Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth have proven to be an all-star blockbuster duo since their debut together in Thor: Ragnarok. They looked to carry their charisma into the 4th entry of the Men in Black franchise, Men In Black: International. Yet their proven chemistry could not stop this Will Smith-less sequel from being a movie that’s just… a movie.
After 20 years of searching for the secret government agency that neuralized her parents, Molly (Thompson) finds and is recruited to the Men in Black as Agent M. She is sent to the London office and team up with Agent H (Hemsworth) to track down a possible mole in their organization.
In the first 10 minutes, Thompson has a lot of fun on the road to becoming an MIB agent. After an intriguing interaction with Emma Thompson’s Agent O there is a bit of the nostalgia of the first film’s charm. But the reliance on bringing back good memories doesn’t work when everything about the movies is unmemorable. All too familiar special effect laden cars take us to the London office filled with all too familiar aliens to meet Chris Hemsworth playing his Man in Black version of Thor Odinson. The MCU character’s shadow eclipsed anything unique that the main duo could have brought to their characters. Instead, we retread waters that have been visited again and again since Ragnarok feeling like we have seen these performances more than one too many times.
Moving from one location to another, the Agents try to track down the shapeshifting antagonists played by world renown French dance duo, Les Twins (brothers Larry and Laurent Bourgeois). Aside from one line, the twins focused more on their impeccable dance skills rather than building depth. The movie’s script followed this trend, moving from one event to another without leaving any time to build emotion. From the newest bite-sized sidekick in Kumail Nanjiani’s Pawny to Agent H’s mentor in Liam Neesum’s Agent High T, very talented actors say things and go places to defeat villains and solve mysteries. Throw in the occasionally funny quip and telegraphed twist, and the characters go through the motions without any heart or soul.
Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones captured our hearts in 1997 with their opposites attract dynamic moving an entertaining plot forward in an interesting world our eyes were yet big enough to behold. Men in Black: International had all the pieces to repeat this winning formula, but fell short in every aspect. Nothing on the screen makes you wish you never saw the movie, but it’s as if someone neuralizes you the second you leave the theater. The acting is unremarkable, the action is unexceptional, and the world is uninspiring. Men in Black: International is not a horrible movie, it’s just forgettable. Which may be a bit worse. I am giving MIB: International 5/10 big ol’MEHs.