Green Lantern

Plot synopsis:
Millions of years before the Earth was formed, a group of beings called the Guardians of the Universe used the green essence of willpower to create an intergalactic police force called the Green Lantern Corps. They split the universe into 3,600 sectors, with one Green Lantern per sector. One such Green Lantern, Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison) of Sector 2814, defeated the fear-essence being Parallax (voiced by Clancy Brown) and imprisoned him in the Lost Sector on the ruined planet Ryut. However, in the present day, Parallax escapes from his prison. Six months later, after killing four Green Lanterns and destroying two planets, Parallax attacks Sector 2814 and mortally wounds Abin Sur, who escapes and crash-lands on Earth. The dying Abin Sur commands his ring to find a worthy successor on the planet.Ferris Aircraft test pilot Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) is chosen by the ring and transported to the crash site, where Abin Sur appoints him a Green Lantern, by telling him to take the lantern and speak the oath. At home he says the oath of the Green Lanterns while under trance from the glow of the lantern. After he's attacked while leaving a bar Jordan swings to punch one of his attackers, letting out a huge fist of green energy. Afterward, Jordan is whisked away to the Green Lantern Corps home planet of Oa, where he meets and trains with Tomar-Re (voiced by Geoffrey Rush) and Kilowog (voiced by Michael Clarke Duncan). He encounters Corps leader Sinestro (Mark Strong), who is not pleased that a human which is primitive compared to other species has become a Green Lantern. With Sinestro seeing him as unfit and fearful, Jordan quits and returns to Earth, keeping the power ring and lantern.Meanwhile, after being summoned by his father Senator Robert Hammond (Tim Robbins) to a secret government facility, scientist Hector Hammond (Peter Sarsgaard) performs an autopsy on Abin Sur's body. A piece of Parallax inside the corpse inserts itself inside Hammond, mutating the scientist and giving him telepathy and telekinetic powers, at the cost of his sanity. After discovering that he was only chosen due to his father's influence, Hammond resentfully attempts to kill his father by telekinetically sabotaging his helicopter at a party. However, Jordan uses his ring to save the senator and the party guests, including his childhood sweetheart, Ferris manager and fellow test pilot Carol Ferris (Blake Lively), who later recognizes Jordan under the suit and mask. Shortly afterward, Jordan encounters Hammond, who succeeds in his second attempt to kill his father by burning him alive. Both Jordan and Hammond realize Parallax is on his way to Earth.Back on Oa, the Guardians tell Sinestro that Parallax was once one of their own, until he desired to control the yellow essence of fear, only to become the embodiment of fear itself. Believing the only means to fight fear is by fear itself, Sinestro requests for the Guardians to forge a ring of the same yellow power, preparing to concede Earth's destruction to Parallax in order to protect Oa. However, Jordan appears and tells Sinestro not to use the yellow ring and for the Corps to help him protect his planet from Parallax's imminent invasion. They deny his request, but allow Jordan to return and protect his home planet.Upon returning to Earth, Jordan saves Ferris from being injected with Parallax's essence by Hammond. Parallax then arrives, consuming Hector's life force for failing to kill Jordan, and then wreaking havoc on Coast City. Jordan lures Parallax away from Earth and toward the Sun, using the Sun's gravity to pull and disintegrate the entity. He loses consciousness after the battle, but is saved by Sinestro, Kilowog, and Tomar-Re. Later the entire Green Lantern Corps congratulates him for his bravery. Sinestro tells Jordan he now bears the responsibility of protecting his sector as a Green Lantern. Sometime later when he is alone, Sinestro, still in possession of the yellow ring, places it on his finger, causing his green suit to change to yellow along with his eyes.

Tags: good versus evil, revenge, boring, psychedelic, flashback

Review:
Unlike Thor and X-Men, The Green Lantern is more kids friendly.The main problem of the film was that they were trying to cram stuff in from the comics and the personal lives of the other characters.
Also the editing gets to be a little distracting at times, they certainly needed to have done a better job, but the editing is mediocre at best.Overall the Green Lantern was a fun summer flick.
As someone who's followed Green Lantern a little bit of a decent amount (not big but fairly decent, for DC character), I liked some things about the movie; but I definitely say that it could have been made better, both for casual fans, non-GL fans or hard core ones.Good points...
