On DVD: 'Paul Blart: Mall Cop'

'Paul Blart: Mall Cop' (PG) ***

Writers: Nick Barkay and Kevin James
Director: Steve Carr
Starring: Kevin James, Jayma Mays, Keir O'Donnell, Bobby Cannavale, Peter Gerety, Adam Ferrara, Shirley Knight

Oh yes I am going to say it and I don't care. I liked Paul Blart: Mall Cop and this is not the first time I liked a movie that for many reasons I shouldn't have and that the critics ripped apart. I laughed quite a few times, enjoyed Kevin James's performance and appreciated it's slight parody of "Die Hard" I also love discovering new actresses that you instantly find infectious and who give a good comic performance. The actress is Jayma Mays and like her sweet performance in the instant classic television show "Glee" she just pulls you in. I also find Kevin James to be a very engaging and effective performer and he has that sweetness combined with a simple funny everyman approach that I find appealing. Mays and James are a good fit together and their little love story is touching and funny here. I don't say this much but I think this is a good movie for the family, not too crude and not too violent. It moves fast and entertained me most of the time. I like it's slight digs at "Die Hard" with variations on those characters. This movie is actually better than "Die Hard With a Vengeance". It also is better than a similar movie based on a mall security cop "Observe and Report" with Seth Rogen that had a lot of the same character types. That was more of an adult, black comedy version that I thought I would like better. I go for the dark, twisted vulgar approach most of the time but that failed because it didn't successfully do it's job. Paul Blart is more successful at it's goal. I felt a slight admiration for this because it reminded me of the guilty pleasures I saw as a kid like the Tim Conway, Don Knotts films of the late 70's and 80's and "Under the Rainbow" with Chevy Chase from 1981. Dumb movies for sure but I liked them as I do this movie because they tried, they could have been worse and they weren't afraid to be stupid. "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" is now available on DVD.