The Other Guys

Ugh, remember Cop Out? I wish I didn't. That bore-fest of a parody flick has unquestionably painted a big black stain on Kevin Smith's career and will make its victims quiver in fear whenever its title is mentioned to them. It was an appallingly unfunny comedy intended as an homage to the well-known buddy cop films of the 80's and one that failed miserably. It's too bad that Smith didn't wait a few months, as he could have seen how a movie of this type is supposed to be handled.

That way, he may have seen the wonderful Adam McKay's new picture The Other Guys, although he should have watched Hot Fuzz in 2007. Both have basically the same intentions, to pay tribute to the style epitomised in Lethal Weapon and 48 Hrs, but where Kevin Smith failed, Adam McKay stands tall and proud.

The Other Guys stars McKay regular Will Ferrell and Mark (Marky Mark) Wahlberg as Allen Gamble and Terry Hoitz, a couple of New York City detectives who are nothing if they're not mismatched. They're overshadowed by two aggressive, vain supercops called PK Highsmith (the awesome Samuel L. Jackson) and Christopher Danson (the not-so-awesome Dwayne Johnson), who hog all the media attention.

After Highsmith and Danson are killed while on the job, their positions as idolized megastars needs to be filled, so Gamble and Hoitz see their chance to shine and to prove themselves. They end up on the case of a possible corporate fraudster, David Ershon (Steve Coogan), but the more they search for clues, the more they screw things up.

McKay has a keen eye for witty dialogue, as shown in each of his previous efforts, writing alongside Land of the Lost’s Chris Henchy here. They gently cram the film with continually hilarious one-liners for Ferrell and Wahlberg to happily play with, and I'm happy to listen to it. The film is no doubt at its fascinating best with the brilliant banter between our two protagonists, which is exceptionally entertaining and thankfully ever-present.

As usual, Ferrell is the film's highlight, delivering a memorably deadpan, if familiar performance as the awkward and socially square type. The character's a moron no doubt, and Ferrell's rich skills in the art of comedy acting are perfectly suited for the role. Not that Ferrell's a moron (lots will disagree with me on that), he just knows how to play one in an effective and over-the-top manner.

Wahlberg is the complete opposite, portraying a gung-ho brute who looks like he'd throw a sandwich man out of a window for putting too much mayonnaise on his BLT. He's lovable and has a smart mouth, with Wahlberg displaying some damn fine comedy talent and sort of recycling his famous role in The Departed. And that's not a bad thing, cos Dignam was fuckin' awesome.

The two have the kind of chemistry that Cop Out strived for, but completely messed up. Wahlberg is the straight man and Ferrell is the silly one, a mix that really does work here, much like Laurel and Hardy, although obviously to a lesser extent in terms of quality.

Michael Keaton is Captain Gene Mauch, the usual takes-no-shit boss who has a second job at Bed, Bath & Beyond and barks orders at our two main characters while inadvertently quoting TLC lyrics. "Don't go chasing waterfalls," he says. Keaton is a god.

And then we have Steve Coogan as our possible baddie, a very powerful and arrogant Englishman who distracts Gamble and Hoitz with tickets for court size seats to a Knicks game and to go see Jersey Boys live. Coogan’s a spectacular comedian and his talents certainly are not squandered here, he’s given much material to show off his natural charisma.

While this is no Anchorman, I'd say it's superior to McKay's Talladega Nights and on a par with Step Brothers. The laugh-out-loud, absurd comedy is constant and thoroughly pleasing, serving several belly laughs within the first hour. A scene where Hoitz quietly fights one of his colleagues on the floor at a funeral while others gang around and egg them on by whispering is hilarious.

It turns out that McKay is quite the action man, impressively filming high-octane car chases in a surprisingly neat fashion. The opening scene, consisting of Highsmith and Danson speeding after a bunch of armed crooks, is hella cool as we watch a bullet pierce through the air in a very Wanted-esque way, and New York's finest crash into a bus and cause $12 million in property damage. It's all well-shot and is an invigorating opening to the film.

What I like about The Other Guys is that while it parodies the buddy cop genre, it doesn't just become another one of them. To do that would be what Cop Out stupidly did, and we all know how that ended. “Badly,“ I scream in your ear through a bullhorn. It's McKay's own film that simply has elements of the popular genre and for that, it's great.

If you've seen McKay's other flicks, you'll know what to expect here. It's the same unique brand of outrageous slapstick and ridiculous humour that worked so well in Anchorman, except it's laden with guns and explosions. While falling a bit flat by the last ten minutes, The Other Guys is still a side-splitting affair that makes for a fabulous addition to the summer. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go punch Kevin Smith in his rotund belly.

8/10