Let's clear somethings first: cheesiness and questionable acting are essentially trademarks of the Super Sentai franchise and it's American descendant. You can't have Power Rangers without it. This movie however, while produced by Saban like the original series, has very little of the feel of the original, even if those two traits remain. First, the characters might share the same name with their previous counterparts but couldn't be more different, with each offering an edgy bite to the stereotype they represent. Thanks to that, and the whole detention setting, their relationship gives a fair nod to The Breakfast Club, which I thought was awesome. In fact, there was another nods to a popular 80's movie with the the whole cave exploration and finding a secret lake, clearly taking a bit from The Goonies, which, like the Breakfast Club, was raging around the time the concept of super sentais came about. The plot, as expected from PR, is simple and barely passable, but still tolerable, when you consider the targeted audience, which I don't think were the those who watched the original show at all - and I think bringing new and younger audiences into the franchise is a big part of the reason behind the new super shiny and cool visuals (which I wholeheartedly approve - for the most part, as I'm still not sure about the new Megazord, or even the smaller zords, as their shapes were hard to discern and the metallic colors sort of muddled together when combined). I also think that the interest in new audiences changed the dynamic of the group - in both versions you have the super cheesy "circle of friendship" thing, but where the MMPR were idealists in saving their city, this group leaned more towards a selfish side, that I think is easier for our current youth to identify with in our culture.
I did love all the small references to 80's and 90's kids shows and movies, and both the Japanese and American franchises. It felt like really cool easter eggs, and I kept pausing to text an old friend to confirm if the movie really was referencing this or that (he was watching at the same time in his own house, and it turned into a really long conversation about decoding everything!). I think I could honestly recommend this movie to both children and adults who were/are fans of MMPR. It wasn't perfect, but it was quite cool, and it was very essential Power Rangers, in the good and the bad.
Review by C. S. C.BlockedParent2017-06-25T19:53:19Z
Let's clear somethings first: cheesiness and questionable acting are essentially trademarks of the Super Sentai franchise and it's American descendant. You can't have Power Rangers without it.
This movie however, while produced by Saban like the original series, has very little of the feel of the original, even if those two traits remain. First, the characters might share the same name with their previous counterparts but couldn't be more different, with each offering an edgy bite to the stereotype they represent. Thanks to that, and the whole detention setting, their relationship gives a fair nod to The Breakfast Club, which I thought was awesome. In fact, there was another nods to a popular 80's movie with the the whole cave exploration and finding a secret lake, clearly taking a bit from The Goonies, which, like the Breakfast Club, was raging around the time the concept of super sentais came about.
The plot, as expected from PR, is simple and barely passable, but still tolerable, when you consider the targeted audience, which I don't think were the those who watched the original show at all - and I think bringing new and younger audiences into the franchise is a big part of the reason behind the new super shiny and cool visuals (which I wholeheartedly approve - for the most part, as I'm still not sure about the new Megazord, or even the smaller zords, as their shapes were hard to discern and the metallic colors sort of muddled together when combined). I also think that the interest in new audiences changed the dynamic of the group - in both versions you have the super cheesy "circle of friendship" thing, but where the MMPR were idealists in saving their city, this group leaned more towards a selfish side, that I think is easier for our current youth to identify with in our culture.
I did love all the small references to 80's and 90's kids shows and movies, and both the Japanese and American franchises. It felt like really cool easter eggs, and I kept pausing to text an old friend to confirm if the movie really was referencing this or that (he was watching at the same time in his own house, and it turned into a really long conversation about decoding everything!).
I think I could honestly recommend this movie to both children and adults who were/are fans of MMPR. It wasn't perfect, but it was quite cool, and it was very essential Power Rangers, in the good and the bad.