A MIGHTY FILM | 'Power Rangers' Review
‘Power Rangers’ breathes new life into the fun and cheesy 90’s television series for a new generation. The concept is simple. Five ‘teens with attitude’ find five different coloured ‘coins’ that give them powers and the ability to fight.
The teens must first overcome their personal challenges before they can overcome the greater evil threatening to destroy the Earth.
What could potentially have been a cinematic mess resulted in a truly enjoyable action film for all ages.
The film starts off with what appears to be a prank, as Jason (played by Australian actor Dacre Montgomery) and a friend are seen leading a cow into a locker room. A police chase ensues, and the teens try to avoid capture. But unfortunately, Jason crashes the pick-up truck he driving and is caught red-handed. Due to his unlawfulness, Jason is forced to attend a Saturday class for delinquents.
The audience is then introduced to Kimberley (played by English actress Naomi Scott) who quickly ignores Jason and Billy (RJ Cyler). Billy is portrayed as an easy target in class before the teacher arrives, before Jason stands up for Billy and forging their bond in the film.
After class, Billy invites Jason to his house with gratitude, making the deal that if Jason drives him somewhere, he can have the van for the night.
Later that night, Jason and Billy head off to the gold mine on the outskirts of town where Billy begins to set up explosives at a particular spot. All five teens are now gathered where the explosion occurs, with Zach (Ludi Lin) and Trini (Becky G) now appearing, drawn to the noise.
As they recover from the dust, each finds ‘coins’ before having to run off from security trying to find the source of the noise. The next few days, each member discovers they are stronger and agree to go back to the mine to find out more.
Upon their return, the teens discover a spaceship and the robot Alpha (voiced by Bill Hader). Alpha informs them that they he has been waiting for the five to arrive, and activates Zordon (played by Bryan Cranston) who informs them that they are the Power Rangers.
Zordon warns the teens of an imminent evil named Rita Repulsa (played by Elizabeth Banks) who must be destroyed before she retrieves a crystal that could give her power to create and destroy life.
The actors’ performances are highly enjoyable, with the strongest performances being Cyler (Billy) and Scott (Kimberley).
Lin (Zach) and G (Trini) have their moments throughout the film, but the balance of trying to fit in five simultaneous character arcs accompanied by the progress of the villain leaves these two with the least amount of screen time; thus, some of Zach and Trini’s moments seem a little forced.
Dacre is fine in the role of Jason, though hard to sympathise with at times.
Cranston, Hader and Banks all suit their characters well. Rita has always been a very ‘camp’ character, and Banks delightfully brings a good balance of fear and cheesiness to her role.
Visually, select camera shots were distracting at times. Some shots (occurring mostly with Jason) switch suddenly to a ‘Go-Pro’ style, which was not shown again after the first fifteen minutes.
The soundtrack had its moments, but often sounded a little jarring with the scenes onscreen at the time.
Throughout the film, the story felt as though it was being spoon-fed to the audience, such as many of the family interactions for each of the five characters. These moments often felt forced, though those between Zach and his mother were arguably the strongest.
The citizens of Angel Grove often appeared as lost sheep rather than people who lived in the town, which could be comical at times, though distracting at others.
Films often feel incomplete without a little product placement, and the strongest example in this film is Krispy Kreme - a bit too comical though, making us wonder just how much the brand paid to appear in the film.
All in all, ‘Power Rangers’ is an enjoyable film for all ages, and included enough nostalgia for fans of the original ‘Mighty Morphin’ Saga, and enough of a backstory for new fans who weren’t familiar with the television series.
For a fun action film that will allow you to switch off, this is definitely one worth checking out.
‘Power Rangers’ is in cinemas now!
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