Customer Reviews

Green Hornet, The

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
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This DVD release is SUPERB. I can say that because I have purchased numerous releases for the same serial, including VHS and unauthorized DVD releases. The picture quality is sharp and clear and evidently from the studio masters. The sound is excellent and the detail level is superb.

The serial is chaptered so you can select which chapter you want to watch or you can watch them all from beginning to end without interruption. Old-Time Radio shows are a bonus.

Best part about this release is the liner notes. Authored by Martin Grams, it reveals just how and where they filmed each scene for the chapters, character actors in small roles (such as an unbilled Alan Ladd) and more. I recommend you read the liner notes before watching the serial so you have plenty to look out for during viewing. Makes viewing more fun. (And according to the end of the notes, the author has an authorized book on THE GREEN HORNET coming out in early 2010!)

Overall, quality, liner notes, radio shows, bonus features, this is as good as it gets. If you question whether this is worth the price, take it from a Hornet fan. Grab this.

Just when I thought Image Entertainment had the lock on top quality Universal serial restoration, along comes VCI with its masterful work on The Green Hornet. The company's technicians must have burned the midnight oil rejuvenating this beauty. There's simply no way this vintage cliffhanger could have looked any better on first release! The "buzz" is this independent distributor has more lovingly restored goodies in the pipeline.
I'll be waiting! For its quality, this classic entry is worth every dime.

All year I looked forward to the Green Hornet serials coming to dvd & I wasn't disappointed! VCI has done a magnificent job of restoring these 2 films to their original glory! The picture quality just couldn't be better. The story & action for both films is great. After reading the biography for George W. Trendle on the extras menu it 's no surprise. Mr. Trendle supervised EVERYTHING about the production of these movies right down to the actors playing Green Hornet & Kato. All aspects of these serials met with his satisfaction before Universal dared to shoot 1 foot of film! I do wish however that biographies for Anne Nagel & Wade Boteler had been included. Both these actors did many serials for Universal & they deserved a mention. But that's ok. All of the other extras are great too including the photo galleries & 2 episodes of the Green Hornet radio program. Also Green Hornet facts & trivia gives a lot of background info I was not aware of before. Now I can't wait to see the new Green Hornet movie in 2010!

`The Green Hornet' is, overall, a pretty good serial. Certainly it is a darn sight better than the superhero movies made since about, say, 2005, when suddenly Batman was willing to confess his true identity to a deputy DA just because he has the hots for her, or since 2006, when we learned that Superman was a dead-beat dad and a stalker (and don't get me started on the Fantastic Four or `Spider-Man 3': blech!). `The Green Hornet' features a hero unencumbered by ridiculous modern angst and subplots, who is good in a fight, yet is only able to perform feats that actual human beings could conceivably perform.

This serial has a good plot, or rather a series of good plots, that are much more grounded in reality than most other serials. It does not involve super-powers, magic, outer space, or super-villains. It's about crime. I myself enjoy the demented hallucinations of `Flash Gordon' or `Atom Man Vs. Superman' as much as the next person, but I like crime stories too.

This serial has decent fight scenes, not dazzling like `Spy Smasher,' but better than the average Columbia serial. The cliff hangers are generally good, with the average amount of `cheating' to resolve some of them. There is a good sequence with the Hornet jumping from his car onto a moving train, and who doesn't like that?

To predict if you are going to like this serial, a lot depends on if you like the Green Hornet as a hero. This serial is very faithful to the original radio show, even to the extent that whenever actor Gordon Jones puts on the Green Hornet mask, his voice is dubbed in by Al Hodge, who played the Hornet on radio and later went on to be the best Captain Video on TV.

I like the Green Hornet because he has a super cool gas gun to knock out crooks (the special effect for this action works well here) and has a super cool souped-up car to chase crooks. Also, instead of wearing tights, he wears a suit and a hat, which looks a lot classier and certainly less sissy than superhero tights.

