Power Rangers Go, Go To A Bad Place
In the last decade and a half it seems like Hollywood had wasted no time making big budgets versions of precious childhood memories, to varying effect. So it was only a matter of time before Mighty Morphin Power Rangers received the cinematic reboot treatment. This is a project that I have been following closely for 2 years, as a fan of both Power Rangers and its source material Super Sentai.
Both franchises have always had very bare bones plots, and the 2017 reboot is no exception; Five teenagers with attitude (Naomi Scott was cast as Kimberly, and Becky G. as Trini. Newcomers Dacre Montgomery, Ludi Lin and RJ Cyler were then cast as Jason, Zack, and Billy, respectively) are inexplicably brought together by coincidence or destiny to become the newest generation in a line of warriors on behalf of the ancient being Zordon (Bryan Cranston), known as the Power Rangers. The world rests in their hands as Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks), a powerful witch and former ally of Zordon, launches an assault seeking the Zeo Crystal with an army of stone golems called Putties and a giant golden monster called Goldar.
Basic struggle of good and evil, how could they mess that up? Well as the saying goes, if there’s a will, there’s a way, and Power Rangers finds many ways.
Lion’s Gate decided to make it PG-13, which I can only assume is because they still want to sell toys to kids and be edgy at the same time, because that worked so well for Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The film’s rating is at the nerve center of its problems, it gives way to things like bland visuals for the sake of seeming more mature and serious, opportunities to force in innuendo that is anything but subtle, and worst of all tired melodrama that fails to make you feel connected to the cast in anyway.
Power Rangers runs in at a whopping 124 minutes; 94 of those minutes feel in no way like the IP this movie trying to reboot. The entire first act feels like a modern-day take on The Breakfast Club, with the exception of the opening scene. No, the opening scene decided to sequel bait, and unless you are a fan of the original series it might go over your head. The second act basically ripped off Chronicle and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, including Jason checking out his new abs, freaking out in his bedroom over what he’s capable of, playing around with their abilities, and all five teenagers with (WAY TOO MUCH) attitude still remaining chaotic neutral. And bear in mind that this all takes place in the amount of time that most movies have ended, the entire team doesn’t actually morph until the final battle, because I guess the writers remembered that this was a Power Rangers movie just before the last 3 pages of the script were written.
This movie has no idea what audience it was intended for. As I mentioned earlier there is a point early on where one guy makes a thoroughly inappropriate joke, we have Billy making awkward jokes about the mean nicknames kids used to call him and later on the cops are on a manhunt for Rita Repulsa. I often wondered if I was even watching the same movie at times.
Not morphin’ into likable characters
I tried not dismissing the personalities of the Rangers themselves too much, seeing as this is an adaptation. But aside from the fact that Billy was the only one seemed to be a decent person, the other four seemed to fit some sort of self-absorbed teenage stereotype. Never once did I find myself thinking, “Yeah, I’d put my life in their hands.” They simply go from selfish to noble with no visible transition, and for basic storytelling, that is inexcusable. Zordon felt more like a perpetually disappointed father who wishes he could put his team up for adoption, than a caring mentor who held all life sacred, by far he was the least likable person in this cast. Bill Hader’s Alpha 5 was the only character that had any real charm, shifting seamlessly between dramatic and comedic scenes; he deserves his own spinoff film.
The visuals were a mixed bag, while the suits were hideous knockoffs of Iron Man’s Mark III armor, I found myself not hating the look of the Dino Zords, or it’s combined MegaZord form (which looks far worse as a toy.). You can tell that what little budget Power Rangers had went to the CGI, because for all its faults, the effects were impressive.
As a fan, I found myself being insulted by all of the third act’s pandering, as if Lion’s Gate was apologizing for wasting 90 minutes of my life focusing on ridiculous teen melodrama in this film. They cram it all in too, from the theme song of the original movie, to cameos from original TV cast members. It all felt forced, but that simply how I felt as longtime fan. Fanservice is like seasoning, it works best when dispersed evenly throughout the dish, not just plopped onto one section.
Power Rangers fails as a movie, because it’s trying so hard to be different that it almost forgets its roots, mature themes in the tokusatsu (live action special effects film) genre are not uncommon, but they never forget that deep down these are stories of heroism, even at their darkest motif. They don’t always get it right much like this film, but as harsh I am being with this film I will commend Power Rangers for its effort. However if this is start of a larger franchise it has a lot to prove.
All in all a 2 out of 5.