(like when there was a build up of momentum, things go slow or boring; or from serious to funny without proper pacing); too many stories were crammed into one movie > Humor was misplaced at times (good peg is Thor which had it in the flow rather than contrived/forced) > Parallax looked comical; scary at times but only a couple of times > Like Iron Man 2, I wish the fight scenes were so much more; they spent too much on the set-up that the fights were short and could have been so much more and elaborate.
> Some scenes and even some characters were not necessary (Hal's best friend, even some scenes with Blake's Carol Ferris were not needed); they should have added more action insteadSummary, visual effects, actors, GL base story good.
This is a summer of superheroes, with 3 down and one more to go (well, technically 5 with Transformers if you're thinking comic book stories), so it's quite impossible not to compare them to each other.The director is known to direct good flicks like Goldeneye and Casino Royale (two good movies), but I wish he did more; studied more, had split up more stories to be more single- minded and not work on a cluttered material..
I was at least interested to see where the movie is going.Let me try to explain this movie: There is this elite group of Green Lanterns led by Sinestro (well played by Mark Strong) who are having a hard time beating this giant alien in the Milky Way called The Parallax.
By the end of the film, I felt like I barely knew the characters, with just a likable performance by Ryan Reynolds.However, Green Lantern isn't boring, just purely average.
I loved this movie and have now seen it many times.I barely remember reading Green Lantern as a kid, but who cares, this was a fun, exciting and impressive movie.Ryan Reynolds was perfect as Hal Jordan, and everyone else was fine also.Special Effects were top-notch.The film still made an impressive $116 million domestically, which shows that many people ignored the ignorant critics.Parallax was a superb creation.I intend to see this film many more times in the future..
A lot of the characters from the comics are in this, there is a "Pieface" but he is not Asian, there is an appearance by Sinestro who in this film is the head of the Green Lantern Corps, which includes veteran Green Lantern Tomar-Re voiced by Geoffery Rush, and Micheal Clark Duncan voicing Kilowog, all much loved GL characters, and the appearance of the Green Lantern Corps was a very good idea.The Guardians of OA looked much like they looked in the comics, they named none of the Guardian Actors save Warren Burton and Salome Jens (who was the main Shape-Shifter in Star Trek: Deep Space 9), the rest of them are, well they are just Guardians.
the evil entity Parallax was voiced by one of my favourite actors, Clancy Brown.As far as Production, some great names popped out during the credits: James Newton Howard did a very good score, on par with his King Kong score, and the whole production was designed by another who worked on King Kong: Oscar winner Grant Major who had that same job in Lord of the Rings trilogy - And the costumes were done by another Lord of the Rings veteran, Ngila Dickson, another Oscar winner.As far as the director, I had never heard of Martin Campbell except for Casino Royale and Vertical Limit, but one name did pop out: Stuart Baird, a veteran Editor, who has edited some great films all the way back to the Donner version of Superman II, Gorillas in the Mist, and of course he directed Star Trek: Nemesis which I rather liked.Green Lantern being one of my favourite comic books when I was a kid, I was very gratified to see this film- They really did not take very many liberties with the stories which they cultivated to make this film, so I give it a 10 - Mostly because I can care less what anyone's lame gripes about this film are, I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was done very well..
Peter Sarsgaard's mad scientist performance was pretty good but the only thing he did in this film is crying in agony and use his telekinesis powers in a lame way."Green Lantern" just wanted to show its beautiful visuals.
I think the cast did the best that they could with the corny lines and terrible writing.Ryan Reynolds was believable as Hal Jordan, Blake Lively was exceptional in her role (which primarily involved looking pretty which she is good at) and Mark Strong as Sinestro was flawless.
The Good: Ryan Reynolds as Hal Jordan, the visuals, the action, the other Lanterns (Abin Sur, Tomar-Re, Kilawog & Sinestro), Hector Hammond & Parallax and the forge of the yellow power ring.The Flaws: It's slightly grounded, not much screen time for the other Lanterns especially against Parallax and short of a space opera like theme.
I've been a long time Green Lantern fan and the story line is a great adaptation from the comics.
The scenes of Hal moping, are set against the scenes with us finding out that Hammond, already a creepy, sullen character before his head swells, doesn't get on with Dad, who himself is grease ball politician.Remember Spider-Man 2 where Alfred Molina's Doc Ock had a pathos to his story which created a sense of sympathy for him and how that made for such a layered and involving villain, none of that here thank you very much.The entire "i hate you dad" routine is old, old hat, but something fresh or dramatic could have been made of it, but instead the "i'm sensitive and dad's overbearing" tentpole is hammered into the ground, aided by awful dialogue and choppy scene structure.The editing (amazing considering it was Stuart Baird) in these middle scenes was staccato in tone and numbing, it earned no sympathy for either character and therefore sabotaged any hope of an emotional pay off at the end of the film.Superman's first appearance on Earth in the Donner version had you cheering, as Superman saves our feisty, likable damsel in distress Lois Lane, from a nasty helicopter crash, in front of a diverse social cross section of the good people of Metropolis.
