Roboticist Mark Setrakian on Men in Black’s 20th anniversary: ‘It’s almost a perfect movie’
When Men in Black hit theaters on July 2nd, 1997, it was already fast becoming a phenomenon. It had a star-studded cast, including a freshly minted superstar in Will Smith. It had a hit song that briefly managed to overtake pop music. Now, 20 years later, it’s easy to take for granted how massive the movie was at the time — and how well it holds up. That’s not bad for a movie based on an obscure 1990 comic miniseries from a nigh-forgotten publisher.
The truth is, Men in Black works because it’s a sharply plotted and hilarious sci-fi film. So much of that comes from the script. Smith and the dry-as-a-bone Tommy Lee Jones have some of the best comedic back-and-forths in any movie. Smith plays — in a break from his charismatic and…
