Bright Movie Review: Orc Lives Matter

"Bright" is an original NetFlix movie directed by David Ayer "Suicide Squad" and written by Max Landis "Victor Frankenstein". It stars Will Smith and Joel Edgerton. In Los Angeles in the not-too-distant future, orcs, elves, fairies and other magical creatures live side by side with humans. I'd like to say they all peacefully coexist but that sadly is not true. Elves run everything, orcs are routinely harassed by the police and fairies steal birdseed from everyone's bird feeders. We meet Daryl Ward who's doing his LAPD thing. He only has five years till retirement and is saddled with an orc named Nick Jakoby. No one wants an orc for a partner but, ya know, politics.

I won't go into details but the two cops run into a plot to destroy the world. It involves some elves, a magic wand and the Dark Lord. Ward and Jakoby attempt to protect Tikka (an elf) from some other big bad. Yes, that is Noomi Rapace as Leilah. I almost didnt recognize her. Anyway, there's the typical gun battles and near death experiences. The world is saved from the Dark Lord's vengeance... at least for now.

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). After seeing horrible reviews, I thought this movie would be a real dud. Glad I watched it anyway. No, it's not a literary masterpiece. It's a buddy cop movie. Yes, it has lots of explosions. "Bright" apparently cost $90 million to make. Yes, it's meant to provide thinly disguised social commentary on the state of race relations. Sci fi/fantasy movies have always been at the forefront of this. Yes, the plot is a bit thin. Two guys who dont like each other work together to save the planet. But who cares? It was still fun to watch. There's also a sequel in the works. Don't believe those who say "Bright" is the worst film of 2017. Did ya see "50 Shades Darker"? Seriously, that's some bad s#$t.