2.0 or Below: The Purge of 6/19 #6: Jonah Hex
Average Rating: 1.76

Jonah Hex is the last big film in Neveldine/Taylor's filmography that I had yet to see, and the only one where I couldn't really defend them. After all, they didn't make it! They wrote the script, casted Josh Brolin, and then left due to "studio interference". I don't blame them. Warner Bros. was too chickenshit to make a real Jonah Hex movie.

The problem is, while this has the skeleton of a Neveldine/Taylor film, it's ashamed of its origins and wants to be taken as seriously as possible. It's trying not to be goofy despite being written by the kings of goofy, stupid schlock of the era. But the film settles on being diet Neveldine/Taylor anyway because the director (who I don't blame for this) doesn't know what the movie should be, the studio (who I completely 100% blame for this) doesn't care because that's not their job. So we're left with a confused combination of Neveldine/Taylor's original ideas, Jimmy Hayward's inexperienced directing, and Francis Lawrence's studio-mandated reshoots. There's a scene involving an illegal fight ring where one of the combatants is a SNAKE MAN who drinks VENOM to turn into a feral monster, and yet the movie is trying not to be a cartoon. Had it been directed by Neveldine/Taylor from the start, people still would've fucking hated it just as much but at least it could've embraced the stupidity.

Which is a shame because what we have is undercooked but not bad! The cast is great, Josh Brolin gives it his all, John Malkovich is always a joy to see, Michael Fassbender is FUN as a despicable henchman, Will Arnett and Wes Bentley ham it up, and we were all too hard on Megan Fox. The plot is basic but it's not boring, the overall editing/what's left of the directing is fast-paced, rampant, and trashy in a way that's inexplicably Neveldine/Taylor no matter how much it tries to hide it. Honestly I would not mind rewatching this, the short 81 minute length certainly helps.

Jonah Hex is a schlocky B-movie that's being treated as a failure of an A-movie. The movie's got problems but I don't think they're the same problems that most people have. I don't think this movie is stupid ENOUGH! Up the stupidity, make it 15 minutes longer, and oh my god make it R-rated. Yet another PG-13 studio action picture that would've been better if the executives weren't cowards.
But judging what we have, it's fine? But considering its reputation as one of the worst comic book movies of all time, I'm going to say this movie is underrated. Not underrated enough that I think a reevaluation is in need, but I do think we need more movies like Jonah Hex. It's a filler movie that should be embraced as such rather than shunned for not being a tentpole blockbuster. I recommend watching Jonah Hex unless you hate Crank or are a fan of the comics. Oh yeah as an adaptation of the comics I'm guessing it's abhorrent but something tells me watching this with zero knowledge of the source material is the only way to enjoy it. Which I did.