Men in Black (film)

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Men in Black
Men in Black movie poster
Directed by	Barry Sonnenfeld
Produced by	Steven Spielberg Laurie MacDonald Walter F. Parkes
Written by	Comic Book: Lowell Cunningham Screenplay & Story: Ed Solomon
Starring	Tommy Lee Jones Will Smith Linda Fiorentino Vincent D'Onofrio Rip Torn
Music by	Danny Elfman
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date(s)	July 2, 1997
Running time	98 min.
Language	English
Budget	$90,000,000 (estimated)
Followed by	Men in Black II
IMDb profile

Men in Black is a 1997 science fiction comedy action film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, starring Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith and Vincent D'Onofrio. The film was based on the comic book series The Men in Black by Lowell Cunningham, by Aircel Comics which is owned by Marvel Comics. The film featured the creature animation of Rick Baker. The movie was a hit, grossing over $250 million in the United States and over $326 million worldwide. It was followed by a sequel, Men in Black II, in 2002.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Awards 4 Soundtrack 4.1 Track listing: Original score 4.2 Track listing: Album 5 TV Show 6 Video games 7 Theme park ride 8 External links

[edit] Plot

The MIB, a top-secret agency that polices, monitors and directs alien activity on Earth, has established the Earth as an apolitical "neutral zone". MIB agents have no identity of any kind or any public record of existence, and the MIB agency doesn't answer to any government (they "ask too many questions"). Any memory of MIB activity upon "mustering out" of the MIB is erased and a new identity is created for the departing agent. Into this strange world is ushered the initially skeptical James Edwards (Will Smith), an NYPD officer, as he becomes Agent J, one of the newest MIB personnel. Tommy Lee Jones plays K, a senior MIB agent who recruits and guides J as he learns the ropes.

MIB agents wear sunglasses and dark suits, and appear at UFO landing sites, similar to paranormal reports of real-world Men In Black. Instead of intimidating or threatening witnesses, the MiB use devices known as Neuralizers to wipe their memories and suggest more mundane causes to the encounter (to the amazement of Agent J, such explanations are uniformly and horribly bland). Neuralizers are typically the size and shape of an oversized pen (although a giant version is seen in the second movie, hidden in the Statue of Liberty's torch), and can be set to erase memories as far back as several decades. Neuralizers are also used on agents who leave the organization for any reason. The MiB's sunglasses protect them from the effects of the Neuralizer.

A Bug (an alien species, similar in many ways to a very large cockroach) is trying to steal a tiny galaxy, which is later revealed to be secretly contained in an ornament hanging from the neck of Orion, a cat who belongs to a member of the royal family of another planet. The government of this planet, Arquil, is willing to have the earth destroyed rather than let this galaxy fall into the hands of the Bugs. During their mission, the agents investigate a morgue where they meet Dr. Laurel Weaver (Linda Fiorentino), a cynical, dryly funny deputy medical examiner. Eventually, the Galaxy is recovered, and K asks J to erase his memory so that he can retire. Dr. Weaver then becomes J's new partner, L.

In the final scene of the film the camera pulls back into the sky and continues to pull-back through space past our solar system, past millions of stars ultimately revealing that our galaxy is contained within a circular container resembling a marble. The container is then picked up by an alien hand which throws it, hitting another 'marble' which also contains a galaxy. Both marbles are then picked up by the hand and placed into a bag full of galaxy-containing marbles. This ending suggests that our entire galaxy exists in an alien child's toy - similar to the way the alien galaxy the agents were attempting to recover was contained in the cat's necklace.

[edit] Cast

• Tommy Lee Jones as Agent K
• Will Smith as James Edwards / Agent J
• Linda Fiorentino as Dr. Laurel Weaver / Agent L
• Vincent D'Onofrio as Edgar / The Bug
• Rip Torn as Chief Zed
• Tony Shalhoub as Jack Jeebs
• Siobhan Fallon as Beatrice
• Mike Nussbaum as Gentle Rosenburg, Arquillian Jeweler
• Jon Gries as Van driver
• Sergio Calderón as Jose
• Carel Struycken as Arquillian
• Fredric Lehne as INS agent Janus
• Richard Hamilton as Agent D
• Kent Faulcon as 2nd Lt. Jake Jensen
• John Alexander as Mikey
• Keith Campbell as Perp
• Ken Thorley as Zap-Em Exterminator
• Patrick Breen as Reggie Redgick
• Becky Ann Baker as Mrs. Redgick
• Sean Whalen as Passport Officer
• Harsh Nayyar as Manny
• Michael Willis as Cop in Morgue
• Willie C. Carpenter as Police Inspector
• Peter Linari as Tow Truck Driver
• David Cross as Newton the Morgue Attendant
• Charles C. Stevenson, Jr. as Agent B

[edit] Awards

Men in Black won the Academy Award for Best Makeup, and was nominated for Best Original Musical or Comedy Score and Best Art Direction. It also won the Satellite Awards of best Best Animated or Mixed Media Film, and was nominated for the Golden Globe of Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy.

