Max Steel

Growing up as a kid, i watched cartoons every weekend on Super Channel and The Children´s Channel. I watched everything from Heathcliff, Scooby Doo, The Adams Family, G.I. Joe, He-Man, The Incredible Hulk, Jayce And The Wheeled Warriors, BraveStarr, and a lot more. The children cartoons of the 80´s was a fun time, and i even collected some of the cartoon characters by having their official toys. I remember having Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures, from the first film back in 1990, and i also got the Nintendo game, based on the film adaptation. Looking back today, the films of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles may be cheesy, but they are still nostalgic. Other cartoon characters have of course been made into full feature films, anyone remember Mr Magoo with Leslie Nielsen, or perhaps Aeon Flux with Charlize Theron ? I think i have to see Aeon Flux again soon, just to remind myself that Charlize Theron actually did make this film. In most cases, we all know that it is very difficult for film makers to make a movie adaptation, based on a cartoon character. But there is actually one film that managed to capture the spirit of a cartoon show, and i am thinking about Casper - The Friendly Ghost. The film adaptation Casper, based on the comic book and cartoon character, actually managed to get the right touch. The 1994 film with Christina Ricci and Bill Pullman, proved to work well. Eric Idle, the Monthy Python actor, was also funny as the evil Paul Plutzker. Remember the movie adaptation of The Flintstones the same year with John Goodman and Rick Moranis ? Films based on cartoon characters have proved to be either fun, or awful, depending on how directors decide to make their adaptations. They either follow the ground material, or choose to do a different version. In these days i don´t really know all the cartoons anymore, and i would not be surprised if there will be more film adaptations in the future, based on popular cartoon characters. During summer of 2016 i read about a film being made, based on the cartoon character, known as Max Steel. I had no idea what the show is about, or knew anything about the story. Now during christmas i got a chance to see the film, not knowing what to expect. Do we have a surprisingly good cartoon film adaptation in our hands, or is Max Steel doomed to fail, next to 50 Shades Of Another Grey Sequel ?

Maxwell McGrath ( Ben Winchell ) is a ordinary student, living with his mother Molly McGrath ( Maria Bello ). But this ordinary life is about to change, since Maxwell notice that something is happning with him. His hands changes form, and suddenly he gets a visit from an alien called Steel ( voice of Josh Brener ). Steel try to explain, that Max and him are connected, into becoming Max Steel, and together they have a destiny to fight the mysterious forces threatening the world. Is Maxwell really ready for this, or is this pressure too much for him to handle ?

If you love the comic book characters from Marvel Films, and you never heard of Max Steel before, don´t worry. You don´t need to know about him, or this latest film adaptation. I am going to be honest and say that this is one of the worst cartoon character films i have seen in a very long time.....and i really mean that.

Max Steel is the perfect example on why you should not make a cartoon character into film. This film is dull, lazy, with bad special effects, really awful acting, and it does not make any sense. As i finished watching Max Steel, i think i know why we have had so many car burnings in Sweden, for a very long time. Thats because people were mad about Max Steel getting a release date. If you look at the plot, this is supposed to be the story, how it all started. And you don´t really care about anything, you just want the film to stop. Lead actor Ben Winchell is someone you might have seen on Disney Channel, or on MTV. He is that kind of actor who will make girls go nuts, but don´t know how to act professionally. He might think he does a great job, but it is painful to see him as Max Steel, he really have no idea what he is doing. The dialogue is also really bad, it is cheesy and lazy as hell, and you wonder if anyone really cared about this project. I know that making a film based on cartoon characters can be difficult, but if you have a passion for this genre, you can make it right. Just look at The Avengers or Captain America, based on comic books. Max Steel is instead the perfect example of how you don´t make a cartoon character into a film adaptation. Director Stewart Hendler directed the horror films Whisper and Sorority Row, and i especially enjoyed his film Whisper. So we know he can make a good film. Max Steel is the proof that he must have lost all hope. It is like he just wanted to be paid, and hope people will see the film anyway. Whisper had a good plot, and some good acting as well. That was back in 2007. A lot seems to have happened since then, and i feel that director Stewart Hendler have made his worst movie with Max Steel. A film so terrible, it is hard to describe. The biggest question of all is, what is legendary actor Andy Garcia doing in here ? He have been in some really good films in the past, and he choose to be a part of this ? I hope they paid him well.

I thought Mother´s Day would be the worst film of 2016, i think i might change my mind after seeing Max Steel. 

Rating: D