Cop Out
Directed by Kevin Smith
Starring Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan, Sean Cullen, Kevin Pollak, Adam Brody, Michelle Trachtenberg, Jason Lee, Sean William Scott, Guillermo Diaz, and Ana de la Reguera.
Backstory
I do so love my Kevin Smith movies, and this one created a bit of a stir among the Kevin Smith fanbase. For you see, this is the first film of Smith’s that he did NOT write himself. It was his first time as a “director for hire,” says Smith. So, it was interesting to see how Smith would tackle someone else’s words. So, how did he do?
Plot
Jimmy Monroe and and Paul Hodges are a pair of NYPD detectives. When a drug bust goes wrong, they are placed on suspension without pay. Problem is, without pay, Jimmy is no longer able to pay for his daughter’s wedding. Jimmy decides to do the unthinkable: sell his vintage baseball card, worth $80,000. But while Jimmy is getting the card appraised, Jimmy is robbed. So Jimmy and Paul go on a madcap chase to recover the baseball card, causing them to cross paths with a wisecracking cat burglar, their two rivals in the police force, Mexican drug lords, and Jimmy’s daughter’s douchy stepfather. Will Jimmy and Paul recover the baseball card? Will Jimmy be able to pay for his daughter’s wedding?
What I Liked
Tracy Morgan is on fire in this film! He is just so funny as he constantly turns interrogations into little more than spouting page after page of movie quotes. Scott is pretty good, too, as the lippy cat burglar.
What I Didn’t Like
Kevin Smith said in interviews that he set out to re-create a classic, 1980s cop buddy film, and he succeeded a little too well. It reminds you of many other 1980s cop buddy films, thus leading you a little bit bored and feeling like you’ve seen it all before.
Final Assessment
Good but not great. A few good chuckles, but laugh-your-butt-off funny.