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| 'McKay uses the end credits to trot out point after graphed point about the nefarious ills of the banking world, hinting that maybe he at least thought there was some sort of moral to The Other Guys. There isn't.' |
A disposable comedy in the same vein as Date Night, The Other Guys is director Adam McKay's fourth collaboration with star Will Ferrell in a formula which peaked at its inception with Anchorman and went downhill significantly with subsequent efforts Talladega Nights and Step Brothers. If not a return to form, The Other Guys is at least a return to fun. McKay might not hit his zany best but segments of the film are reminiscent of the best moments of Anchorman and in Mark Wahlberg, McKay has found a dynamic presence who fits in well opposite Ferrell's never-changing shtick.
Early on though, it is two other presences who raise most of the laughs. Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson appear as two wonder cops, consistently putting the rest of the department to shame and stealing the glory Hoitz (Wahlberg) craves and Gamble (Ferrell) avoids. In the opening title scene, McKay blends knowing cop-film humour with his own blend of shouted joke (Jackson enquiring 'did someone call 9-1-Holy S**t?' is a highlight) to good effect, resulting in a segment that is hard to beat when compared to any other set piece the film has to offer.
When Johnson and Jackson are off screen, the film suffers markedly as Ferrell and Wahlberg take time to find their feet. Ferrell in particular brings baggage to any role he takes on, only successfully shedding it once in recent memory during his standout performance in Stranger Than Fiction. Whilst the partnership grows to produce some gentle humour alongside the more broad and bawdy stuff, you can't help but feel that without Ferrell this might have functioned even better - perhaps putting Wahlberg opposite another actor not necessarily known for his comedic leanings would have paid significant dividends.
McKay uses the end credits to trot out point after graphed point about the nefarious ills of the banking world, hinting that maybe he at least thought there was some sort of moral to The Other Guys. There isn't. Including some afterthought statistics and making your bad guy (the excellent Steve Coogan) an investor, doesn't equal making a point about a popular subject and it largely feels like McKay is trying to cash in on the newspaper coverage devoted to the topic.
The more McKay-stylised humour of The Other Guys won't help to endear him to a new audience and an early extended joke about lions fighting tuna fish is a brave move considering its exactly the sort of thing that has turned people off him in the past. The film does recover though and builds into a more than acceptable comedy piece, even if the moralising would have been better left on the sidelines completely.
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'made all the better by the mismatched partnership of Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg' - Cinematic Paradox, 7/10
Wahlberg is hilarious in probably one of his best comedic roles, and shows just how well he can play any type of role. Good Review!
ReplyDeleteCheers Dan and yes I agree on Wahlberg. I actually think he can do much more than he's previously been given credit for. Hope he continues picking up roles that show a bit of variety.
ReplyDeleteWould have loved to see more of Jackson and Johnson, I thought this was a solid comedy but it does lose steam 2/3 of the way through. That Lion and Tuna part was absolutely priceless!
ReplyDeleteYou're not the first person to say that about 'lion vs tuna' but I hate that sort of joke. Just not my sense of humour. I think you're right Castor on both other points; Jackson and Johnson were great when they were there and it does start to drag as it moves on.
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