Reviews Film / Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Once And Always

Deep Nostalgia

Bland writing? Check. Overacting cast? Check. Clumsy special effects? Check. Lives up to the standard of Power Rangers writing? ... Oh, you bet! While there have been a number of changes to the way Power Rangers has appeared over the years, this film uses some of the older story style of the very first season. In particular, Charlie Kersh lives up to the kind of overly emotional behavior and forced dialogue that the original cast dealt with thirty years ago. The film contains awkward camera cuts and chaotic fighting scenes that sometimes make it hard to follow (not at all helped by some of the vital actors not being involved in production). The villains are campy (though by no means slouches this time around). The special effects have lived up to the standards of the old series even with their update, as the morphing sequence still looks stiff and static and the Megazord battle lacks flow in CGI rather than live-action suits. Does this make the film bad? No, and it really shouldn't. While the franchise has certainly done better for itself in other material, Once & Always takes a step back in more ways than just revisiting some old characters. The film feels like it has gone back to what started the franchise in the first place: an action-packed kids' show. Perhaps it doesn't live up to the standard of similar children's shows these days, but it takes more guts to write and film to a standard from back in the 90's. Whether it was done intentionally or not, Once & Always has charm as a window back to when the franchise first started with its decent-ish acting and somewhat shallow plot line. I would at least implore any 90's kid who grew up on Power Rangers at least sit down for a viewing and count how many times they say to theirself "Hey, this is familiar".