Rangers no longer mighty
Latest reboot of teenage superhero franchise just another retread
As part of the continuing wave of ’90s remakes and reboots (Beauty and the Beast, T2 Trainspotting, the
upcoming Ghost in the Shell, Baywatch, Jumanji etc.) comes Power Rangers, who you may notice are no longer Mighty nor “Morphin” — at least according to the new film’s slimmed-down title.
They do remain five teenagers with attitude, however, hailing from the fictional town of Angel Grove, Calif., which had the bad luck of being built atop a 65-million-year-old alien gravesite. Seems that back at the start of the Cenozoic era, a team of humanoid Power Rangers gave their lives defeating an evil entity with the tax accountant name of Rita, played with what-the-heck glee by Elizabeth Banks.
That’s the prologue. If you were watching at home in 1993, you’d then be treated to some ads for Chuck E. Cheese and maybe breakfast cereal. In the cinema, we jump straight to the present day. Fortunately, a brand new humanoid race has arisen on Earth, ready to finish the task the first Power Rangers could not. The recent Wolverine tale Logan nicely proves that not all superhero movies have to follow the same beat-for-beat structure.
Power Rangers, however, is here to let you know that some are still determined to do just that. Mixing Spider-Man origin story ingredients with just a hint of The
Breakfast Club, director Dean Israelite (the kids-with-a-timemachine movie Project Almanac) takes us down the well-trodden path of adolescent heroism.
After meeting in detention, bland football star Jason (Dacre Montgomery) and quirky techhead Billy (RJ Cyler) decide to explore a nearby mining site, joined (for a variety of reasons, not all of them clear) by Kimberly (Naomi Scott), Trini (Becky G) and Zack (Ludi Lin). As in the original series, they’re an ethnic mix, this time with the additional modern wrinkle of a gay character.
An explosion reveals crystals in the rock, and before you know it the five have amazing new powers, including a weird ability to not only survive a car crash but wind up teleported back to their bedrooms. What follows is standard: Billy accidentally knocks out the school bully; everyone tries an awkward flying leap across a canyon; they find a hidden spaceship (call it the U.S.S. Fortress of Solitude); there’s a training montage; and you realize you could write one of these multi-milliondollar movies yourself.
Helping the newly minted Rangers is Bill Hader as the voice of an annoying android named Alpha 5; and Bryan Cranston as the disembodied Zordon. Cranston did a bit of voice work on the TV series back in ’93 and either really loved it or had some sort of perpetual-servitude contract. Whatever the reason, the Oscar nominee is wasted in the thankless role of a floating head.
Did you forget about Rita? You can be forgiven. But she comes back to life, conveniently, at the same time the Power Rangers are discovering their powers, which come with colour-coded armoured suits and dinosaur themed robot vehicles. They’re called Zords and presumably run on fossil fuels. She’s after something called the zeo crystal, which sounds like a second-rate energy drink but can in fact destroy all life on Earth.
Power Rangers, which culminates in a remarkably bloodless, quiet battle (not sure why it took five writers to craft this stuff), seems uncertain about its intended audience. Those looking for an ironic take on the admittedly cheesy original will find it too earnest; it’s too tame for anyone wanting a grittier modern style; and kids not versed in the show’s backstory may find little of interest. It’s just silly enough to annoy viewers, without enough crack-pottery to amuse them.
It’s worth noting that Zordon hands down rules for the Rangers. They are forbidden to use their powers for personal gain; to escalate a fight; or to reveal their true identities. They are not, however, banned from sequels. So be warned: Sometimes, with great power comes irresponsibility.