But now a word about Kato: in this version of Green Hornet, Kato is the one who invents the super cool gas gun and high powered engine that powers the super cool car. In real life, a guy that smart would have patented those things and gotten rich from them. Or if he gotten into the crime fighting business, he might have kept the gas gun and super motor secret so as to avoid them falling into the wrong hands, but certainly he would have invented other things and gotten rich from them.

Also, besides being a scientific genius, Kato is the one who knows martial arts. The Green Hornet is pretty good in a fight, but a Judo expert would outfight him every time.

What I am getting at is that Kato should have been the main hero, and the Hornet should have been his sidekick. My guess as to why the Hornet was dominant is that is something to do with the fact that Kato was not a Caucasian and Hollywood has been known to, from time to time, exhibit a little institutional racism.

To the credit of the writers, however, at least Kato was portrayed as smart, tough and valiant, rather than being a subhuman idiot or a satanic sadist (many non-caucasians were represented thusly by Hollywood at the time). There are several instances in this serial when Kato saves the Hornet's butt.

Keye Luke, who played Kato in this and the 2nd Green Hornet serial, was a good actor who, while he never became a household name, worked steadily on a multitude of roles for about 50 years. He played Number One Son in many Charlie Chan movies, and had small to medium-sized roles in scores of other films. He was a constant guest star in TV shows of the 1960's, ranging from `My Three Sons' to `Star Trek.'

But my favorite role of Keye Luke's was his excellent portrayal of Master Po, the all-seeing yet blind teacher from TV's `Kung Fu.' IMO, he was the coolest person on the show. Strangely, the original concept for `Kung Fu' would have had Bruce Lee playing the hero. Unfortunately some twit in Hollywood decided to hire David Carradine, who was pretty good, but still Lee would have been cooler. Bruce Lee, of course, besides being a martial arts movie superstar, played Kato in the underrated TV version of the Green Hornet.

This video is a little blurry due to the age and decomposition of the original film stock, but it is not so bad as to distract a true movie buff, so don't be frightened by those who belly-ache about that. Just don't pay more than $10 for this.

Here is an honest review of VCI's dvd of "The Green Hornet: Movie Edition" and the extras therein:

The original serial is edited down to an 84-minute feature film. What you get on this dvd is two versions of the same cut. The first one has a sepia tint throughout with occasional green tints, yellow tints, pink, orange (and combinations thereof) thrown in for good measure.. as well as beefed-up sound effects here and there. The second version is the original B&W print without psychedelic doodling from the boffins in the colorizing suite and it's far the superior version. A good print in glorious monochrome. This second print of the film is to be found in the "Extras" section of the dvd. You also get the first two chapters of the original serial. Both chapters are fine prints as well.

That's all you'll get here and, for the price, it's a fair deal. There are no radio shows nor photo galleries as another review has started.

Enjoy!

The character of The Green Hornet first appeared on WXYZ radio, Detroit, Michigan on January 31, 1936, and was created by station program manager/co-owner George W. Trendle (who also created The Lone Ranger) and, was like that station's Lone Ranger, was primarily written by Fran Striker, during the early years of both programs. And Trendle's creation from the word go, but Striker was the one who came up with the gas gun and "Black Beauty. "Trendle created Britt Reid/The Green Hornet as the son of Dan Reid, the boy who called The Lone Ranger uncle.

The Green Hornet, like his legendary predecessor, fought crime wearing a mask; he carried a gas gun; he drove a fast car, "Black Beauty". The Hornet's sidekick was Kato, a Korean who doubled as his valet, and was a college graduate who knew all the secrets of Kung Fu, a master chemist and he could drive the "Black Beauty" with amazing skill. The opening-and-closing theme music, the Green Hornet opened with "Flight of the Bumble Bee" as it's theme music.

