Review: GREEN LANTERN

The competition for the loudest film of the summer continues with “Green Lantern.” Like “Thor,” this goofy comic book actioner pushes the decibel level and delivers its thrills in glorious 3D. And aside from the corny dialogue and comic book violence, the effects are some of the best I’ve seen so far this year.

Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) is a cocky test pilot with a tragic past. His father was killed right before his eyes while testing a jet. Strangely, there is little mention of Hal’s mother. This traumatic experience has left its mark. Hal lives a fly by the seat of his pants lifestyle that endears him with adrenaline junkies but makes corporate types a bit antsy. When he embarrasses his employers during a key product demonstration, Hal’s in danger of losing his job. His one-time girlfriend Carol Ferris (Blake Lively) just happens to be Hal’s boss’ daughter and is bucking for the top job in the company. Meanwhile, childhood friend Dr. Hector Hammond (Peter Sarsgaard) has been harboring deep-seated resentment toward Hal and has been carrying a torch for Carol.

In another part of the universe, an evil called Parallax (voiced by Clancy Brown) has been awakened that threatens earth and other planets. An intergalactic squadron, the Green Lantern Corps, is called in to police things and to rid the universe of Parallax. The original Lantern officer, Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison), who once imprisoned the villain, gets mortally wounded in an attack by the creature. Sur crashes on Earth in hopes of finding his replacement. Of course, the replacement is Hal, who is just not ready for the honor. An inevitable showdown with Parallax awaits.

Light and for the most part kid-friendly, “Green Lantern” is a typical comic book entry in what has become a very crowded market. A DC comic, like Batman or Superman, “Lantern” hopes to launch a new franchise. Unfortunately, aside from the rightfully lauded special effects, “Green Lantern” is largely forgettable. Reynolds certainly fits the cut of the character physically, likely dieting heavily to achieve his trim muscular look, but the script gives him little to work with. Missing are a barrage of funny one-liners that made Iron Man’s alter ego Tony Stark such a colorful character. And while Hal is first introduced with a lovely young woman with him in his uber-cool and spacious apartment, we see little of that side of him thereafter. What could have been “Top Gun” gone green, just becomes another comic book flick.

And the odd casting makes things a bit uneasy. Peter Sarsgaard gets the worst of it. His Hector is the son of a senator played by Tim Robbins (yes, all 6 foot 5 of the guy looking too young to be Hector’s real dad). After performing an alien autopsy, Hector is infected by something and then slowly transforms into a really ugly dude. I’ve not seen a bad guy this yucky since “Howard the Duck.” Wasted is Angela Bassett, who plays a stoic government operative that could have been an Agent Coulson type character ever-present in the Marvel movie universe. “Gossip Girl” Lively makes a solid love interest. She’s an actress that reminds me of Jennifer Garner. Mark Strong is hardly recognizable as the red skinned pointy eared Sinestro, a significant member of the Lantern Corps who helps train Hal.

The main reason to take in “Green Lantern” are the effects, the story is secondary. And this is surprising because the movie is directed by Martin Campbell whose reboot of the James Bond series “Casino Royale” worked as good narratively as it did as an action film. But audiences should be willing to give into the comic foolishness of it all because the computer generated imagery is so good. Unlike “Thor” the world created for the Lantern Corps is bright and inviting. And the powers, based on the energy of something referred to as “Will Power,” are perfect for 3D. Once Hal dons the green ring, he can materialize anything he can imagine. The objects he conjures up take a glowing greenish form and prove to be wonderfully useful. At one point a helicopter becomes a hotrod on a Hot Wheels type racetrack. And as silly as this sounds, it works especially with the addition of three-dimensional effects.

Short on story but visually entertaining, “Green Lantern” glows most brightly as a special effects showcase leaving dramatic pathos to other men wearing tights.