After all These Years They've Still Got It

Rating: 8/10 (6 January 2015)

Fifteen years ago Men in Black introduced us to agent's J (Will Smith) and K (Tommy Lee Jones) of the Men in Black, a secret organization tasked with monitoring and policing alien life on earth, and keeping knowledge of it from the population at large. It was original, action packed, and oft hilarious. Five years after that came the sequel, which although having its moments was nothing to write home about. Now after a decade comes the third entry in the franchise, which exceeds not only expectations, but perhaps the original Men in Black as well.
One of the better parts in the overall lackluster Men in Black II was that we got to delve, however briefly, into K's past. This time round, we don't just get flashbacks to his earlier adventures; we get to go there thanks to the magic of time travel. Because when Boris the Animal, one of K's deadliest enemies, busts out of prison and goes back in time to kill K and prevent his incarceration, the only hope of saving the earth and setting the timeline right is for J to 'time jump' back to 1969 and prevent his partner's murder. Once there, he finds that young agent K (Josh Brolin) is a completely different man from the one he knew, and that they'll be facing not one, but two Boris the Animals.
First off, I just want to say that Brolin's imitation of Tommy Lee Jones is downright uncanny. His speech, his mannerisms, even the way he walks and shoots are nearly identical to the older actor's. I imagine that Brolin must have spent hours watching Jones' performances in the previous MIB films. The only major difference between their versions of the character (aside from the age gap) is that the younger K is more open, more upbeat, and seems to enjoy life more. At several points J asks "What on earth happened to you man?" to which K can only reply "Don't know, hasn't happened yet." The filmmakers must have had lots of fun with the retro elements of this movie. The hippies are worth a few laughs, as is the 1969 version of MIB headquarters, with the rows of typewriters, miniskirt wearing secretaries, and massive early versions of their modern gadgets. Even funnier is what happens when J is pulled over by a pair of New Jersey cops. Now I understand that the racial shtick can often be tiresome, or even offensive, but in this case the pay-off is golden, not least because the officers were partly right about J. I also enjoyed the brief references to Lady Gaga and Mick Jagger, and the 'truth' about Andy Warhol is pure genius.
I sorely missed the presence of Frank the Pug, but I must admit that their new sidekick Griffin is really something else. He's a bit goofy, extremely nervous, and very much on the talkative side. His race experiences all possible futures at once, which is pretty handy, but also something of a drag since many of them don't end well and you can't always tell which will come to pass. And Griffin has plenty to be nervous about, what with Boris the Animal coming for him.
And what really makes Men in Black III worthwhile is the ending. It's suspenseful, has great action, and puts an interesting new twist on the Apollo program. But best of all is the human drama. When the revelation comes of what made K the way is, it was highly touching and completely unexpected. More thought went into this scene alone than most Hollywood shoot-em-ups.
Men in Black III is a solid action flick and comedy, with a surprisingly complex story and more character development than your average summer blockbuster. I would consider it equal to, if not better than, the original. If only they'd had the talking dog it would have been perfect.