Is it Morphin' Time?
I just finished seeing the official relaunch of The Power Rangers. My god, that movie was absolute.....ly fucking amazing. I will discuss the movie below, but will leave out anything that I consider a major plot point that is NOT from the original series. There are several of these that were actually fantastic to see as a welcomed change and update.
Below will be a spoiler-free review of anything that is not considered canon to the original series
I'm not going to lie, I walked into this movie, being a rather large Power Rangers fan, expecting the worst piece of CW dialogue and Transformers level explosions and senseless plot. I was fully expecting the worst of the worst. What I got instead, was a very well written, relatable(minus the whole super hero thing), exciting film.
The story stays fairly true to the original concept. 5 teens, troubled, not really knowing of each other, find magical coins that give them amazing powers.The film does a great job adjusting the base story to the big screen and does a surprisingly great job of removing the cheesiness of the 90's original, while still paying homage. There's enough call backs that fans will be pleased, but quite enough to make it stand on its own. Let's dive into the general plot and then each character.
Angel Grove is still the city setting, however, it's also the name of a Saturday detention center/high school for troubled kids. This is the coincidental connection each of the 5 share. Although we don't see all 5 of them together at this school until the end. The general idea is Rita Repulsa is looking for something buried within the Earth 65 Million years ago that will give her power to destroy worlds. Her goal is to resurrect her beast Goldar (made entirely of gold, get it?) to essentially mine for this magic rock.
Jason Scott. The Red Ranger and leader of the Power Rangers. We see Jason as the star quarterback, but opens with him stealing a cow (including an off-color joke I did not expect that definitely set the tone for the entire movie). It's apparent via a slight voice over and an altercation with the police and scolding from his father that Jason had a perfectly lined up football scholarship that he blew by causing this, and presumably other, mischief. Although they never really dive into it, we learn later in the film that it seems this pressure was too much for him and a path he didn't choose. On his first visit to The Angel Grove School for Wayward Teens, we meet Billy Cranston whom he stands up for when the "tough kid" in detention starts picking on him. I am, however, disappointed that generic bully's name didn't turn out to be Bulk or Skull. Total missed opportunity.
Billy Cranston. Arguable the best character in the entire film. He describes himself as "on the spectrum" and having difficulty discerning sarcasm and humor. He's true to the original Blue Ranger as a nerdy, techy, outsider. But instead of the "ooh, he's a nerd because he has a glasses and talks without contractions" we get something a little more realistic. He has a penchant for technology, saving Jason from a home arrest bracelet, but a charisma about him that's undeniable. We get his back story of his Dad encouraging his genius as they would discover things at the local gold mine(see where this is going?). We also learn that Billy is somewhat of a loner and outcasted himself after his father passed away 7 years prior.
Kimberly Hart. The Pink Ranger was originally depicted as the cute cheerleader, but not so smart. In a WELCOMED change, this Kimberly is actually very real to a teen girl these days. She was brought to Angel Grove School For Misfit Toys after sharing a naked pic of another classmate and then inexplicably punching the guy she shared it to? It got a little confusing to follow that plot line, all we know is that she did something bad and regretted it. We also get the sense that she wanted out of her cookie cutter life as the cheer queen, but not enough so where it matters. Regardless of her vague backstory, probably the vaguest of them all, we still feel for her and you still cheer her on.
Zack Taylor. The Black Ranger. This Zack was reckless, a little crazy at times, and definitely off kilter. He's initially show just sort of wandering the gold mine area, spying on those who happen to visit (Billy often and Trini to do Yoga). We don't even learn that he's a member of Angel Grove's School for the Gifted until halfway through the film. His back story, however, was a touching one. He is the only son caring for an ailing Mother. His outbursts are really just cries for attention and to escape from the inevitability of waking up to a dead Mother. Heavy shit, right?
Trini No-Name. I joke, but to be honest, they didn't even say Trini's first name until much farther into the plot than should've happened AND they even (jokingly) mispronounce it often. To my recollection, they never even say her last name. Trini's character has come under attention lately in the media as it was revealed that her character is openly gay. HOWEVER, much like the much hyped Beauty and The Beast reveal, it's actually quite subtle. She, in passing, mentions her parents not understanding her choices and wishing she'd dress a certain way (she's very tomboyish, if that's even a word anymore). So, we get the implication there. Her character was the most frustrating being the most defiant of all of them to join in and make friends.
Zordon and Alpha 5. They stay very true to the original characters, although we do get substantially more backstory to Zordon than we did in the entire run of the show. If you want a little fan-made fun, check this out. Alpha is silly, belts out his "Ay-Yi-Yi" a few times. Zordon is, however, not as wise old man as we know him. Which works perfectly for how this character is developed. I'll leave it at that.
Rita Repulsa. I love me some Elizabeth Banks. But, man, she was the worst part of this movie. While everyone else around her was really putting in the work of making this a legitimate movie, she was hamming it up. But, it was inconsistent. Sometimes she came of as just down right creepy, and it worked SO WELL. Other times, I was watching a random Japanese woman lip sync random one-liners all over again. Luckily, she isn't a focus in the movie until the second half, and sparingly. That being said, she did not deter me in any way to really, really loving this movie.
There were many moments of laugh out loud comedy (Yippee Ki Ay Mother F..you know, just Mother is fine), and a few moments of tear jerkers (I would, for all of you). I can't speak highly enough about just how damn fun this movie was. Please do yourself a favor as a Power Rangers fan, and go see this!
Throwbacks and Cameo's
"Make my monster grow!"
"It's morphin time!"
"Ready? Ready!"
"How do you know if the Yellow Ranger isn't a guy?"
"Go go Power Rangers!"
"REDACTED" (at end of movie)
"REDACTED" (mid-credits scene)(My favorite one)