A Step Above Mediocre

Rating: 6/10 (29 December 2012)

So the men in black are back and as vigilant as ever in their quest to maintain order among Earth's secret population of extraterrestrial beings. Only this time we're going back to 1969 to stop our villain Boris the Animal (Jermaine Clement) from killing Agent K in the past and from destroying Earth in the present.
Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones fill their usual roles as Agent J and Agent K, respectively. However, this film sees the addition of Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men, W., Milk, etc.) as the younger Agent K in 1969. Brolin is brilliant in his role as the younger Agent K, and he picks up Tommy Lee Jones' characteristics very well, almost making it look too easy. However, for some reason I just felt like with Tommy Lee being an official senior citizen these days, his character should have looked considerably younger than what Brolin was able to portray for the 1969 scenes. Based on Tommy Lee's age, if I do my math right, that means Agent K would have been around 23 years old in 1969. Brolin at 44 years old, is much too old to play Agent K in 1969. That's a huge age difference that can't be overlooked. Otherwise, Brolin did an excellent job.
As usual in this franchise, the aliens are overly exaggerated and the special effects are comical, but the plot is decent enough and Smith and Brolin have great chemistry. There's also a touching plot twist near the end, if not highly unlikely.
I hear there is another sequel in the works. If so, I think Brolin should take over for Tommy Lee Jones... Maybe taking place sometime in the late '80s or early '90s, a time period more age-appropriate for Brolin as Agent K. He looks great in this role and maybe it's time for a fresh start. Hey, we could even get Jaden to take over for Will... Well, maybe not.
Anyway, I'm not a big fan of the franchise but I did like this installment. It's worth a look.