Power Rangers (2017) Review - It's NOT Morphin' Time!

I never liked Power Rangers even when I was young. And after the last Transformers film made me question movies made on merchandise, I had low expectations for this, but wasn't too badly disappointed.

Dean Israelite's direction is top-notch action-wise. The car chase sequences were well directed. Also, the fight choreography was average and I've seen superior battles in low-budget Chinese flicks.

The casting was bad in my opinion. Though, the actors were picked from diverse backgrounds, I've seen more expressions on a supermodels' faces. Lead thespian Dacre Montgomery has the looks but zero talent. Rest of the Power Rangers are equally good-looking but only RJ Cyler (Blue Ranger) stood among the crowd. He provided notable comic relief and without him this movie would've been tedious to watch. Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Banks provide as much supporting power as they can, and the latter made a good villain.

The best aspect about Power Rangers is that although it's the embodiment of CGI, the storyline is not superficial. Issues like bullying, depression and all other teenage problems were elaborated on perfectly. We can relate to the main individuals when we were their age. This is what many teenage-orientated films nowadays fail to accomplish.

But the major flaw with Power Rangers is how cliched it is. From start to finish the movie has showcased nothing new in its genre, or beyond it. There is absolutely no originality in the chance meeting of the members, the backstory or even the primary narrative. This picture could easily be re-titled as Cliched Strangers.

The verdict is simple. Kids are more likely to enjoy this one than the older people. It's better than the last Transformers movie but that's about it. It's 120 minutes of pure time-pass.

The Rating: 2 out of 4.