When it comes to movie heroes, there are basically two varieties. The more common is the tough man or woman who has the training and/or simple resolve to deal with the bad guys whether purposefully sent in to take care of matters or accidentally finding themselves stuck in a situation that necessitates that. The "Die Hard" movies are a good example of the latter, with John McClane being the right cop in the wrong place.
The less utilized setup and one that predominantly exists in the comedy genre is that of the unlikely hero, someone no one would ever expect could end up saving the day. The "Home Alone" flicks portray such a premise where young Kevin stymies the bumbling crooks' attempts to rob his family's home.
Considering the title, there's little doubt that "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" falls in squarely with the latter crowd. Marking the first time Kevin James (best known for playing Doug Heffernan on TV's "The King of Queens") has had a movie lead all to himself, the film also utilizes another cinematic staple: physical comedy stemming from an out of shape man doing various moves and stunts not normally associated with people of his size.
It's something that's been done through the generations from Jackie Gleason to John Belushi and Chris Farley and more. Nevertheless, while James gives it his all, his timing and the filmmakers' creativity in terms of coming up with innovative antics isn't quite up there with the masters. As a result, it's sometimes amusing, but it never transcends into brilliance.
The same holds true for the overall pic, helmed by Steve Carr who works from the screenplay by James and Nick Bakay. In fact, and despite all of those physical bits of comedy, the violence (both comedy and action-based), and yet another film featuring parkour stunts (where people run, jump, bounce and otherwise flit about in seemingly gravity-defying ways), the comedy is surprisingly lethargic.
That's particularly true in terms of setting up and then executing the dialogue-based jokes and visual gags. The former is clearly the weaker of the two elements, giving one the impression that perhaps the filmmakers were held back by the need/desire to keep the verbal stuff safe enough for a PG rating.
That said, the villains -- led by Keir O'Donnell -- are more of the PG-13 variety and aren't of the bumbling "Home Alone" mold. All of which pretty much leaves the film in no man's land, not goofy enough to be a true family flick, and neutered too much to come off as an engaging action movie.
There's a romantic subplot for female viewers -- featuring young Jane Krakowski look-alike Jayma Mays as the sad sack and romantically bereft hero's love interest -- but that also lacks the zippiness and/or emotionally effective material to entertain or make viewers root for the budding relationship to take root.
Those looking for some mindless and simple escapism might enjoy some or all of the material, but most of it came off as too uninspired and lethargic to entertain yours truly. With only a few amusing moments scattered here and there, "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" might just have as hard a time luring in customers to shopping center stores and likely won't have many if any repeat ones. The film rates as a 3.5 out of 10.
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