complete and total mess.

[DennisMM]

Maybe they should have used the Kevin Smith proposal that was turned into a recent comic book. It featured a wayward asshole of a son who becomes a crime fighter and grows into it, but additionally there was a really hot female Kato and the project wasn't played too much for laughs. It was very much about legacies, not a story of a farce who becomes slightly less of a farce.

[TheButcher]

'Green Hornet' Positioned to Be First Commercial Hit of 2011

Conservative estimates have Green Hornet grossing in the mid-$30 million range for the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. The film goes out Friday in 3,584 theaters domestically, including 174 Imax runs, and will easily place No. 1.

Green Hornet, converted to 3D, is poised to become the first commercial hit of 2011. Tracking has been exceptionally strong, enough to impress one-time skeptics. The film also makes a major push overseas, opening day and date in a number of key territories.

Directed by Michel Gondry and toplining Seth Rogen and Jay Chou, Green Hornet cost upward of $100 million to produce. Christoph Waltz and Cameron Diaz also star.

The name thing was only a joke. Is Britt a valid male name in English?

For what it's worth I forgot to mention that I saw the movie in 2d and actually went a few extra miles to do so.

The only time I've ever heard the name is for Britt Eckland, but I can see Seth and co using the name to defend their approach to the film on Monday when box-office comes in and it's utterly bombed!

From Deadline:
'Green Hornet 3D' Tops MLK Long Weekend With $40M; 'Dilemma' Disastrous $20.5M

1. The Green Hornet 3D (Sony Pictures) NEW [3,584 Theaters]
Friday $11.1M, Saturday $12.8M
Estimated 3-Day Weekend $34M, Estimated 4-Day Holiday $40M

Saturday's take was up +15% from Friday's, which relieved Sony fears tonight. It seemed a miracle that this much bad-buzzed big movie that's a modern adaptation of the old radio series about the legendary action duo -- Britt Reid (with the unorthodox casting of Seth Rogen) and his resourceful Kato (with Taiwanese pop singer Jay Chou) not to mention their coolly equipped The Black Beauty -- was tracking very well for weeks now. But then rival studios emailed me Friday that The Green Hornet was surprisingly underperforming. Sony execs disagreed. They said things could have been worse at the box office Friday but the West Coast was "pushing it way up" with late shows. And just as they predicted, Saturday's number jumped. Friday's post midnight screenings were light -- $550K on 700 plays -- because Sony didn't push them. Meanwhile, The Green Hornet earned a "B+" CinemaScore overall but an "A-" among audience members under age 25.

Given the higher 3D ticket prices and the superhero genre, these grosses are still on the lower side of Hollywood's $40M-$50M expectations. But that pic was R-rated and The Green Hornet is PG-13.) Then there's the $120M-$150M production cost: blame reshoots and the release delay from December 22nd to January 14th so Sony could give the flick a 3D makeover. As for the marketing plan, "we really worked hard to create a summer film launch in January," a Sony exec told me. Personally, I hated those cheezy Carls Jr promos but they helped create awareness. Pic had a strong presence with ads during key NFL and College Bowl games, plus the NBA. And a high impact outdoor campaign with a glow-in-the-dark logo effect plus "real” headlights on the image of The Black Beauty which toured in 20 markets and starred on Myth Busters and in U.S. auto shows. Rogen (who lost a lot of weight to play the role) and Chou each did an enormous amount of PR/appearances to support the film.

From The Playist:
The Long Road To ‘The Green Hornet’: Clooney, Kevin Smith, Wahlberg, Gyllenhaal & More Once Involved

“The Green Hornet” Finally Arrives On Screen… What A Long Strange Trip It’s Been; Greg Kinnear, Jet Li and Jason Scott Lee Were All Once Attached

[Chilli]

[SilentBobX]

Saw this last night at a late showing w/my fiancee and I have to say that this is about as imperfect a film can be without being terrible.

It is a deeply flawed film almost redeemed by its ambition. To be sure, I'm glad Rogen and Chou weren't in tights, altho the characters never wore them. But the way Rogen was written AS the Green Hornet troubled me deeply. I kept reading about how he lost weight and that this would be a serious role for him. He' s half right. It's sad because Rogen is playing man-child slob #33 for the character of Britt Reid when he should've stood up and tried to play it straight, and not be useless.

I'm not saying he should've played himself a Bruce Wayne, ass kicker and name-taker, but rather, have him be SERIOUS. Play the frat boy thing early on, then sober up immediately once dad dies. This is what separates GH from being barely tolerable as opposed to really good. Have him be intelligent, mindful, and truly driven to avenge wrongs as opposed to treating it like an Animal House style romp. He's behaving like a rich, drunk guardian angel wannabe who's oblivious to what he's getting into.

Jay Chou is the other problem I had. He fits Kato physically perfect, but I really did genuinely have trouble understanding him both in speech and in motivation. Why am I seeing more and more of this Dr. House/Dr. Chase style relationship in movies where one is abusive and demeans the other who takes it in stride when anyone else would've capped this asshole, dropped them in a drainage ditch and walked away? He's a cool character, but this bothered me to no end.

The other characters sadly fare no better. Edward James Olmos barely registers and doesn't seem to want to be in the film. Christoph Waltz as a crime lord with a mid-life crisis and love of comic books just falls flat on its face. And Cameron Diaz is a humongous waste of space.

Now for all my bitching, here's what did work: Gondry's direction is good(minus the pain in the ass split scene sequence), the soundtrack is all over the place and great including Chou's rap over the end credits. And finally Black Beauty and the action and stunt sequences are solidly entertaining. Just wish the rest of the parts mixed as well.

Mahalo

[Al Shut]

the soundtrack is all over the place and great including Chou's rap over the end credits.

