All in Good Fun

Rating: 8/10 (16 September 2008)

Firstly I'll agree with David a few reviews up in that they've stuffed up the concept of what the Men In Black are supposed to be. I too in my days of reading constantly about alien abductions and the like would always find that the MIB were alien life forms, not humans. But all I could do was sit back and say "That's Hollywood for you" and try to enjoy it for what it was. When I saw this in the cinema I didn't enjoy it as much as I could have as I went with someone who was not enthused to see it. Don't ever do that! Go alone if you have to. It's amazing how much that, even in a darkened room, a disenchanted person next to you can alter the atmosphere. That being said, since I've bought it on DVD and watched it many times since, it's got to be a favourite. My kids like watching it with me, which is great as it means we can sit down together to watch something and I don't have to be suffering through some kiddie stuff. Sonnenfeld seems to have found his niche of material with this sci-fi/comedy stuff, and he's hilarious on the commentary, and very insightful compared to a lot of other commentaries I've heard. The effects are great - Stan Winston is undoubtedly a master at big screen make up, and the cgi work wasn't overdone to the point where it bugged you, like a lot of films are getting to these days. I thought the pairing of Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones was pretty inspired - I'm a big fan of Tommy and it was good to see him have some fun (or as much as he can) for a change. Vincent rocked as the bug, he's so over the top he's hilarious! And so gross!!! LOL Look, it's Hollywood, so you can never expect too much. Enjoy it for what it is, and it's a movie where you can laugh, go "oh man, gross!" on occasion, and then have a sing to a Will Smith song at the end.