Green Lantern's first appearance on Earth leaves you cold, as he saves an already established grease ball politician, from a nasty helicopter crash, in front of a gathering of over-achievers and posh-knobs who frankly you couldn't give a tinkers cuss about.My abiding memory of the entire Hammond sub-plot is Peter Sarsgaard holding his head in his hands and moaning, which is ironic as i joined him in this action at numerous points.Most unforgivable of all even the action scenes were flat and lifeless and when considering what Hal's character can do with his ring, thats just not acceptable.On the up side, Oa was very impressive, there are some good effects and Ryan Reynolds and Mark Strong do their best to carry it off, but they are let down by other badly handled elements.Mum always said: "If you've got nothing good to say, say nothing at all!", and mum's usually right, but in this case it cost me £15, so sorry Mum, i'm speaking my Brains !!.
I just watched this new Green Lantern film on VCD just a few days ago, and I figure this one has pretty much everything people can expect from a super hero movie.
If you're director Martin Campbell and you've impressed everyone with movies like Edge of Darkness and Casino Royale, but secretly hate super hero movies and Hollywood producers with an insane cunning, and really want to make an expensive pile of fail, you'd have made "Green Lantern".The short review - don't waste your money on this unless you *literally* have nothing better to do than watch paint dry.
It's almost as if someone set out to create an all-star team of the most clichéd and bland writers they could get.Super hero movies are experiencing a golden age - for the first time, CGI has gotten to the point where comic books can make the transition to the big screen and be something to actually take seriously and not just as entertainment for children.
The intergalactic league of superheroes known as the Green Lantern Corps is DC's answer to Marvel's dominance in the comic-book superhero genre, and given the 70 years of history that the Green Lanterns have, you'd think that they would stand a pretty good chance to give the incumbent a run for their money.Alas that is sadly not to be, as Martin Campbell's adaptation turns out to be at best a mediocre attempt to launch a major fantasy action hero franchise.
Like Iron Man or Thor, Green Lantern was a second-tier DC character- unlike Batman or Superman for instance- so there was the unenviable task of introducing the Green Lantern Corps to many (like this reviewer) who had not read a single page of the comic books.This first movie was going to have to be an origin story, and that alone explains the lengthy exposition at the beginning explaining the origin of the power of the Lanterns, the planet Oa on which the Lanterns gather, as well as the Lanterns' arch-enemy Parallax.
The film features some of the most interesting and stunning visuals I've seen in a while, certainly streaks ahead of this years previous comic book offerings X-Men: First Class and Thor, but, regrettably, the quality of the visuals can't make up for the muddled plot and dreadful pacing issues, particularly in the film's conclusion.There is a lot that Campbell gets right with Green Lantern.
It is however spectacularly geeky, and as much as certain core fans will undoubtedly be crying for more of this style in future comic adaptations, conservative studio thinking is likely the reason we'll never see a Green Lantern movie set entirely off-Earth.Green Lantern, despite all it has going for it visually, falls down at the story level, perhaps an effect of having four writers working on the script at various times.
I wish I could say that I loved it and that it makes me want to know more about Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern comics, but it just doesn't.Unfortunately, there just seemed to be too many missteps in the movie, including the pace, the sound in the theater, and the oh-so-mellow acting.I'm not sure I can blame the actors, but I know the screenplay didn't help.
What is up with professional movie critics like the dick at the Times who said Green Lantern was bad?
Well,I was one of those lucky enough to be in the advanced screening for this movie.Being a GL fan & the bashing it was subjected to whether it was criticism for the tone among numerous others,I had my reservations.But being a fan of Geoff John's work & the genius that's Martin Campbell,I decided to give it a chance.This is perhaps the best superhero movie since Superman(1978).Yes,I know there's Spiderman,The Dark Knight and many others but GL is the proper summer superhero spectacle.The doubtful superhero who lives up to become the legend he's destined to be,the ideal lady-love and the textbook super-villain,Green Lantern reminded me of how my Dad narrated me about viewing Superman on the big-screen.Ryan Reynolds is the ideal superhero,which is refreshing to see,after so many self-doubting self-loathing superheroes the rival studios have put on the big screen.Peter Sarsgaard's performance is nothing short of spectacular,which is amazing.What was most surprising is how good Blake Lively's Carol Ferris is,giving an emotional subtext to a 2D character is tough,but Lively does it with ease.Fans won't be disappointed.When Warner's declared they needed a franchisee to replace Harry Potter & GL is a viable one,I was skeptical.Now,not so much.9/10.