That was stuck in my head for the rest of the night

ha ha hoo or something like that

[Ribbons]

When was the last time you two guys were the first Zoners to review a film!?

For such a momentous occasion, a poll's been added!

I vote KONG

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

Can I add to the poll that this movie is racist to Kato and this film should be stamped out - and who the fark hired Seth Rogen to be in this?

[Fried Gold]

Can I add to the poll that this movie is racist to Kato and this film should be stamped out - and who the fark hired Seth Rogen to be in this?

This movie is racist to every creed and colour.

[Peven]

and yet Mori gave it a positive review over at Hitflix....it is hard to believe there was a time when people actually looked to him as a credible movie reviewer....i guess that is what happens when someone is trying to make inroads and get product sold in the business while also reviewing product....

[SilentBobX]

the soundtrack is all over the place and great including Chou's rap over the end credits.

That was stuck in my head for the rest of the night

ha ha hoo or something like that

Mine too, Al


As for Moriarty giving it a positive review, I can't explain it. This coming from a guy who, from all I've known about him, likes intelligent film and how he didn't see the gaping flaws ruin the movie from the beginning to end is beyond me.

Mahalo

[TheButcher]

Can I add to the poll that this movie is racist to Kato and this film should be stamped out - and who the fark hired Seth Rogen to be in this?

IMDB Thinks All Asians Look The Same

Despite my reservations about his eventual performance, I was pretty thrilled when I heard that actor and Taiwanese mega-sensation pop music star Jay Chou had been cast as Kato in Michel Gondry’s The Green Hornet. Turns out, I was wrong all along; according to IMDB, it was actually Harold & Kumar star John Cho that starred in the film. Huh?

[TheButcher]

From Hero Complex:
‘Green Hornet’ director Michel Gondry: ‘It’s not really my movie’

From Vulture:
Cheer Up Michel Gondry Fans, ‘The Green Hornet’ May Be Seth Rogen’s Fault

Gondry Didn’t Have Final Cut, Or Full Authority, But Says He “Accepted” This Early On

[Spandau Belly]

As for Moriarty giving it a positive review, I can't explain it. This coming from a guy who, from all I've known about him, likes intelligent film and how he didn't see the gaping flaws ruin the movie from the beginning to end is beyond me.

Mori also gave a positive review to THE LOVE GURU.

I actually can't believe people regularly read him and that a web site has him on paid staff. Mori's one of those guys who I will occassionally read something he wrote (usually not realizing it was he) and be reminded why I try to avoid his writings. Some guys I can depend on their taste and some guys are fun to read even if I don't really value their ultimate opinion on a film, but I can't rely on Mori's taste and his writing is such a bore to read.

I also don't really trust him. I'm not saying he gets bribed or anything as explicit as that, but I think his opinions get shaped too much by his relationships with these filmmakers, his set visits, and his own professional ambitions.

[SilentBobX]

As for Moriarty giving it a positive review, I can't explain it. This coming from a guy who, from all I've known about him, likes intelligent film and how he didn't see the gaping flaws ruin the movie from the beginning to end is beyond me.

Mori also gave a positive review to THE LOVE GURU.

I actually can't believe people regularly read him and that a web site has him on paid staff. Mori's one of those guys who I will occassionally read something he wrote (usually not realizing it was he) and be reminded why I try to avoid his writings. Some guys I can depend on their taste and some guys are fun to read even if I don't really value their ultimate opinion on a film, but I can't rely on Mori's taste and his writing is such a bore to read.

I also don't really trust him. I'm not saying he gets bribed or anything as explicit as that, but I think his opinions get shaped too much by his relationships with these filmmakers, his set visits, and his own professional ambitions.

I wouldnt' want to accuse either, but THE LOVE GURU?? That's highly suspicious right there. I'd say you're on the mark with your assessment of Field Marshall McWeeney.

Mahalo

[Chilli]

“I remember when we were shooting it, he was sitting there with his arms crossed and a grumpy look on his face,” Rogen said. “But there wasn’t a second when we thought we might be wrong. We were like, ‘You are going to feel so stupid when you see that this is the funniest [freaking] thing in the entire world.”

Producer Neal Moritz said he and Rogen superseded Gondry’s authority too, noting, “Coolio‘s ‘Gangsta’s Paradise,’ Michel didn’t want that – but myself and Seth really wanted it,” he said. Gondry went on to add that although he “hated” some of the jokes when he shot them, he came around to them in the film later on.

Please don't defend Seth Rogen, ever again. He fought for Gondry only to the extent where it suited him. If it meant his 'jokes' were in danger, Gondry meant shit!

[TheButcher]

From The Playlist:
Evan Goldberg Says Shane Black Was Once In Line To Direct ‘The Green Hornet’

Also Talks Toning Down Britt Reid’s Dickishness & Squaring Off Against Online Fanboys

[Bloo]

why can't Shane Black get directing gigs? Shit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is fucking awesome and that man needs more work

[Peven]

why can't Shane Black get directing gigs? Shit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is fucking awesome and that man needs more work

maybe because he wanted to make Britt a ghey character...?

[Bloo]

why can't Shane Black get directing gigs? Shit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is fucking awesome and that man needs more work

maybe because he wanted to make Britt a ghey character...?

He isn't?

[Peven]

why can't Shane Black get directing gigs? Shit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is fucking awesome and that man needs more work

maybe because he wanted to make Britt a ghey character...?

He isn't?

[Chilli]

Wait, Britt was MORE of a dick in the original cut?

How is that possible?

[The Garbage Man]

Tommy Wiseau for Frankenstein!

[TheButcher]

Deadline:
Badass ‘Green Hornet’? Paramount, Chernin Set Gavin O’Connor For Movie