Molly Wright (Tessa Thompson) dreams of becoming a member of the elusive government organisation that polices Alien life on Earth, The Men In Black. After successfully enrolling she is sent to the London Branch where an attempt is made on an important alien royal family member. Molly and her partner Agent H (Chris Hemsworth) must figure out why this alien was worth killing, whilst the audience try to figure out why this film is worth watching.
It’s been 22 years since the original Men in Black was released and perhaps it has become buried beneath over two decades of uninspiring sequels. The original Barry Sonnenfield film was the quintessential family blockbuster of the 1990s. It was funny, witty, imaginative and superbly performed by Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones whose chemistry was a revelation. It was a simple but delightfully rich premise that all alien life on earth was being subtly policed by a bunch of soulless stiffs in suits. Enter Will Smith to step on every toe going, and you have a brilliant sci-fi buddy cop adventure film.
We’re just so far away from all of that now. Everything about International feels clumsy and exaggerated. There’s no subtly character work or witty dialogue to be found. The vulgarity of the film is evident in everything from the garish character design (characters from the original film stand out as being almost drab) to the overly insistent music that features Danny Elfman’s original themes only louder. Perhaps this might be described as Men in Black, only louder.
The clumsiness of the film is surprising. There’s poor shot continuity, distracting editing choices and a thousand and one tiny things that take you out of the movie. As the film fails to engage, more and more questions beg to be answered. Why do the Men in Black keep giving lengthy diatribes about alien life to people their only going to Neuralyze anyway? Why does their secret train (that can be seen from space) transform into a regular train when it is only seen by members of the organisation? How can they possibly be keeping alien life secret considering all the very public stunts they keep pulling?
The original Men in Black also found room for some heart. Kay had a tragic backstory involving a woman he’d left behind, a tiny alien king spent his last breathe warning mankind of an enormous threat, and Will Smith’s Jay spends a soul searching evening agonising over his place in the universe whilst pinned to a bench. These moments actually landed with real narrative and emotional weight. There’s no room for such sentiments in International. The characters are threadbare, the narrative is perfunctory and perhaps the only real emotional moment is afforded to Pawny the comic relief alien.
Of course there is quality to be found here. Tessa Thompson is a superb performer who is given nothing to do. But her character’s desire to actually be recruited by the MIB is a fun contrast to Smith’s Agent Kay. It would have been nice if this aspect of her character has been mentioned even passingly past the first act. Chris Helmsworth is handsome and charismatic as you’d expect. There’s none of that hard edge though that made his depiction of James Hunt in Ron Howard’s Rush so captivating. The two have very little chemistry together. Rafe Spall is actually the unexpected comedy highlight, playing a petty employee of the Men in Black with a grudge against Helmsworth’s H.
Men in Black International is another highly forgettable entry in a franchise that has never justified existing beyond it’s first entry. The original Men in Black is a film who’s legacy is becoming increasingly difficult for new audiences to appreciate. At least Kay and Jay have finally been retired, but the new blood doesn’t feel very new at all.
Two Stars