Universal studios acquired the rights to make two serials based on Trendle's "Green Hornet" character.
This one was Universal's 45th sound-era serial and they slipped it in between "The Phantom Creeps" and "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe." Through thirteen chapters in this serial The Green Hornet manages to discover and eliminate a number of various criminal enterprises that are plaguing his city. Playing The Green Hornet in this version is Gordon Jones who was best known for being Mike the Cop on the Abbott and Costello show. Keye Luke plays his faithful sidekick and chauffeur Kato.

The premise here is that the various rackets are controlled by a city syndicate of twelve and the Green Hornet as himself and in his real identity of Britt Reid, millionaire publisher of a crusading newspaper the Sentinel, systematically exposes each racket in each chapter. He even has a gas gun that shoots small gas pellets and when they hit the target they merely disable. Fran Striker who created The Green Hornet also created the Lone Ranger and the Ranger's creed was always to shoot to wound. Modern technology has given the Green Hornet a weapon that will do nothing else. Watch for a surprisingly excellent cast: Anne Nagel as Reid's secretary Lenore Case, Wade Boteler as the irrepressible Irishman Mike Axeford. Incredible stuntman Dave Sharpe doubles for Jones in the action scenes and veteran radio performer Al Hodge provides the Hornet's voice. So pop some popcorn, sit back and enjoy!

Make sure you order the edition pictured... released in 2011 as it has been restored and is a pleasure to watch. Some of the reviews here are dated several years back and are older versions which were evidently very poor quality so check the release date (why Amazon has all these reviews mixed up is a good question. Confusing!). The 2011 DVD presents the updated version with the special comic book color fade-ins & also has the original black & white movie version which is crisp & clear plus a sample of the first 2 serial chapters as originally presented.

I was not aware that a Green Hornet movie was ever made let alone a serial. I knew about the radio show. Anyway, this serial I have to say is quite good. I was,nt disippointed at all. The action , and thrilling cliffhangers at the end of each chapter was pretty good. Now the BADDEST thing in it is The Black Beauty. Man, is that one HELL of a vehicle. ......FAST!!! None of that speed up the camera stuff thats in earlier serials. Thoses sharp, SHARP turns I wish I can do.Never mind it did,nt all those rockets and scaners or even a phone in it. It was all so very cool. Hey, what do you expect for the 1940 ,s ???? I also was surprised to see Kato use a Karate chop now and then in this one. Way before Bruce Lee was ever concieved. Very good . When I heard that a serial of the Hornet was made back in the 40,s I had to jump on it.....and I,m pleased I did.

VCI Entertainment presents "THE GREEN HORNET" --- (9 January 1940) (258 mins/B&W) (Dolby digitally remastered) --- Universal movie serial based on the The Green Hornet radio series by George W. Trendle --- The Green Hornet, secretly newspaper publisher Britt Reid, and his Korean valet Kato stop and expose several seemingly separate crimes. This leads them into continued conflict with The Leader, the criminal mastermind behind The Syndicate and the individual crimes --- "It's gone... like a puff of smoke! I've never seen a car move so fast." --- The two police officers who are constantly chasing the Green Hornet's car say that in almost every episode. Britt Reid (the Green Hornet) is a rich guy who like Bruce Wayne (Batman) and Lamont Cranston (The Shadow) has a secret identity that he uses to fight crime --- Through thirteen chapters in this serial The Green Hornet manages to discover and eliminate a number of various criminal enterprises that are plaguing his city. Playing The Green Hornet in this version is a younger and leaner Gordon Jones who was best known for being Mike the Cop on the Abbott and Costello show. Keye Luke plays his sidekick and chauffeur Kato who because of the impending war was changed from Japanese to Korean for this serial.

