Review of "The Green Hornet"

I attended a studio preview for the Seth Rogen movie “The Green Hornet”. This non-3D version lacked titles and was still being edited.  I am sure there will be significant differences in the film when it is released on January 14. 

Here is a summary of my reactions:

Faithfulness to the source – Superficially, it honors some of the varied sources of the Green Hornet (semi) legend with a strong tilt towards the 60's TV version.  But the approach is sure to turn off any hardcore fan. Does the target audience really care?  I doubt it. I personally think it’s not an issue.
Script – A complete and total mess.  It does have many funny lines but the script style has rendered the plot meaningless.
Leads - Seth Rogen (Britt Reid - The Green Hornet) and Cameron Diaz (Lenore Case) do what they do and if you like that then they won’t disappoint. Jay Chou (Cato) is another story.  Is his a he a comic prop for Rogen or the partner in a comic duo?  I don’t expect that this is a career elevating moment. 
Supporting actors -Tom Wilkinson (James Reid), Edward James Olmos (Axford) and Christoph Waltz (Chudnofsky) make for a heavyweight supporting cast.  Wilkerson and Olmos do their thing seemingly without reference to the rest of the film.  The effect is jarring.  Waltz is asked to straddle the film's poorly defined line between realistic action and silly comedy. In the process the audience is left confused.  I blame these issues on the script and the director.  This incredibly talented trio seemed to give it their all.  Frankly, I felt sorry for them.
Action – When action takes center stage we see little that we haven’t seen before.  Maybe the makers are trying to do something new with the final action sequence but in the edit I saw it was so muddled in presentation and moral mapping that the audience was completely lost.  Is this “Ghostbusters” or “The French Connection”?  Don’t go see it for the action.
Comedy  - There are sporadic bursts of genuinely funny moments.  But there are more frequent periods of comedic deadness.  Hopefully, the final edit will tighten this up. The comic elements are the only reason to see this film.
PC Quotient – Hollywood has created its own moral code and it tends to follow it rigorously.  Rogen has made a career of tweeking these dictates of right and wrong.  I usually am amused by his characters’ amorality but here I find Britt Reid’s misogyny unfunny.  Whatever satirical bite this film was trying to achieve is undermined by a very late (and convenient) comeuppance.  I guess if I was crushing on Rogen, like my roommate, I would have been more forgiving.  
Direction – I get it, let’s hire the guy (Michel Gondey) who was able to make movie magic with a lovable duffus comic in “The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”  But that film was intentionally dark and unfunny.  Also, it was penned by Charlie Kaufman.  Lead writer on “The Green Hornet?”  Seth Rogen.  So what we get is a darkly shot film with a very comedic script.  Look at Gondey’s IMDB headshot.  Would you hire this guy to direct a comedy?  (Yeah, I see they list it as an action, crime, thriller but let’s see how far that gets them.)
My roommate’s recommendation (She is a die-hard Rogen lover who hates action flicks.  She also is comfortably in the target age range) -  "Definitely go see it!  Better than “Pineapple Express”!  It’s very funny and I have already added it to my Netflix list!  Plus that Seth Rogen is so lovable!"  OK, she didn't exactly put it that way.  Also, there were many others in the audience who seemed to feel the same way.
My Advice (I am not in the target age range) – Stay away, very far away.  It is not in the same league with the flawed, but very entertaining, “Pineapple Express.”  If you Netflix it, have your iPad nearby, you’ll want the diversion.