I Just Threw Up a Little...

When I read Seth Rogen's MTV interview regarding his take on THE GREEN HORNET.
And yes, I agree with his point about how fanboys like to bitch if something "isn't in the canon." It drags me down too...

But when you admit that:

a) You don't know whether or not you're writing a comedy or an action picture, and...
b) The MTV main website says inaccurate stuff like:

"By day Brit Reid (Seth Rogen) is a millionaire publisher and popular media figure, but by night Reid assumes the identity of fearless crime-fighter the Green Hornet and teams with his trusted sidekick Kato to keep the streets safe for average citizens... ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide"
.
It doesn't inspire confidence. It glosses over what could be a unique selling point of the movie that would distinguish it from all the other costumed avenger movies out there (Bats I'm looking at you). The distinct "hook" with the Hornet is ---

Everyone thinks he's a criminal!

To the public at large he is a myth to be feared - a ruthless racketeer who always gets his way. The police blame him for all of the corruption in the city. They say he's bought off the judges and even the District Attorney. He's Keyser Soze in a mask, and when the Hornet is involved people who get in the way tend to disappear. The Hornet doesn't get the accolades - he gets the contempt. The scorn. It's his other identity - Britt Reid - that gets the fun.

Now granted, the synopsis above could be a simple matter of people from outside the source writing the PR for the movie. However it seems to me that when you have a marketplace filled with superheroes and masked avengers you want to brand yours as different, unique, exciting. That all-important "same, yet different" movie that the studios are looking to produce. You want to let everyone know this. This synopsis fails miserably.

Good movies of this nature start things off with a unique point of view/approach. (Case in point: BATMAN BEGINS, SPIDERMAN). By not making the decision on whether or not its going to be a comedy speaks to indecision and floundering. It speaks to poor moviemaking.



The Green Hornet (both as a character and a franchise) deserves better.


(and yes, I've said all this before, but it bears repeating. Movies are better when decisions are made before you get to the script and to the camera)