Green Lantern

The green man has no trouble not taking himself seriously, so what ultimately kills him is rather the directorial and dramaturgical indecision. The whole problem of Green Lantern is contained in one scene: Hal flies in to see his chosen one in disguise to meander like Superman. What follows is a very good parody of similar "superhero" kitsch, which I laughed at with pleasure. But in the next scene, we find exactly the same, this time deadly serious kitsch, that feels like the scene before didn't even exist. And that's the way it is all the time. Campbell winking at the viewer for a while, but then serves us un-diluted dullness and naivety. The whole film has a similar structure to Thor, but while the guy at the "top" felt serious and the guy at the "bottom" light, Green Lantern appears like a stupid and genderless retouch on both levels. Yet its potential is undeniable - but the creators have turned a hero who can materialize anything from his fantasy into Tom Cruise from Top Gun. It’s no wonder that Warner insist on a second film. A missed chance like this hurts, especially at a time when comic book films are doing well. (08/11/2011)

At first glance, everything is as it should be. Ryan is a likable guy, Blake is every straight man's wet dream who isn't blind, the special effects team has been paid generously for their overtime, and proven hitmaker Martin Campbell manages it all. Yet only half of it works. No, more like a third because that's about how much the "civilian" world takes off the whole. The section in which the lanterns glow green tries to cloak the boundless naivety in a cheap pomposity that probably comes from the comic books, but it struck me as a cheap carnival ride that (hand on heart) looks pretty stupid. It's not boring and it keeps on flashing, and someone is always jabbering (quite often humorously), but it lacks that drop of soulfulness. This was the worst comic book film six months before Thor. (10/12/2011)

Unfortunately, it's the same thing again. Saving the world, an indestructible villain, some kind of magical energy, the right values. Not even the proven hitmaker Martin Campbell, otherwise known as a great innovator of established brands (Zorro, James Bond), can save this from boredom and mediocrity. Not that Reynolds isn't great, it's just that the insanely overblown space worlds set pieces are just a hair worse than the whole questionable mythology. So hats off to the visual effects artists, yes, but I wanted a better project, or better execution. The big advantage goes to Blake Lively, who could have easily just stood somewhere in an evening gown and everything would have been fine. But that's not enough for a cinematic experience, especially in a comic book adaptation, where the overkill is insane and destroying planets in the umpteenth way would already put off even a die-hard fan of the color green. (05/14/2016)

Several billion years ago, a race of immortals armed themselves with the most powerful force in existence: the emerald energy of willpower. Just as hallucinatory and incomprehensible as Flash Gordon in its day. Whether this is good or bad, I am not sure; in any case, guilty pleasure par excellence. (11/07/2011)

This comic book madness is guaranteed to be appreciated by the fans the original comic book. The film doesn’t pull its punches, and during its uncompromising 109 minutes it presents a story that goes against all usual comic book adaptation characteristics. It’s just science fiction about superheroes from outer space fighting for Mother Earth outside of Earth. I have to say that it had its charm, but it was off to a rather slow start. Ryan Reynolds was great, but he could hasten the transformation and not wait for it until the middle of the film. Anyhow, I can’t say that I wasn’t captivated, as this was something else than you’d expect and that also counts for something. (12/24/2012)