A rambling wreck from computer tech and a helluva souvenir –- that is, for those interested in artifacts representing the American movie at its worst.
I liked it. Learning Civil War history for me is just as freaky as watching this wild ride of a film and the acting was fantastic. This was my first Kenneth Branagh and Kevin Kline film.
An entertaining movie with flaws that is fast forgotten by the viewer. It received a lot of negative ratings and many golden raspberries. While being no masterpiece or good movie it is nowhere near the worst movies of all times. It is a western action comedy with steampunk elements and mad science. It is the story of James West played by Will Smith and Artemus Gordon played by Kevin Kline. Together these different characters have to uncover a plot with mayor impacts for the Wild West and the USA (sorry cant give more details because of spoilers). The setting should be a mayor plus but it feels like half measures. With this I mean they should have lean more in one or the other direction. More steampunk, action or more western. The mixture strangely dilutes all parts. There are many good scenes but strangely again all did not work well enough. The acting is nearly the same. While delivering the characters as intended it feels a bit lifeless. I think that in some scenes the actors were bored or annoyed by the script. Then there is the humor and dialog. There are nearly no good lines and not enough humor that works in the movie. I think with an improved script and better dialog garnered with humor it could be a hit. Shanghai Noon did it far better in each category in the following year. Overall this is watchable but fast forgotten. I recommend Shanghai Noon if you like western action comedies instead or the classics by Sergio Leone or the John Wayne movies instead.
Far from the bad movie everyone makes it out to be, It was funny, obviously the script and the film as a whole could have been better but its watchable. Will Smith and Kevin Kline have great chemistry, their banter alone makes the film watchable, The special effects are also very good for their time. All in all, its a funny movie, if laughs are what you looking for then Wild Wild West is for you.
Grandiose, showy, but without content.
Inspired by a television series from the Sixties, this steampunk-inspired film tried to work but failed.
The script, set in the years after the Civil War, is simple: two special government agents are sent to the Wild West to stop a mad, confederate scientist without legs who wants to overthrow President Ulysses Grant and avenge the southern defeat. Surreal, to say the least. But being a comedy with touches of nonsense, the lack of credibility is not a problem. The most obvious problem is the predictability, the poverty of the dialogues and also the bad direction of Barry Sonnenfeld, a director who has even given us very satisfying comedies like "MIB", "The Addams Family" or "RV". Here was a complete disaster.
Will Smith and Kevin Kline embody the two protagonists, but they never really shone or managed to give soul to the characters they had in hand. I think it is the director's fault, not so much the two actors, who have already proved their worth in other films. Salma Hayek is a good actress, but here she limited herself to using her body and being the hot girl in the film. Kenneth Branagh brought the great villain to life, but he must have bad memories of this film because he was really decadent and seemed to be hating what he was doing.
Technically, the film looks impressive and shows where the budget dollars were spent. A grand soundtrack gives the film an unpleasant feeling of smugness, as if the whole film feels better than what it is. The special effects and CGI are great and the mechanisms created for the film, in the best "steampunk" style, are impressive but leave doubts about their practical effectiveness. Still, grandiose and look good on the screen. Equally well done were the sets, costumes and choice of filming locations, with incredible settings like the Grand Canyon.
Visually, the film is beautiful, it is impressive, but it is like a balloon: it can be big, it can be showy, but it only has air inside.