Under the production staff of:
Ford Beebe - Director
Ray Taylor - Director
George H. Plympton - Screenwriter
Basil Dickey - Screenwriter
Morrison Wood - Screenwriter
Lyonel Margolies - Screenwriter
Fran Striker - author of characters
George W. Trendel - creator of character
Henry MacRae - Associate Producer
Jerome Ash - Cinematographer
William A. Sickner - Cinematographer
Irving Birnbaum - Film Editor
Joseph Gluck - Film Editor
Alvin Todd - Film Editor
Harold H. MacArthur - Art Director
David Sharpe - Stunts

Chapter titles
1. The Tunnel of Terror
2. The Thundering Terror
3. Flying Coffins
4. Pillar of Flame
5. The Time Bomb
6. Highways of Peril
7. Bridge of Disaster
8. Dead or alive
9. The Hornet Trapped
10.Bullets and Ballots
11.Disaster Rides the Rails
12.Panic in the Zoo
13.Doom of the Underworld

the cast includes:
Gordon Jones ... Britt Reid / The Green Hornet
Wade Boteler ... Michael Axford
Anne Nagel ... Lenore "Casey" Case
Keye Luke ... Kato
Phillip Trent ... Jasper Jenks
Cy Kendall ... Curtis Monroe
Stanley Andrews ... Police Commissioner [Chs. 1, 5, 9, 13]
Selmer Jackson ... District Attorney [Chs. 4, 10]
Joseph Crehan ... Judge Stanton [Chs. 1, 9, 10, 13] (as Joe Crehan)
Walter McGrail ... Henchman Dean
Gene Rizzi ... Henchman Corey
John Kelly ... Henchman Pete Hawks
Eddie Dunn ... D.H. Sligby [Ch. 7]
Edward Earle ... Felix Grant, Attorney [Ch. 1]
Ben Taggart ... Phil Bartlett [Chs. 3-4]
Clyde Dilson ... Meadows [Ch. 5]
Jerry Marlowe ... Bob Stafford [Chs. 7, 11]
Frederick Vogeding ... Max Gregory [Ch. 11] (as Fredrik Vogeding)

BIOS:
1. Gordon Jones
Date of Birth: 5 April 1911 - Alden, Iowa
Date of Death: 20 June 1963 - Tarzana, California

2. Anne Nagel
Date of Birth: 29 September 1912 - Boston, Massachusetts
Date of Death: 6 July 1966 - Hollywood, California

3. Keye Luke
Date of Birth: 18 June 1904 - Guangzhou, China
Date of Death: 12 January 1991 - Whittier, California

4. Ford Beebe (Director)
Date of Birth: 26 November 1888 - Grand Rapids, Michigan
Date of Death: 26 November 1978 - Lake Elsinore, California

5. Ray Taylor (Director)
Date of Birth: 1 December 1888 - Perham, Minnesota
Date of Death: 15 February 1952 - Hollywood, California

BONUS FEATURES:
1. Liner Notes by Author Martin Grams Jr.
2. Two "Green Hornet" Radio Episodes
3. Stills Gallery
4. Episodes 1-13 (End Credits)

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guidelines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") and Buck Rainey (author of :The Life and Films of Buck Jones) as they have rekindled my interest once again for Film Noir, B-Westerns and Serials --- looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '30s & '40s and B-Westerns --- order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment where there are plenty of copies available on DVD --- stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with exciting adventure --- if you enjoyed this title, why not check out Amazon or VCI where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns --- all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Time: 258 mins on DVD ~ VCI Entertainment ~ (07/28/2009)

I bought The Green Hornet on VHS back in the '90s. I'm glad it is coming out on DVD. I know it must be because of the new movie that is coming out and I hope that movie doesn't kill the Green Hornet like it happened with others. (The Lone Ranger, Underdog, George of the Jungle) The first review gave a good outline of the movie but what I really liked is it sticks with what The Green Hornet is all about. When you hear the Green Hornet speek it is not the actor (Gordon Jones) who is saying the words. (a lot of movies have done that) What I like is they brought in Al Hodge of the radio show to do it. I'm hoping the tv show will be out on dvd soon. I heard there was a piolt done in the '40s for tv that was not sold and I hope it is found and put on dvd also.