Welcome to Weekend Watch, a recurring feature where we highlight some of the best geek-related videos around the web. Whether it’s short films, behind-the-scenes clips, video essays, or top 10 countdowns, the only requirement is that they are about our favorite geeky topics!
In this edition of Weekend Watch, we’re celebrating the release of Men In Black: International by exploring a grab bag of content related to the franchise. Kicking things off, we have a recap of the series in addition to an Honest Trailer for the original trilogy. Next, we have a duo of videos that detail the origins and history of Men in Black in pop culture.
Following this, we have a brilliant video essay that breaks down why the original Men in Black still holds up. Afterwards, there’s a video that looks at why Men in Black: The Animated Series hasn’t withstood the test of time. Finally, we’ll close things out with an interesting Q&A from the cast and filmmakers of the latest iteration.
Men in Black Story Recap In 7 Minutes
Before we explore the origins and inspiration of Men in Black, this video from IGN recaps the film franchise itself. If you’re familiar with the original trilogy of films, there’s not much substance. However, if you haven’t, this recap will provide some backstory on the twenty two year-old film franchise.
Men In Black Honest Trailer
For a more humorous take on the original trilogy, we have the honest trailer for the Men in Black trilogy from Screen Junkies. Aside from the cheap references, there’s something to be said for the entire trilogy becoming a recycled version of the first film. This Honest Trailer even makes a case that this should never have been a franchise in the first place.
Impactful Origins: The Men In Black
Next, we have a short video from ComicImpact that takes a look at the comic book origins of Men in Black. Aside from the concept and some character names, the source material is quite different from the film adaptations. As the video astutely points out, the original MiB comic was more similar to the The X-Files than anything else. It also argues that the first MiB is responsible for laying the groundwork for the current climate of comic book film adaptations in Hollywood today.
The Secret History of the Men In Black
Next, we have a great video from Might Be Awesome that delves further into the secret history of the Men in Black. Although the films are inspired by the comic, the comic was, in turn, inspired by a supposedly real story. There’s some further context on the comic book history as well as the differences between the source material and the film. More importantly, however, the video breaks down the unique history behind the pop culture relevance of the MiB at large.
Patrick Explains Men in Black (And Why It’s Great)
This brilliant video essay from Patrick (H) Willems discusses Barry Sonnenfeld’s masterpiece, the original Men In Black. Willems effectively explains why the 1997 film is one of the best blockbusters of the past twenty-five years. It’s easy to forget how big of a cultural phenomenon Men in Black was when it first came out. As the video establishes, this is because it represents “damn good filmmaking,” which is hard to disagree with considering the cultural impact it made.
Willems also does a great job of examining why the storytelling still holds up, despite being slightly dated. As he points out, the movie is a buddy cop comedy that happens to feature aliens and spaceships. While Willems highlights what it does right, the more interesting observation here is what the film doesn’t do. Aside from lamenting the careers of Sonnenfeld and Linda Fiorentino, the video also assesses the prospect of Men in Black: International. An interesting side note here: this is F. Gary Grey’s second time making a sequel to a Barry Sonnenfeld film after 2005’s Be Cool.
Men in Black: The Animated Series – Caravan of Garbage
Although the movies have had a significant cultural footprint, Men in Black: The Animated Series has been largely forgotten. This video from Mr Sunday Movies, takes a look back at the show, which ran from 1997 to 2002. For the most part, the series unsuccessfully attempted to expand the mythology of the franchise. It’s easily the least-remembered entry, which is perhaps why it hasn’t seen a physical home video release.
Men In Black: International Cast & Filmmaker Q&A
Finally, we’ll close things out with a Q&A from Sony in which the main cast and filmmakers discuss various aspects of making Men in Black: International. Although the interview can be extremely awkward at times, there’s some useful information about the rebootquel’s approach in general. It’s not super in depth, which makes sense because everyone besides the three leads seems bored or uninterested in this.
What are your thoughts about Men In Black: International? Make sure to let us know in the comment section below!
