Seth Rogen stars in the action comedy The Green Hornet and takes the action comic hero genre in a whole new direction. For this film nothing is sacred and all of it is fun. We get the beginnings of the duo Green Hornet and Kato and see all the ego pounding and putdowns that go into the process. Rogen is a funny guy and he has found his perfect screen partner in Jay Chou who gives Kato more personality than he has had in any previous incarnations.
The film gives the back story of poor little rich kid Britt Reid (Rogen) who was bullied by his father until he became a petty playboy. His father owned and operated the family newspaper in Los Angeles and was very powerful in the city. When he died of a bee sting Britt was lost. He had never had much to do with the newspaper business so he pretty much let his father's operating officer (Edward James Olmos) continue with it.
When he meets Kato (Chou), his father's mechanic, he knows he has made a friend for life. Kato is brilliant with cars and is also a karate/martial arts expert. When they stumble on to a crime being committed they leap into action with Kato carrying most of the heavy fighting. From this one incident is born the team of "The Green Hornet and Kato."
The problem is these two know nothing about being crime fighters. Enter Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz) who applies to be their secretary. She also, inadvertently, becomes the brains behind their plans. She has studied "The Green Hornet" and knows what his next move will probably be and why. The two guys take this info and make it their plan.
Rogen and Chou play off each other perfectly and when Diaz is in a scene she adds to the fun. This isn't a movie that gets its praises from acting skills; this is a movie that gives its entertainment value by being fun. Rogen and Chou seem to be having a ball in each and every scene and because of this the audience has a high old time too.
The only questionable actor in the movie is Christoph Waltz, who plays a crime boss named Chudnofsky. Waltz won an Academy Award last year and this is his follow up role? Any ten actors could have played this part and played it just as good as he does. There is nothing special about it at all.
The film is rated PG-13 for profanity and violence.
Comic book purists may not like the approach Rogen and company have taken with "The Green Hornet" but for those who go to the movie with an open mind it is fun from beginning to end. The action sequences are part of the fun but it is the chemistry between Rogen and Chou that makes the movie snap, crackle and pop.
I am sure there will be those who dismiss this film as just a rip off of an action comic hero, but for those who like a light take on the action every now and then this is a movie full of fantastic fun.
I scored "The Green Hornet" a buzzing 6 out of 10.