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Style Magazine

Film Review: Green Lantern

Jul 04, 2011 05:50AM ● By Wendy Sipple

Green Lantern is based on a DC Comics superhero. In the movie Ryan Reynolds stars as Hal Jordan, an ace fighter pilot with an attitude but carries the emotional baggage. His father, also an ace pilot, died flying when Hal was a child. One night an alien aircraft crashes and the occupant is part of the Green Lantern Corps, an organization of intergalactic crime fighters. When one Green Lantern dies a new one is chosen and Hal Jordan becomes the first human to become a member of the Green Lantern. Hal has a quick initiation as a space villain called Parallax, an alien that feeds on fear, is on course to destroy Earth.

Despite the onslaught of negative reviews from other critics I actually found Green Lantern to be a fun movie. If anything Green Lantern suffers from being the third superhero movie released within a month and the elevated expectations that comes to superhero movies now. Make no mistake this yet another origin story of a man becoming a hero and it follows many of the same plot points that previous superhero movies do. The difference in this film is instead of being an earthbound hero, Hal Jordan becomes an intergalactic hero. Having no prior knowledge of the character or universe of the Green Lantern before viewing this movie I think the series has a lot of promise. If they choose to set the sequels away from Earth the Green Lantern series has a real opportunity to set itself apart from the pack.
Ryan Reynolds fit the role well. He has a good charm about him even when he acts like a jerk. Reynolds is just a likable guy. All of the supporting cast play their parts well too with perhaps the exception of Blake Lively, who I did not find believable in her role of a businesswoman and ex fighter pilot. The film makers must have wanted to fill the role with a pretty face, but an actress like Scarlett Johanson carries a much bigger presence than Blake Lively. A better actress would have been a better fit for the part.
The effects were rather good, including the space scenes. I actually liked the Green Lantern suit as well. I was skeptical when I heard the suit was going to be completely computer generated, but the effect really paid off. The design of Parallax was interesting. I like how it looked like a rolling lava cloud but the face at times looked a bit hokey.
The actions scenes were different if not a bit silly. Green Lantern’s powers enable him to create anything that he can imagine. I hope in future sequels they become a bit more creative with the use of this power. In one sequence Hal Jordan encases a falling helicopter in a hot wheel car then sends it around an imaginary racetrack to safety. It was an odd scene, but the movie had a sense of humor to it, having Hal Jordan’s friends give him a hard time about the tactic. Hal Jordan reverts too often to guns, cars and planes when using his powers, I’d like to see him think outside the box more during the fight sequences.
In the end Green Lantern is a fun movie and I think it sets up future sequels well. Although it is not as good as the Batman or X-men movies, it is every bit as good as last month's Thor and the previous Spider-Man movies. If your expectations are in check and you enjoy superhero movies you will have fun watching the Green Lantern.
Films like the Green Lantern – Thor, Spider-Man and Superman


Justin Buettner is Style's resident movie dude! How did he get this role? Well, he graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a Bachelor of Arts in film Production and a duel minor in Animation and Business with an emphasis in the entertainment field. He later went on to work on several independent films in various key roles including writer and later worked in the special effects field as a motion capture artist. He has since relocated to the Sacramento area with his family and continues writing for small independent films in addition to his movie reviews for Style Magazine.

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