Starring Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Linda Fiorentino, Rip Torn, Vincent D'Onofrio. Written by Ed Solomon. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld.
From the director of Get Shorty, Men In Black is a black comedy based on a comic book that takes for granted that not only have aliens landed on earth, but that about 1500 are living on the planet disguised as humans, most of them in New York City. And a secret government agency, the Men in Black, knows about it, keeps tabs of alien landings and where the aliens have settled, and what they are up to. When a new alien lands, MIB agents go out to investigate, and if necessary clear the minds of citizens who have seen the aliens with a neat little memory erasing pen. Of course, sometimes people get to the media agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) describes as the ones who best report the truth: The National Enquirer and other tabloids.
The special effects are excellent, but not overpowering as in some recent action- adventure thrillers. Worm-like aliens pouring coffee, alien immigrants and gadgets in the MIB secret headquarters and an excellent saucer crash scene into the dirt stand out. And a ton of references are all over the film - The Beatles White Album, Dragnet, Casablanca and aliens planted on earth such as Elvis ("he just went home"), Dennis Rodman and Newt Gingrich (the latter two make sense). The actors play everything entirely straight - this ain't a Jim Carrey slapstick-fest. You have to pay attention to catch the references and the jokes subtly delivered. Will Smith's wisecracking rookie agent is a perfect compliment to outstanding straight man Tommy Lee Jones, who shows surprising comic timing. Linda Fiorentino is great as the coroner who keeps examining dead aliens - she's very funny among other things. The script is sharp and well-written, the characters are well-developed and interesting, people you come to like and understand a bit by the end of the film. The only problem is the story. So much attention was given to getting the jokes right and showcasing the aliens, that the story, and the eventual showdown with the bad alien are not very satisfying. As a matter of fact, the movie barely passes the hour-and-a-half mark - it feels too short. But overall, this one is lots of fun.
