A good sci-fi action comedy with two charismatic leads

Rating: 8/10 (17 November 2009)

This summer blockbuster was a big hit when it was shown on the silver screen in 1997, and while I never saw it in the 90's, I can't forget how much I saw it advertised, seeing the cover image with Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith. I saw some of it in 2000, and I think I saw the rest in 2002, the year the less popular sequel, "Men in Black II", was released. I think I was reasonably impressed with the original "Men in Black" at the time, and definitely was when I revisited it around Christmas in 2006. This was just a little less than a year after I had seen the sequel for the first time, which I didn't think much of, and knew I wasn't alone. I watched the original again last night, and have never thought of it as an amazing film, but can understand why it was such a big hit.
The MIB (Men in Black) is a top secret U.S. agency that monitors and polices extraterrestrial activity on Earth and has nothing to do with the government. The planet's general population is unaware of alien life on Earth, and whenever someone outside the agency witnesses alien activity, an MIB agent erases their memory of it and replaces it! One of the top agents in this organization is Agent K. When an N.Y.P.D. officer named James Darrell Edwards III encounters a being he thinks is a human criminal but is actually extraterrestrial, Agent K is impressed by the way he handles it, and offers him to join the MIB. The catch is that in order to do so, the officer will have to give up his identity and all records of his existence! After thinking about it for a long time, he decides to take Agent K's offer. He joins the MIB and becomes Agent J! Together, K and J must track down a member of the "Bug" race, who has disguised himself with the body of a farmer he killed and is searching for "The Galaxy", a small but very powerful energy source!
Tommy Lee Jones comes in around the beginning, in the role of Agent K, and it doesn't take long for him to show his charisma. When Will Smith comes into the picture, in the role of Officer Edwards (eventually Agent J), he proves to be very charismatic as well. These co-stars make a memorable team, both playing cool guys. "Men in Black" is billed as a sci-fi action comedy, and it really does give us all three of those genres, with interesting extraterrestrial beings, some good fight and chase scenes (making for good suspense), and such comical moments as the outcome of an alien birth in a car and the new memories the farmer's wife is given. The car speeding upside down in a tunnel is both adrenaline-inducing and humorous, and it's not the only part like that. This movie also has great visuals, with the special effects, high-budget sets, and gadgets. Sure, there may be some fairly dull parts of "MIB", but for the most part, it's a strong film of its genre, and very enjoyable for many of those who like modern action blockbusters.