The Green Hornet

Yet more robberies have occurred in the museums of the city and the police have yet again named wanted criminal The Green Hornet as their number one suspect. The Hornet however has no intension of coming down to the station to sort this out but instead releases a statement that he fully intends to clear his name in the usual way – by bringing the real perpetrators to justice himself.

My plot summary suggests that there is story here but really this is pretty much where the "news report" introduction starts us at and what this short is more like is the pre-credits sequence that Bond films deliver (we even get a title sequence at the end of the film). What the rest of the film does is to deliver a couple of cool and stylish fight sequences as part of a bigger chase of the master criminal. So we have the plotting level of a video game beat 'em up, which is normally not a positive thing, however in this type of film I am perfectly fine with that approach. This is not me excusing it in some way or patting it on the head in a patronising manner but rather recognising it for setting out its stall clearly and doing what it planned in an entertaining way.

The fight sequences are well choreographed and filmed so that they are fast, engaging and exciting. Add to this that the post-production has done wonders with a limited budget and indeed (on a small screen) it looks a lot classier and professional than I imagine it was. The credit sequence is classy as well and it is apparent that the makers have a lot of love for the Hornet (even if really he could be any character within this narrative).

Overall then a simple but effective fan film that puts two characters into a chase sequence. The fights are well delivered and the atmosphere and style is appropriate to a "proper" film. Small, but perfectly formed.