Not since Marty McFly sent streaks of fire hurtling through the streets of 1955 Hill Valley has a method of time travel been so exciting. In “Men in Black III,” alien-hunting MiB Agent J (Will Smith, of course) time jumps: he climbs to the 61st floor of the Chrysler Building, steps out to the edge of a stainless-steel eagle head, pops on a pair of goggles and takes a leap of faith. Like Doc Brown’s trusty DeLorean, the time-travelling gizmo clenched between Agent J’s fingers must reach a certain velocity if it is to activate, which Agent J achieves just two feet from the New York City sidewalk. It is of note that all of this occurs against the spectacular backdrop of a full-scale alien invasion.
This is one of several thrilling sequences in Barry Sonnenfeld’s mixed bag of a sci-fi comedy threequel, which lands 15 years after its dazzling original and a full decade after its dire predecessor. Another thrilling sequence is the opening, which sees butt-ugly alien prisoner Boris the Animal (Jemaine Clement of “Flight of the Conchords” fame) effortlessly escaping from the maximum-security Lunar Max prison facility on the Moon. The last of the Boglodite species, the one-armed Boris is dead-set on wiping out Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones, “No Country for Old Men”), the man who years ago robbed him of his freedom and of his aforementioned appendage. (Continue Reading…)
(Six outta Ten)
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