Men in Black Ranking

Last week, Sarah and I decided to watch the Men in Black films. With the summer blockbuster movie season kicking off, I thought now would be a good time to share my thoughts and ranking of the Men in Black franchise. The Men in Black franchise has always been a lot of fun. I find the movies very funny and really enjoy the alien aspects of the film. Additionally, Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith are the two standouts of this franchise and make the movies so much more enjoyable with their chemistry and banter. With that being said, here are my thoughts and ranking of the four Men in Black films.

4. Men in Black: International

Easily, the worst film in this franchise is Men in Black: International. It does have a few positives to it. There are a couple of funny moments in the film. Also, visually, the movie just looks a lot better due to the newer technology and the CGI looking less dated. However, aside from that, this movie is just a disappointingly mediocre film. This movie doesn't have any of the charm of the original three films as neither Will Smith nor Tommy Lee Jones are in this film. Most of the time I skip this film as it just doesn't match any of the energy of the original three films. The story is very lackluster and is only memorable for how forgettable it is. The characters are also very bland. After seeing Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson in Thor: Ragnarök, I was hoping the characters were going to be really funny in this film. However, unfortunately, the two do not carry any of the chemistry that they have in that film nor do they bring in any of the energy they have in Thor. In the end, this is a very disappointing sequel that had so much potential given the cast and franchise but ended up being very mediocre.

Score: 6/10 Grade: C+

3. Men in Black 2

Men in Black 2 is the weakest of the original three films while still being very watchable. I really enjoyed the detective story aspect of this movie where Jay and Kay have to find all these clues to discover the mystery that was left behind. It makes the movie feel like a cop show but with aliens which is really interesting. Of course, Kay and Jay's chemistry is just so much fun in this movie especially with Jay having to reshow Kay the ropes of the MIB. Unfortunately, the story itself is pretty lacking in terms of quality. I wasn't a fan of bringing Kay back into the story. I felt it undermined the emotional ending of the last film. I felt the story as a whole just didn't quite capture the charm of the original film. It has some good moments but nothing that reaches the highs of the other films on this list. I also thought the villain was pretty lackluster. She really doesn't do much for the majority of the film and just sends other people to do her job nor is she very menacing or compelling. Finally, I thought the love story subplot was a bit unnecessary. It doesn't really make a lot of sense in terms of Jay's character and I feel like a better story could have been told here. Overall, while this is still a fun movie, it is a major decline in quality from the original film.

Score: 6.5/10 Grade: B-

2. Men in Black

I may get some flack for this but I don't think the original Men in Black is actually the best. I still really enjoy it but it does get slightly edged out. This movie is extremely funny. Will Smith is so charming and can deliver so many fun lines and moments. The best thing about this film is the chemistry between Jay and Kay. The characters bicker and banter back and forth and it is just so fun to watch. The two just work so well together as they are so different and it is just really funny to see them have to figure out how to work together. The world-building in the film is also really well done. We get to explore the organization of MIB and how they operate as well as see the alien side of NYC. The aliens in this movie are also just a lot of fun as we get to see so many unique types of aliens. A lot of them also look pretty good as they are made using practical effects and makeup. The story itself is very simple and that is what works. No extra subplots or anything distracting us from the mission Kay and Jay are on. However, there are a few things that keep this from number one. One issue is that the CGI doesn't exactly hold up. As the movie was made in 1997, some of the CGI looks a little dated and some of the aliens don't look great. I also felt that the morgue character was a bit unnecessary and didn't really add much to the film. In the end, the original Men in Black is a great film and a classic but has a few small issues that keep it from the top of the list.

Score: 8/10 Grade: B+

I. Men in Black 3

Men In Black 3 just slightly edges out the original Men in Black. I really enjoy time travel stories so having a Men in Black movie centered around time travel was just perfect for me. I also thought that time travel was a great thing to add to the Men in Black universe and fits well with all of the other crazy technology going on. This movie has the best villain in the franchise as Boris actually has a personal connection to Kay and is driven by getting revenge and saving his race. I also like the 60s feel of the movie. The movie just feels like a time capsule of the 1960s in many aspects. This movie also adds a lot of depth to our characters as we get to see some background on Kay and Jay. With Kay, we get to see some backstory on why he is the way that he is, and with Jay, we get to dive a bit into the issues with his father. This movie also adds in some fun new aliens like Griffin that actually have a role in the story. I also enjoyed how this movie ties the moon launch into the story. I always like when time travel stories tie in historical events. Finally, this movie manages to give some very emotional moments at the end of the story that really grows Kay and Jay's relationship. Overall, this is a fun story in the Men in Black franchise and is also one of my favorite time travel movies.

Score: 8.5/10 Grade: A-