Anthony's Film Review - Men in Black II (2002)

The sequel to Men in Black is a disappointing and uninspired movie...

To be honest, I never really thought Men in Black needed a sequel. The way that movie ended was fine and best left at that. Regardless, the money-making machine known as Hollywood is always cranking out the cash in any way possible, and that includes unnecessary movie sequels. Men in Black II is one of them. The only reason I saw the movie was because a friend chose the movie the night we saw it. Had the decision been up to me, I would have picked something else.

But enough of that. Let's talk about why Men in Black II was a letdown. First off, the characters. The two actors whom I think had the most potential are Will Smith and Lara Flynn Boyle. Will Smith reprises his role as Agent J in a performance that is neither better nor worse than in the first Men in Black movie. Lara Flynn Boyle plays the human form of the alien named Serleena that arrives on Earth. Basically, their performances are OK not because of their efforts but because of the mediocre script they were given.

The rest of the cast is no doubt forgettable. Rosario Dawson has a role that is unmemorable and makes no sense late in the movie. And no, I have not forgotten about Tommy Lee Jones as Agent K. Surprisingly, I expected a lot more out of him. I was left wondering what he was doing in the movie. How he enters the story seems very uninspired, and his appearance is missing the interesting persona he had in the first movie. When you have a main star who's supposed to really act like one of the main stars but doesn't, you know it's a sign that the movie is going downhill.

Everything else is what you expect. The special effects are fine. No problem there. You know, I just can't help but keep talking about the characters. As long as I've just mentioned special effects, here's one more character I had a problem with. There is a talking dog in this movie. A character like that could be a great source for humor and perhaps excitement by diving into action scenes. Instead, this dog is not funny and doesn't really do anything exciting.

There are so few hits and so many misses with Men in Black II. My experience seeing the movie in the theater could be described as follows: not expecting much, watching a third of the movie, saying "whatever," repeat. So this was not one of the better moviewatching experiences I've had, and since I did pay an admission price, I did wish I could get a refund. Anyway, given the quality of this movie, I better not see a Men in Black III. Men in Black II was already needless to begin with.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about Men in Black II, visit the Internet Movie Database.

In addition, check out my review of Men in Black, Men in Black 3, and Men in Black: International.