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When I went into the theaters for this, I expected a sloppily done film that would make me regret paying PhP300. After all, the only reason I wanted to watch The Green Hornet was to see if Jay Chou would be anything like Bruce Lee, who made his debut as Kato, the Green Hornet’s super genius engineer/valet/martial artist sidekick, in the 1960s TV version. (I just really resent the fact that it was only offered in stereoscopic 3D at the Glorietta cinemas.)

I’ve only seen a few episodes of that super old TV series but Bruce Lee certainly left an impression. If he hadn’t died way before I was born, he’d probably be one of my favorite action stars. Well, Jay Chou holds his own, I guess, since looking stoic fits Kato so well. (Comparisons can be such a biaaaatch, especially when you’re filling the shoes of a legend.) In fairness to Chou, he has already gained recognition for being a multi-talented artist, winning the World Music awards four times! He runs his own record company now. He could have been a real-life Kato.

Anyway, I just enjoyed making fun of The Green Hornet so much. I mean, we all know which character really runs things in there, even during the 1960s. The creators played that sidekick-embarrassingly-tops-overrated-hero card oh so well. For me, the formula works. (Since I’ve just had about enough of Filipino comedies with protagonists slapping sidekicks at the back of their heads repeatedly to elicit laughter.) In real life, though, I wonder why Kato did not just start his own business or go freelance, since it must be really frustrating to work under such a bumbling idiot — which actor Seth Rogen portrays so well — and take no credit for all that you’ve done.

Overall, I enjoyed The Green Hornet. It pays not to overintellectualize everything. Although I really would recommend to watch this on DVD.

Fun trivia:
Kato’s nationality in the radio series had originally been Japanese, then Japanese of Filipino origins, then Filipino. It was even said that he was of Korean descent at some point. Jay Chou’s version is from China.

Jake Gyllenhaal was once considered for the role of the Green Hornet. Gawd, I can’t simply imagine that.

Nicholas Cage was also considered for the role of Benjamin Chudnofsky, the main antagonist. Now, that I can imagine.

The Green Hornet TV series had a crossover with the old Batman TV series (starring Adam West). Holy, bargain basements, Batman!