Green Lantern -- The movie, the verdict. *Spoiler Alert*

I've loved green lantern since I was a kid, and though I never followed him regularly (Marvel fan for the most part), the character has always had a place in my heart.  Why?  Because of two things ... best costume in the DC Universe.. something about the green and black, just looks cool; and the variety of strange and wondrous aliens within the comic book.   I've always loved hard-core scifi, and in comics, you can't get more hardcore scifi than green lantern ... except maybe the micronauts, but that's another story.    Anyway, rambling on, I finally got to see the brand spank'n new Green Lantern movie, and I'm really glad I did.   Not because it's a perfect movie, because it's not, but more so because I see the potential in it's spin off, and I liked what it did right more than it did wrong.

First: what was NOT good about the movie:   - Music: There were times throughout the movie, where the music tried to force you into those superman moments, I mean note for note you can remember tunes from the original Donner movies.    For me, its an epic fail.   Superman is Superman, don't try to rip off the emotional undertones from that movie.

Also, space is a quiet place, and vast.    The music took away from the epicness of space.    You remember the scene from Galaxy Quest, where Tim Allen's character was in space?   He came to the realization that he REALLY was in space.    He was all alone on top of a spaceship, looking into the vast ...well vastness of space!  There was a sense of awe, and no matter what you thought of the movie, those silent few seconds you could put yourself into that character!   Well, that's what this movie needed more of.  Silence, a chance to see how cool space was.   A sense of awe.   I didn't get that.   In a movie where people can 'fly in space', you would think that there would be an expression of how cool space was/is.

Secondly, Acting:   When Ryan Renolds is the cornerstone of acting in this flick, you cringe.  Oh do you cringe.  Seriously, I think I've seen better acting in fan films.    Probably the worst of it came from the primary love interest of Blake Lively's character Carol Ferris.   She plays ...basically Hal Jordan's boss.   She has no strength in playing that role.   Also the development of their relationship was way to quick, even though you have a strong  hint that there was a history between the two.     There were a couple funny moment between them, but that's about it.    Ryan was a pretty good Green Lantern, and I also enjoyed the performance of Mark Strong (Sinestro), and Temuera Morrison (Abin Sur).    But the rest was 'meh'.

Thirdly, the city:  What is the name of the city?   I wish Hal did some saving of people in the city like most hero movies.   It just makes the city become more ... alive.

Despite these things, I still liked the movie.    It is a must see for comic book geeks.   Just don't expect it to blow you away.   I liked the training of Hal Jordan, and some of the ring effects were just really spot on.   Ryan Renolds did bring some great humor, and I think that his performance did bring it out of the mire.        I do hope that there is a sequel, that Warner Bros. does back it up, but I think that they need to find a Director that is willing to make the story and action bigger than this movie ended up being.    Someone who has the willpower to make Green Lantern reach its potential.

**Ed Note**  Ok, so I saw the movie twice now, and its growing on me bit by bit.   I'm appreciating the main villain more, though alot of people won't like him, I sort of get it .. and the end battle is probably better than most 1st hero movies.