The Dictator is Sacha Baron Cohen's latest fish-out-of-water intentionally offensive offering. Directed once again by Larry Charles (Borat, Bruno), The Dictator follows Haffaz Alladeen, the ruler of the fictional country of Wadiya who comes to America to speak in front of the United Nations. His right-hand assistant (played by Ben Kingsley) concocts a plot to relieve him of power and Alladeen ends up living amongst the commoners of NYC and befriends a local vegan/hippie shop owner played by Anna Faris.
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After the waste of film that was Men in Black 2, I was pretty sure a the third entry in the MIB franchise was not necessary at all. That didn't stop Barry Sonnenfeld from directing Men in Black 3 which once again reunites Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones in a battle with hidden aliens on Earth. Thankfully, this film is markedly better than the sequel and primarily because of the addition of Josh Brolin as Young Agent K.
MIB 3 contains a time traveling plot line that sends Will Smith's Agent J back in time to battle the main villain Boris the Animal (played brilliantly by Flight of the Conchords star Jermaine Celement). J must save agent K from dying in the future and encounters the young version of Agent K which allows Brolin to give his very best Tommy Lee Jones impersonation. He does a fantastic dead-on impression of Tommy Lee Jones' cadence and delivery while making the K character more youthful and slightly less cranky. Brolin's chemistry with Smith is excellent as well and really makes the franchise seem a little fresher.
Some of the jokes and gags don't work and the plot is just not that memorable or exciting, but overall this marks a triumphant return to big-budget summer films for Will Smith who hasn't had one since 2008's Hancock. MIB 3 is a fun time at the movies but you may just want to hold off until it becomes a rental option. A so-so 3 out of 5 JRs for this one which for some reason I don't think will be the last of the MIB series.
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