Power Rangers Movie 2017 Review

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers franchise has been a special part of my childhood, so despite being late, I didn’t let the chance to see this year’s Power Rangers Movie pass. Images of the Green Ranger summoning the Dragonzord, and explosions in the background as the Rangers strike their battle poses are still etched vividly in my memory. Seeing another Power Rangers movie that’s based on the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, would be like finding your favourite toy when you were a kid.

Except, that toy is now a disfigured abomination. The Power Rangers that I saw earlier today was only a sad echo of the original series. No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to dig out that excitement that I once had every time I rush home after to school to see the Rangers in action.

I went into the cinema with well-managed expectations. I knew right before I bought tickets, that this movie would be a whole lot different from the series that I grew up with. The film’s marketing strategies made sure of that – showing us how different the Ranger’s costumes were, and even shuffling around the main characters for them to be acceptable to our overly-PC culture. Heck, I even accepted the fact that Goldar wasn’t an Ape-like monster, and that there was no Bulk and Skull! I knew all along that Power Rangers would be nowhere near “Mighty Morphin”, so all that I asked for was for it be able to make me remember how I enjoyed the series when I was a kid.

Was it a decent adaptation?

At some point, yes I did get pleasant flashbacks and I revel at the tiny hints of nostalgia. But these moments were too few and too scattered! Maybe it’s because I loved the show too much? Did I not manage my expectations well enough?

Maybe I didn’t, because I eagerly anticipated the iconic moments from the TV show. Like the Morphin Time sequence for example, where the Rangers have to shout the Zords they represent in order to transform. I also looked forward to the ritualistic combining of the Zords to form the Dino Megazord. But sadly, none of these were in the movie. This is what convinced me that I wasn’t seeing the Power Rangers that I loved, but something that is closer to a Nickelodeon film instead. Not to mention the film’s wobbly tone, which fluctuates every now and then from dark, to funny, to just downright silly.

But much more than the lack of nostalgia, what irked me the most was the acting performances by the actors. Most especially Becky G as Trini, and Ludi Lin as Zack. It’s easy to see right through their acting. Their performances were so bland, that I won’t have a hard time comparing them to the monsters whose facial expression involve nothing but moving their mouths. The cast was pretty much cardboard cutouts of the stereotypes assigned to them. The jock, the jerk, the geek, the punk, and the pretty it-girl. At least, that’s one thing that they got correctly from the original TV show.

But was it fun, you ask? To some degree, yes. There was still some decent action going on and the soundtrack was pretty badass. Despite the changes, it still is a Power Rangers movie by heart. At least it made me want to watch Mighty Morphin Power Rangers all over again.