I know Green Lantern's kinda predicated on computer generated animation, and to be fair I'd say some of what I saw in this film was pretty neat-lookin', but banking on people being too distracted by shiny rings and race cars to notice all the other crap I'm about to rail on that made this film awful - that's just bad business.There was a good actor in this movie.
When you make a Green Lantern movie, you have to put a guy in that suit that commands respect, not the dude who played Van Wilder in Van Wilder.There were a few points in the film where the people around me cracked up, presumably when they weren't supposed to, like when Hector Hammond screams like a girl, or when Reynolds tried to do the Bale Batman thing and talk in a deep voice to his throwaway female lead in that throwaway identity reveal scene in the middle of the movie.
Not even the trailers, the toys, the game, the book about the movie, or anything impressed me.And I even saw Battle:L.A. to be honest it was exactly like watching that movie again just put into a utterly not well thought about script along with cheesy dialog,poor robotic direction, and enough laughable action and acting to call this a *Last Airbender Repeat*3-D as far as the 3-D desperately tried to save the film it did well not either, yes another worthless 3-D superhero movie since the Green Hornet.*I'm not gonna spoil it for those Die Hard Fans of the Comic Book Hero*I am also a HUGE fan of the Green Lantern but this just was a disaster.Straight Up one of the worst movie of the summer worthy of competing with Mars Needs moms and Red Riding hood for worst Picture.
They didn't even destroy the ring!"My answer was "What letter of the word TRILOGY you didn't understand?""Green Lantern" is CLEARLY the STARTING POINT for an epic story that will continue developing in its sequels (just like "Star Wars: A New Hope").So if you have been worrying thinking this is a mess, trust me: it is NOT...
To me, better than "Thor" and on the same level as "X-Men: First Class."Ryan Reynolds suits the role perfectly as Hal Jordan, and you can definitely see a process in him, his journey to become a hero as he deals with his own fears.Blake Lively is really hot and delivers a right performance, much to be developed in further sequels too.Mark Strong and Peter Saarsgard are great.
They hit the spot perfectly in their roles.This movie is definitely now on the top of my FAVORITE superhero films.Said again, "Green Lantern" isn't about dark realism and crime, like Batman, it's about...
Before reviewing Green Lantern I would like to give reminders of DC movies and as a major comic book fan it is also important.
just because there is a comic book about the green lantern doesn't make the film any better or save it in any way ...
The always impressive Ryan Reynolds was great in the lead role of Hal Jordan who has been chosen as the new green lantern.
Directed by Martin Campbell, Green Lantern fell into the formula and burden of having to tell an origin story, and this one here just did it by the book, weaving in the iconic scenario where Abin Sur (voiced by Temuera Morrison) crash lands onto Earth and Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) got selected by the green ring to bear it as the Corps' latest recruit, and in this film version, much against his wishes since it called for great responsibility.
The danger here was always going to be the decision whether to throw all the eggs in the basket and hit us with the best green lantern has to offer in terms of powers and his ultimate nemesis or to play it slowly and open up a potential franchise.The writer(s) here obviously wanted to make an attempt at the latter and i thought it was a commendable effort even if it did sometimes feel like it was labouring in places and rushing in others.Its hard to put a finger on exactly what they did wrong, they certainly got more right than other films in this genre recently and have brought another superhero to the big screen which should be and sort of is a good thing.First off i like Ryan Reynolds as an actor, he has a good ability for comedic turns and yet also able to bring emotion to his roles.
To start with I wasn't really a fan of The Green Lantern in comic books or was hyped to see the movie when I saw the trailer for this superhero.
This is basically the origin story for Hal Jordan aka Green Lantern(Ryan Reynolds) and it's a decent start if this becomes a franchise.6.9/10.
Last night, I went to see this movie in theaters and it took 10 years for DC Comics to line up our heroes from the Justice League of America was the front-runner Green Lantern to become a live action motion-picture film.
I'm sure that the Comic Book fans won't be disappointed with Ryan Reynolds playing the Green Lantern..