As summer begins to wind down, I'm doing my best to see as many more films as I can because I know school is right around the corner. This time it's the lastest Will Ferrell comedy, The Other Guys.
It's been no secret that many people have been disgruntled with many of Ferrell's recent comedies, feeling that they have not lived up to the man's talent. I'm pleased to report that this movie has Will back in top form once again; it's the best he's been since at least Talladega Nights - and since I wasn't exactly a fan of that film, I'll say it's the best he's been Anchorman. Ferrell plays a cop who's never seen any action on the streets and is content with simply doing the grunt paperwork that none of his fellow 'real' cops want to do. This attitude particularly frustrates his partner, Terry Hoitz (played by Mark Wahlberg); he's a guy who wants to be in the thick of it all, but has been sidelined due to him accidentally shooting Derek Jeter.
Initially there isn't a need for them to be out in the field, since supercops (played by Samuel L. Jackson and The Rock) handle all of the big cases. While their appearance is brief, I did love the presence of these two guys on screen and the havoc they caused in order to catch the bad guys. Since we couldn't have a film featuring the main characters doing paperwork the entire time, Ferrell and Wahlberg soon find themselves working on a case involving the shady dealings of an investor (played by Steve Coogan).
As the two leads uncover clues, we get a lot of banter and bickering between them. Reminiscent of many past cop movies, these two guys can't get along. But the film does a nice job of playing with that notion since usually the bickering is a means of two guys trying to prove who's tougher. Here neither of these guys are all that manly, so watching them defend themselves while also trying to tear the other one down, yields a lot of laughs in the film.
Other sources of hilarity comes from a few more side characters like Michael Keaton, who plays the police captain. In addition to dealing with bumbling cops, he's having to take a side job at Bed, Bath, and Beyond in order to put his bisexual son through NYU. Funny stuff. There's also Eva Mendes playing Ferrell's 'thankless' wife. The gag here is that Ferrell seemingly doesn't realize what a catch she is, yet she's still extremely attracted to her.
One of the most impressive things about the film is it's joke callbacks. Given my penchant for Arrested Development, I always love when comedy writers can reference previous jokes and continue to bring fresh takes on them. The film does a really nice job with this, which helps keeps the laughs coming throughout the film.
It should be noted though that this is not a pure comedy. There's a lot of action and story here that makes the film seem almost at times like an actual police thriller, rather than a comedy. They seemed to want to include a lot of homages to cop movies, yet not all of them played for laughs. This makes the film a bit longer than it should have been and gives it an odd pacing. However, whenever the film started to lose me, it didn't take long for them to win me back with another great gag or one-liner.
Many will be surprised to see the film take such a hard stance against the economic situation we are actually facing in our country; particulary during the closing credits as they reveal several alarming statistics about our national banks and the bailout they received. Since the cops are dealing with a white collar crime, it somewhat fits, but still seems out of place in this film. However, any opportunity I get to learn something new about the world I live, I appreciate it.
I find myself eager to watch this film again. I feel that I may have missed some small nuances or subtle dialogue that will yield more laughs upon a second visit. While some films can be funny, you also know that those laughs won't be there on repeat viewings. I don't believe the same will hold true here. This is a robust film that offers a great performance from Ferrell and provides enough other talented people around him to make this a very enjoyable film. It does a nice job of paying homage to the police films that came before it, while also adding a new wrinkle to make it feel fresh. This is a nice late summer treat worthy of a viewing if you get the opportunity. Grade: B+
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