It's not easy to make a buddy cop movie in this day and age. It's almost impossible to do a serious one. So, what's left are either broad comedies a la the "Rush Hour" flicks or straight-up parodies like Kevin Smith's "Cop Out" from earlier in the year. Leave it to comedy maestros Will Ferrell and Adam McKay to breathe a little life into the genre with "The Other Guys."
The two succeed by injecting their own foibles and silly, self-absorbed tangents into the formula. It's still basically cops and robbers, with the cops as swaggering, wise-cracking hotshots and the robbers as sneering, moustache-twirling baddies. But upon that basic structure, Ferrell and McKay hang several dozen gags -- both recurring and throwaway bits -- that give the film an energy and a comic zip lacking in the genre lately and in movie comedies, in general, this year.
Ferrell stars as Allen Gamble, a Manhattan desk cop who loves doing the paperwork of other cops because it keeps him out of harm's way. Secretly, though, he is scared that his own dark side will come creeping out if faced with violent street criminals and real investigative work. That's not the case with his hotheaded squad room partner Terry Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg), who has been saddled with desk duty ever since accidentally wounding one of New York's top sports stars. He dreams of getting back out there, cracking skulls, and doling out justice.
Terry senses a way to get his detective's shield back when numbers-cruncher Allen gets wind of a possible white-collar crime ring involving a Manhattan billionaire investor (Steve Coogan), who may be defrauding the New York lottery to pay off bad investments he made. He convinces Allen to leave the safe confines of the precinct despite the objections of Allen's doting, seemingly perfect wife (Eva Mendes); the protests of their frazzled police commander (Michael Keaton); and the pressure of rival cops Martin and Fosse (Rob Riggle and Damon Wayans Jr.)
"The Other Guys" is a rather silly, but focused cop comedy that deftly walks the line between straight-up buddy-cop comedy and buddy-cop comedy parody. The cast and crew know they are working in a genre that's been done to death, and they take great pleasure in charging up the paddles, yelling "Clear!" and shocking the format back to life. They make the tried-and-true structure of this kind of flick into a major plus because they are able to hang so many wacky, often profane gags off of it.
Keaton, in particular, is a welcome presence here in a return to his comedy roots. His Captain Gene Mauch looks and sounds like the usual exasperated shift commander, balancing his roster of hotshot cops with the demands of the "bosses upstairs." But a subplot involving his moonlighting as a manager of a Bed Bath & Beyond in which he manages the staff like he manages his precinct is very clever.
Ferrell and Wahlberg have surprisingly good comic chemistry together, as highlighted by the first time they have dinner together at Allen's house and Terry can't help but marvel through the entire meal at the perfection of Allen's wife. "The Other Guys" also features one of the funniest death scenes in recent memory. You'll know it when you see it.
So, a positive review on this one! Yes, the film runs about 10 minutes too long, and not all of the gags work no matter how many times McKay and Ferrell repeat them. But they throw a lot at the wall throughout, and a surprisingly high number of bits do stick and will have you laughing all the way home and maybe even into the next day. I rate it a solid 7.5 out of 10. (T. Durgin)
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