[edit] Soundtrack

Two different soundtracks were released in the US: a score soundtrack and an album, featuring various songs. In the UK only the album was released, but the score is readily available for import.

[edit] Track listing: Original score

1. "M. I. B. Main Theme"
2. "D's Memories / Chase"
3. "Edgar's Truck / A New Man"
4. "Imports / Quiet Moment"
5. "J Contemplates"
6. "Headquarters"
7. "The Suit"
8. "Morgue Time"
9. "Petit Mort"
10. "K Reminisces"
11. "Orion's Belt / Cat Stinger"
12. "Noisy Cricket / Impending Trouble"
13. "Sexy Morgue Babe / Icon"
14. "Take Off / Crash"
15. "Finale"
16. "M. I. B. Closing Theme"

Danny Elfman composed the score for the film, making use of his usual combination of orchestra and electronics. The score also makes prominent use of jazz for the M.I.B. theme, which consists of an ostinato, usually played on lower instruments.

[edit] Track listing: Album

1. "Men in Black" - Will Smith (Also on Will Smith's album Big Willie Style)
2. "We Just Wanna Party With You" - Snoop Doggy Dogg featuring JD
3. "I'm Feelin' You" - Ginuwine
4. "Dah Dee Dah (Sexy Thing)" - Alicia Keys
5. "Just Cruisin'" - Will Smith
6. "The 'Notic" - The Roots featuring D'Angelo
7. "Make You Happy" - Trey Lorenz (with Mariah Carey's back vocals. Carey also wrote and produced the song.)
8. "Escobar '97" - Nas
9. "Erotik City" - Emoja
10. "Same Ol' Thing" - A Tribe Called Quest
11. "Killing Time" - Destiny's Child
12. "Waiting for Love" - 3T
13. "Chanel No. Fever" - De La Soul
14. "Some Cow Fonque (More Tea Vicar?)" - Buckshot LeFonque
15. "M.I.B. Main Theme" - Danny Elfman
16. "M.I.B. Closing Theme" - Danny Elfman

The theme song to the film was the pop/rap song of the same name and was based on the song "Forget Me Nots" by Patrice Rushen. The song was released as a single where it topped the UK charts for 4 weeks. It was also released on Big Willie Style Will Smith's first solo studio album. The album was certified double platinum after selling 2.6 million albums and holding the 14th position on US Best-Selling Records-Albums in 1997 sales index.

[edit] TV Show

A spin-off tv series, Men in Black: The Series was created by Sony Pictures Television.

[edit] Video games

The official Men In Black game is a third-person shooter developed by Gremlin Interactive and released to lackluster reviews in October '97 for the PC and the following year for the PlayStation. Men in Black: The Animated Series also inspired several games.

[edit] Theme park ride

The Men In Black movie was the inspiration behind the Men In Black: Alien Attack ride at Universal Studios Orlando. The building was made to resemble a pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair but is fictional, while the towers resemble their real life counterpart. You enter as a tourist but soon you ride an elevator to the facility and learn that you are trying out to be a part of the Men In Black. The ride is introduced by Rip Torn reprising his role from the movie as Zed.

Then the passengers are given laser guns. The guns are set on a low level and you are sent into a mere simulation as seen in the movie. Then Agent J (who is played by Will Smith) informs the riders that New York City is being invaded by aliens. The guns are then set to full power as the riders are instantly launched into an action packed ride and are attempting to score as many points as they can by shooting the aliens. You are also pitted against another team of players. Mid ride, your opponents are revealed to be aliens, and you can cause their cart to spin if you can shoot the top of their cart. At the end Agent J will display the scores and say who won.

Depending on the score of the riders, a different ending is shown. For example, a low scoring vehicle will result in the "coach" saying, "Basically, you zigged when you shoulda zagged! You gotta learn when to run and gun and when to lock and load baby. Try again!" and Agent J saying "better luck next time, slick" before the riders are 'neuralized', while the best ending results in an alien telling the riders their suit will be ready next Wednesday, however Agent J will say "That was pretty hot, wasn't it? Too bad you're not gonna remember any of it" and neuralizes the riders anyway.

[edit] External links

• Official website - meninblack.com

• Men in Black at the Internet Movie Database