Wild Wild West (1999)

A Masterpiece!

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

I wanted to like this movie. I was 15 years old when it came out and I went too see it on opening day, at the 12:10PM show. At about 12:30, my soul started to die a little. Who in their right mind thought any of this was a good idea? Or funny? Or even interesting? Aside from the giant spider, I honestly can't remember anything that happened in this movie, that's how dull it is.What a talented cast, a formerly good director, I just have no idea where in the world this started to go off the rails, but it does, and HARD. Jokes about racism, disabilities, accents all add a layer of ugliness on top of the unfunny pile of garbage that the movie is in the first place. It's one of the movies that I judge other bad movies by, as in "it sucked but, was it as bad as Wild Wild West?" That answer is almost always, a resounding no.

I really can't stand all these wanna be critics anymore complaining about how Hollywood screws up classics but then up rate movies like 2017 "The Mummy" because it's different. Just chill and enjoy it because it's hilarious. And please ignore my at some points bad English. I am German so deal with it.

When a body is found and the killer is identified as General 'Bloodbath' McGrath, Capt. James West is sent to find him. Thanks to U.S. Marshal Artemus Gordon, who was also on the case, McGrath manages to escape. Discovering that Dr. Arliss Loveless is the real villain behind everything, West and Gordon must work together to track Loveless down.....When the studio made this, they must have thought that the film was a license to print money. After all Sonnenfeld was on a winner after MIB, and Will Smith could do no wrong. This was made at a time when his name alone was big enough to sell tickets.But even though the film is an unmitigated disaster, it's one of those films like Batman & Robin, The Avengers, and Battlefield Earth that demand repeat viewings because just of how audacious the film was in thinking that it had a chance to be one of the biggest films ever.But it's watchable for all the wrong reasons. Would Smith really sign on to a film like this now, because he's basically hurled racial abuse by all and sundry in this film, and at times instead of being 'utterly hilarious', it's downright embarrassing.For instance, the scene where West and Loveless first meet is so full of discriminating put downs, it's surprising that it hasn't been edited for obscene content.Kline is pretty okay as Gordon, but he's a seasoned actor, and he has a look on his face that says 'this will get me back into the big league'. Kevin, you are so much better than this.Hayek is eye candy, and in the film for nothing more than to have the two main characters have something to altercate about.Branagh takes his role for what it is, a pantomime villain, and appears to be having a whale of a time. But the film is incoherent, very confusing at times, and it just appears that the makers just want as many visually stunning set pieces they can in its duration and hope that will cover the ridiculous narrative.And speaking of narrative, there is no explanation as to the fascination of Spiders, but if you read the history of the films production, you'll find out it was just because Barbara Streisand's Ex had a fascination with them.If only he had a fascination with making a decent film...

I don't get the hate for Barry Sonnenfield's Wild Wild West. I just don't. It's like I saw a completely different film than the entire rest of the continent. To my knowledge, there's me and a couple other friends I know who love and cherish it, and the rest of the world has seemingly cast it out into the cold, inexplicably bashing it no end. Wtf. It's a rollicking good time, full of a brilliant blend of situational and slapstick humour, lively characters from a great group of performers, incredible production design, and a dash of swash and buckle. It may not have much in common with the 1960's era TV show its based on, but kudos to it for breaking new ground. Will Smith plays Marshall Jim West, a cocky (there's literally a small window of freeze frame where you can see his ebony schlock in full glory. And don't even ask me how I know that), ballsy (ok sorry I'll stop) secret service cowboy badass who is working a case against some nasty villains who want to use president Ulysses S. Grant for diabolical ends. He's led to old foe General 'Bloodbath' McGrath (Ted Levine in a show stopping, wickedly devious southern psycho role) a confederate lowlife who will hopefully lead him to whoever is kidnapping the nation's best and brightest scientists for some Bond villain-ish scheme. West is joined by kooky inventor Artemis Gordon (a classy Kevin Kline) and the two embark on a shoot em up quest to thwart the evil plan of Dr. Arliss Loveless (Kenneth Branagh), a dastardly mega villain with plans for America that don't involve presidents or laws or anything sane. The film is endlessly inventive, wildly funny and parades forth a reel of set pieces, each more amazing than the last until we realize we're actually watching a fifty foot tall steam punk mechanical spider stomp all over the Utah desert (there's a priceless story involving that and the film's odd duck of a producer Jon Peters, which you can watch Kevin Smith regale an audience with over on YouTube). West and Gordon are joined by sultry Rita (Salma Hayek) a Femme Fatale with a hidden agenda who tags along under the guise of damsel in distress. It's just plain fun and I still don't get how anyone could dislike it. Witty barbs, raunchy double entendres and sarcastic banter permeate the wonderful script. Nifty gadgets, detailed costumes and clanking machinery speckle the epic production design. An atmosphere of playful fun oversees all of it from beginning to end. Smith and Kline make a dysfunctional buddy duo for the ages, squabbling right up until the last frame. Branagh hams it up so far over the top as the bad guy that he nearly implodes on himself. Levine is deliciously creepy and crusty. Watch for other gem performances from Bai Ling, M. Emmett Walsh, Debra Christofferson, Sofia Eng, Rodney A. Grant and Musetta Vander. If you've seen it and already love it, good for you let's go have a beer. If you've seen it and hate it, you're a silly bum (to put it mildly). If you haven't seen it, do so, form your own opinion and fall into one of the above two categories. It's a classic for me.