Looney, brilliant, clever, retro, heart warming...but not perfect

Rating: 8/10 (12 April 2013)

I hate science fiction and science fiction movies. But about once a decade a sci-fi film comes along that I find irresistible. This is one such film.
It's loony. It's retro. It's clever. It's heart warming. Boy, that really covers the bases. I went to see MIB1, and liked it. I saw MIB2 and liked it. But I loved this film.
It's loony because of all the alien monsters; unique and funny (although it seems to me there were fewer in this film). It's retro because it goes back to the late 1960s...great sets, neat references to the past that would only be possible via time travel, and even a little patriotism thrown in. It's clever because it's a different twist on time travel. And it's heart warming when we realize why the two agents (Smith and Jones) have that special rapport...and clever (once again) when it is discovered only through time travel, and nicely linking all 3 films.
I'm not a particular fan of Will Smith, partly because I'm not always into the films he sometimes chooses. But every once in a while he is in something where he impresses me...such as here. He's not necessarily the greatest actor, but he's very believable. I actually dislike Tommy Lee Jones as an actor, but every once in a while I find a performance of his that I like...this is one such role. Josh Brolin does a remarkable job here as the young Tommy Lee Jones; and it's uncanny! It's nice to see Emma Thompson in such a role. Michael Stuhlbarg is very entertaining as an alien with precognition.
As much as I like this film, it's not a perfect film. My one big criticism is the way it ends. Oh, it's a good ending, but considering what we learn about Tommy Lee Jones' and Emma Thompson's characters, it would have been nice to bring that to some kind of close...but Thompson has no role in the second half of the film.
Highly recommended...a once in a decade gem of a science fiction movie (with a great sense of humor without getting ridiculous).