The closer we get to Green Hornet's release date, the better the buzz gets. True, it's still being labeled it a hodgepodge mess, but most early viewers at least thought it was fun. Check out our round-up of early reviews.


Battling a shaky start and a lot of odd news like Stephen Chow and Nic Cage jumping ship, The Green Hornet was labeled a doomed picture since before it was filmed. But now that people are actually starting to see the film, their opinion has changed. Is it due to ridiculously lowered standards after months of bad buzz? Or is the thing simply fun? You be the judge:

Comic Book Movie has a lot of positive insight to give Green Hornet, and they specifically heaped praise on the villain Benjamin Chudnofsky, played Inglorious Basterds' Christoph Waltz.

Chudnofsky is LA's most prominent crime boss with an aim to control all the crime in the city. After being made fun of for not being scary enough by a nightclub manager(played by a surprise guest), Chudnofsky goes through out the entire movie trying to prove he is still scary. When The Green Hornet and Kato start screwing with his turf Chudnofsky goes after them. Chudnofsky is a recklessly crazy and funny character played great by Waltz, who once again steals any scene that has him in the movie...My final verdict would be that The Green Hornet is a fun superhero flick that may not be for everyone.


Cinema Blend also agrees, calling the movie "inconsistent, entertaining and funny." They also take the time to point out director Michel Gondry's new action technique adds a touch of whimsy when he can, but for the main part the script didn't leave room for large amounts of inventive film-making. But again, it's still funny.

The good news is that Michel Gondry, coming off the underperforming but tender Be Kind Rewind, acquits himself quite well as an action director, and tosses in some trademark moments of whimsy and imagination that do a lot to augment the slack script. The story, for all its moments of inconsistent logic and tired cliches, is swift and economical, and Gondry directs with a practical eye that still leaves a little room for more inventive moments. Best of all, the comedic energy rarely flags, with Gondry trusting his actors to build their own rapport together but also hitting the beats of the jokes just right. It's not the funniest movie you'll see or the best action movie, but the hybrid works well for the most part. Even when the script feels shaky or certain emotions or plot developments unearned, the movie stays entertaining.

Pasta Padre, a site we're not all that familiar with, called out the Hornet on its issues, but in the end still dubbed the film entertaining.

Looking back on the film I do wonder whether the ends justified the means, eventually the motivations and plans for Britt and Kato evolved, but even then it remains questionable whether the goal of "helping people" was really achieved. They left a lot of destruction in their wake, and though most of that was inflicted on criminals, there certainly would have been innocents caught up in that, including the police who are act as a completely faceless entity here. The Green Hornet was a surprisingly fun ride, with some excellent action sequences and a lot of laughs. Not a typical "superhero" movie it does touch on some familiar themes but pulls it off with unique style and a satisfying conclusion. Somehow through all that is a finished film that delivers on pure entertainment value and could be the start of a successful franchise.




Sheknows also chimes in with the chorus of it was messy, but in the end fun.

Hodgepodge is a good way to describe it, and yet it doesn't fail to deliver.... The story is a bit all over the place and Gondry's signature style doesn't help that. He does bring a bunch of cool bits, but there were plenty of moments where audience members turned to each other saying, "What the heck was that?" That said, it was a lot of fun.


JoBlo still had a hard time wading through everything Seth Rogen and co-screenwriter Evan Goldberg seemingly packed into their script. While the review admitted that the bad Hornet buzz was unfounded, they still didn't seem to have had as much fun as the others.

Rogen and Goldberg had the opportunity to reinvent the genre with a comedic take on the superhero tropes but instead fell victim to some of those same cliches and sadly feels like a couple of kids just playing with their toys.


So there you have it. Maybe Green Hornet will deliver the fun that Tron Legacy left on the game-room floor? We won't know until the January release — until then, you have this brand new featurette to tide you over.