MIB International is classed as a spin-off from the first trilogy (one can presume that Will Smith’s Agent K is pootling around somewhere) and has a relatively good stab at giving the franchise space to expand into the (ironically) new universe it finds itself in.
This crime/buddy caper contains all the same ingredients as before, is built for a much more inclusive new generation, but misses the sardonic wit of its predecessors.
Leading the fray are two actors not shy of an cgi-heavy franchise. Thor himself Chris Hemsworth is H, London’s top agent and Tessa Thompson (Marvel’s Valkyrie) is Molly, or M – a new recruit, who witnessed an event as a young girl and has spent her life trying to get a job there.
They find themselves partnered, investigating the death of an important alien whilst also trying to work out if there’s something or someone rotten within MIB itself.
There’s no real mention of the original trilogy in this expansion (save for a rather cool oil painting) but it tries to carry the same tone, doing it’s best to subvert the rather masculine elements of the Tommy Lee Jones/Will Smith buddy-up.
The supporting cast are pretty OK I suppose. Emma Thompson reprises her ‘O’, the head of the US branch who’s painfully aware of the need to modernise (when Molly ponders the name Men In Black – O responds with “It’s a process, they have attachment issues”), Liam Neeson is ’T’ – head of UK branch (despite fans asking Sony to remove him after his PR gaffe earlier this year), Rebecca Ferguson appears as Riza, an underwhelming baddie – but it’s Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick) who voices Pawny, a hilarious sidekick, that steals the show.
Sadly, it simply isn’t as funny or thrilling as you want it to be. The plot is cumbersome, clunky and obvious – and the two leads aren’t given nearly enough freedom to explore any potential chemistry.
Tessa Thompson will always be the best thing about whatever she’s in and is no exception here – but I felt sorry for Hemsworth who really needs to get a role that doesn’t require him simply to be a less-funny Thor.
It borrows from too many other films (Terminator, Matrix, Monsters Inc) and the inevitable twists were guessed by the audience a good hour before the reveal. It[s a shame they makers chose this relatively straight route as I was intrigued to see what the MIB/21 Jump Street crossover was going to look like.
Announced in 2016, the prospect of an adult rated alien film with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum as dunce cops sounded too good to be true – and judging by this – was. A shame.
MIB International will possibly keep the fire burning for future attempts, but they’re going to have to do better than this. It’s OK I suppose, nothing more nothing less.
