Movie Review: "Bright" Tries to Shine, But Its Point Remains in the Shadows

Netflix's latest movie confirms they should stick to making television series.

If someone told you they were going to watch a bunch of humans, orcs and elves fight over a mystical wand for two hours, you’d be forgiven for assuming it'd be in a Lord of the Rings instalment.

But instead, Bright drops you straight into downtown Los Angeles, in a world where orcs are debaucherous thugs, elves are refined and highly fashionable creatures, and humans are somewhere in between.

Put simply, it’s more like Vertigo’s Fables-meets-End of Watch than anything set in Middle-Earth.

LAPD Officer Daryl Ward (Will Smith) is partnered with the world’s first orc deputy, Nick Jakoby (Joel Edgerton), and the tension between the orc and human community is running high. After Ward gets shot while Jakoby is crossing the street to get him an ice-cream, things become very sour between the two partners, and the prejudice against orcs by humans and elves is brought to the forefront.

Sound familiar? That’s because Bright manages to capture the failings of the real-world and translates them into a digestible and sometimes hilarious package. It features all the hallmarks of a film that will offer biting critique on the social injustices of society: police brutality, racialised power structures and the pioneers who try to tear them down.

But once it immerses you in its unique environment, it doesn’t know what to do next.

The plot centres on the two officers stumbling upon a magic wand that only a few special elves, called Brights, can handle. Non-Brights will literally burst if they attempt to pick it up, but that doesn’t stop an onslaught of groups—including a Mexican cartel, a murderous Elvish cult led by Leilah (Noomi Rapace) and an orc gang—tearing apart the city to get it back off them.

What isn’t clear is why Ward and Jakoby decide to take on this huge task with no apparent plan other than to simply escape and survive. It isn't until the final quarter of the movie they decide to come up with an idea, and even then, it's bound to force an eye-roll.

The problem is that the flick falls into the same trap as some of director David Ayer's worst works, fusing messy plots with pointless bloodshed. This combination with Max Landis' screenwriting (American Ultra) only adds bloated dialogue and characters we feel nothing for. 

Nonetheless, I couldn’t help but think that this would provide the perfect setting for a fantasy-cop series instead. The world's racial interactions are interesting and the characters are somewhat likeable. If this was just one dud episode in an entire season, I wouldn't let it tarnish my judgement.

There are also references to characters who make brief appearances or don't appear at all, making the movie particularly arduous to follow. The mention of a 'Dark Lord' early on felt like foreshadowing for a big showdown later, but the character never appeared. By the credits, despite agonisingly carrying on, Bright still felt unfinished.

The actors do their best to deliver drawn-out dialogue, but what’s ultimately missing is any real point to the film. The sharp humour sometimes cloaks this devastating reality, but even Smith's punchy attitude isn't enough to save the yawnfest that ensues at some points. 

Bright is being released right before the Christmas break, which means a lot of eyeballs will be frantically searching Netflix's library for something to occupy them. Unless you're interested in a film that pivots between intense action scenes and incredibly dull dialogue, you'd be better off spending your two hours watching some of the television series that Netflix does best.

2.5/5

Bright will be available on Netflix from 22 December, 2017. Rated MA15+ for strong violence, strong blood and gore, strong coarse language.

Photo: Netflix