Wild Wild West (1999)

User Rating:

4.2/10   

Director:

Barry Sonnenfeld

Writers (WGA):

Jim Thomas (story) &
John Thomas (story) ...

Release Date:

30 June 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Western | Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

It's a whole new west. July '99.

Plot:

The two best hired guns in the West must save President Grant from the clutches of a 19th century inventor-villain.

Plot Keywords:

Box Office Flop | Cult Favorite | Female Nudity | Based On Cult TV Series | Secret Agent

Awards:

10 wins & 11 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Oct. 14	8:00 AM	MAX
Sun. Oct. 19	10:15 AM	MAX
Fri. Oct. 24	2:15 PM	MAX

Cast

Will Smith	...	Capt. James West
Kevin Kline	...	U.S. Marshal Artemus Gordon
Kenneth Branagh	...	Dr. Arliss Loveless
Salma Hayek	...	Rita Escobar
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Coleman
Ted Levine	...	General 'Bloodbath' McGrath
Frederique Van Der Wal	...	Amazonia (as Frederique van der Wal)
Musetta Vander	...	Munitia
Sofia Eng	...	Miss Lippenrieder
Bai Ling	...	Miss East
Garcelle Beauvais	...	Belle
Mike H. McGaughy	...	Big Reb (as Mike McGaughy)
Jerry Wills	...	Other Reb
Rodney A. Grant	...	Hudson
Buck Taylor	...	Cross-Eyed Reb

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for action violence, sex references and innuendo.

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M (South Australia) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIA | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:PG | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 | Philippines:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Balboa Park - 6300 Balboa Boulevard, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Peters Entertainment

Trivia:

The film underwent costly re-shoots in an attempt to inject some humor after it was found that test audiences weren't sure if it was supposed to be a comedy.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Jim's and Artemus' collars first clink together, the top plate of Jim's collar goes under the top plate of Artemus'. In every shot afterward, they're attached the other way.

Quotes:

Capt. James West: I have a telegram for a Dr. Loveless. It's from his mother, Irene. She's telling him to come on home, stop all this foolishness.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Will Smith Music Video Collection (1999) (V)

Soundtrack:

Bailamos

Horribly lame

While trying to kill Southern General `Bloodbath' McGrath, Captain Jim West crosses paths with US Marshall Artemus Gordon who is also after McGrath in order to uncover the brains behind his operation. With major scientists going missing all over the world, the President puts the two men together to prevent crazed Southerner Loveless from carrying out his threat to take over the US. The two team up using West's shoot first approach and Gordon's gadgets to take on the high-tech weaponry of Loveless.

Every year we have blockbusters that throw money at the screen in the hope of buying sufficient hype and effects to make people watch. Some times these films are actually quite good or at least OK but often they are shocking wastes of money that are just plain awful. That is the case here. Not having ever seen the TV show I can only imagine that I am missing out on the knowledge necessary to enjoy this film. The plot is just a spin on the mismatched partner movies we've all seen before, however here it goes into all sorts of cross-dressing and stupid gadget antics.

The action scenes are reasonable but are spoilt by just how damn stupid the whole thing is. The gadgets are just daft and the use of disguises and silly events just make it seem even more silly and not worth while. The overblown effects shots are just daft and the supposed `visual climax' of the ultimate weapon is laughable.

The spark that existed in Men in Black is totally absent here. I had ZERO laughs all through this film. Only two in-jokes actually raised a smile (an amusing `His Master's Voice' and a dig at Lawrence Kasdan). Smith tries hard but to see the Oscar nominee dressed up as a belly dancer is just plain embarrassing and he makes a fool of himself. Kline also is foolish and doesn't bond with Smith one bit. Hayek is wasted in a small role and her value in the film is based on the fact that she has a cute ass! To talk of how awful Brannagh is in this film is to understate the fact. This man, who I have seen recently in `Shackleton', `Rabbit Proof Fence' and `Hamlet' being excellent is terrible here – he overacts to the point that it isn't even fun – it is just plain daft and annoying. Having him only have half a body just makes it all worse somehow.

Overall this is a rare thing – a summer blockbuster that will stick in you memory, it's just a shame it sticks for all the wrong reasons. It is absurd yet incredibly unfunny, full of good actors but lacking a single good performance and very expensive but just looking ridiculous with every increasingly dumb special effect shot.