By Mike McCarthy
Usually the summer is when all of the blockbuster movies come out, but this year springtime is where it’s at. Logan and Beauty and the Beast have dominated the box office and now it’s Morphin Time. The Power Rangers have become revitalized in this new film about their origin story. Was definitely better than we expected as a whole, but could’ve been better in some particular ways.
The acting by the five major characters ( Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Ludi Lin and Becky G) was on point and definitely kept us in the film. Their roles as teens with attitudes was great and made for a more believable film. Add in some smartass jokes and comedy by the five of them and by Alpha Five voiced by Bill Hader and it took the film to another level. Bring in the advising by Zordon played by the great Bryan Cranston and the villainous vixen Rita played by Elizabeth Banks and it fills out a fantastic cast that pulled everything together.
The storyline of how the Power Rangers meet each other is a little ridiculous and Breakfast Clubesque. Jason, Kimberly and Billy become more acquainted in detention when Jason takes on a bully for Billy and Kimberly cuts her hair off in the bathroom after being confronted by other cheerleaders. And Zack and Trini are outcasts that just happen to be in the same mining area that the other three are in at the same time. In the show they were all already friends and good kids, not troublemakers. For the purpose of the film, it really helps the characters unify and become Power Rangers and makes for a good plotline.
Esthetics is where Power Rangers kind of fell apart. The look of the suits and the Zords was completely out of whack. Let’s start with the suits… might as well just be an Iron Man suit. The look and design was very much like the Iron Man suits which took away from the appeal a little bit. There were more adults in the theater than kids and I am sure a lot of them were hoping for more classic looks, but that’s neither here nor there. Now the Zords on the other hand were completely crazy. The only one that you could actually tell what it was, was the Tyrannosaurus Rex, maybe the Pterodactyl. The other three Zords (Triceratops, Mastodon and Saber Tooth Tiger) were impossible to tell what they were, especially the Mastodon. The Power Rangers Zords have always been very distinct, which the movie definitely laid flat.
Other than the look of the Power Rangers suits and Zords, the film was better than expected and a good start to what is supposed to be a six film arc. There is a mid-credits scene that you will want to stay and watch and points to what is coming in the next movie. I am sure you all know what it is by now, but stay anyway. Power Rangers is enjoyable for kids and adults alike and even has a couple of cameos of some original Power Rangers that you will want to see. Check it out in theaters now.