Men In Black International review: Tessa Thompson and her ‘pawny’ completely steal Chris Hemsworth’s thunder

Star rating:

The Men in Black has been a much-loved sci-fi action-comedy franchise since Will Smith as Agent J and Tommy Lee Jones as Agent K first wowed the audience in 1997. Now two sequels and 22 years later, we have another spin-off Men In Black: International starring the Thor Ragnarok pair – Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson in the lead alongwith Liam Neeson and Emma Thompson, who are reprising their roles from MIB 3 (2012). This one is directed by F Gary Gray (who had last directed Fast and the Furious’ hit eighth installment The Fate of the Furious) and understandably so, the excitement is on an all-time high. So, does MIB: International live up to the expectations? Read on to find out:

What Men in Black: International is all about:

Ever since a childhood encounter with an alien and consecutively seeing her parents being neuralised by some agents of the secret organisation ‘Men in Black’, Molly dreams of becoming an MIB agent herself. Fascinated by the Universe and growing up with no other passion, but to become a part of the MIB, she somehow manages to find them and their headquarters in New York.

After a series of tests, she is taken on probation as Agent M and sent to the London branch. There, she reports to the head High T (Liam Neeson). She gets herself assigned to work with the hotshot and the best agent in biz, Agent H (Chris Hemsworth). A seemingly routine mission requiring the two agents – H and M – to escort an important alien Vungus (a Jababian royal) ends violently when the royal is killed by a pair of suspected Dyads, wielding some electro-superpowers.

So, all in all, there are these two aliens hunting for something that the two agents were given possession of by the dying Vungus. The agents set out protecting that precious parting gift from falling into the wrong hands – because as you might have guessed already – the humankind’s existence depends on it! But besides the alien attacks, this time, the agents also have to deal with a mole in the MIB itself. So, will the Agents succeed this time around?

Yay:

Tessa impresses in her role as Agent M and grips her character graph tight right till the end. She completely outshines Chris here, who banks heavily on his charm as a star rather than his performance as an actor. We love the banter between the alien ‘Pawny’ (who the two agents befriend in Marrakech) and Chris and Tessa. Pawny (voice-over by Kumail Nanjiani) clearly has the most funny and entertaining, or should we say the only funny lines in the movie.

Emma Thompson particularly is impactful in her brief role and a delight onscreen. Liam Neeson and Rafe Spall as Agent C do just fine. Of course the hi-tech gadgets / guns, the VFX, the CGI, the new aliens, all work just interestingly enough and are strictly up to the mark but none that would make our jaws drop! The rides for the agents – both ‘the bike’ and ‘the car’ however get our thumbs-up. Seeing Indian YouTuber Ashish Chanchalani in a cameo will definitely have many rooting for him. He draws laughter just by being there!

Nay:

Yes, there’s that chemistry between Chris and Tessa that we also saw in Thor Ragnarok. However, under a weak screenplay the fizz is all lost in this one and what could’ve been taken notches higher, limps badly. Chris seems a tad bit too laid-back as Agent H. He’s goofy in parts, but fizzles out rather quick! The action is average and frankly we did expect better from the director. It all boils down to the film suffering due to a weak plot. The film just doesn’t get gripping enough at any point and that’s the biggest fail. Disappointing, because it held much promise and is a much-loved franchise!

CineBlitz Verdict: Well, the film is a let-down if you compare it to the previous MIBs. Will Smith’s wit and swag as Agent J are heavily missed. Though, Chris and Tessa do bring their own charm, they are ineptly supported by a weak story. If you are a fan, you will be sorely disappointed with this one. But the film is entertaining in parts, so just about qualifies for a one-time watch. If you are not a fan, read above, it applies to you too!