Men in Black: International

photo courtesy of amctheatres.com

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

     Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth reunite for Men in Black: International, the first Men in Black movie since Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones hung up their sunglasses in 2012. International follows Agent M (Thompson) and Agent H (Hemsworth) on a mission to stop a new and terrifying alien threat known as the Hive. Along the way, they’ll recover a powerful intergalactic weapon, make some new friends (like Kumail Nanjiani’s Pawny), and learn a few difficult truths about themselves.

     Men in Black: International makes for a perfectly easy-going two-hour diversion. It might not be essential viewing, but the chemistry between Thompson and Hemsworth, first paired in Thor: Ragnarok (2017), elevates it above a typical action comedy. Plus, you know, aliens and stuff.

photo courtesy of collider.com

     Full disclosure: I’ve only seen one of the other Men in Black movies, so it’s possible that fans of the originals might not appreciate the same novelty in International, which serves as a soft reboot/launching pad for future franchise installments. But for me, International felt fun, carefree, and refreshingly mild—a sort of no-strings-attached adventure story we don’t get enough of in the Marvel-saturated, 2019 market.

     The story consists of pretty much what you’d expect, a mystery narrative punctuated with alien tech-infused action beats and a predictable third-act twist. International limits character development to a minimum, opting to keep things breezy. There are a lot of jokes, mostly from Hemsworth, who proved his comedy chops in Ghostbusters (2016) and the later Thor movies, and comedy veteran Nanjiani. Neither the story nor the humor end up being revolutionary, per se, but they get the job done—especially for kids.

photo courtesy of ign.com

     International’s greatest asset, by far, is the Thompson-Hemsworth duo. They’re the kind of charismatic actors you can throw into just about any scenario and enjoy watching them work it out. If anything, they’re too good for the likes of International, which ultimately has too much going on to let them reach their full potential. Still, it’s hard to not get a kick out of them all decked out in suits and shades, kicking alien ass and saving the day.

     FINAL VERDICT: Men in Black: International is an entertaining, undemanding action flick, but not required reading.

Men in Black: International is rated PG-13 for sci-fi action, some language, and suggestive material.

TRAILER