'The Other Guys'

'The Other Guys' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Chris Henchy and Adam McKay
Director: Adam McKay
Starring: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Keaton, Eva Mendes, Dwayne Johnson, Samuel Jackson, Steve Coogan

The first hour of "The Other Guys" is so brilliant and extremely funny that the last half hour can't stand all that weight from the first hour. I laughed every minute of that first hour and the last half hour when I got lost I still enjoyed one of my favorite actors. This movie knows all the cop movie cliches and turns them on their ear. Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg play those Other Guys who are paper pushing cops who take a back seat to the action, hero cops. Dwayne Johnson and Samuel Jackson are the hero cops and they are very funny in their roles. When those officers do an inexplicable and very stupid stunt and die, Ferrell and Wahlberg come in and take over. They are following a very shady and corrupt financial executive played by Steve Coogan. Will Ferrell's specialty is evident here and that is saying some very crazy stuff that doesn't always make sense with a complete straight face. He is good again here but the real comic genius comes from Mark Wahlberg who is hilarious as the straight man. They both work very well off each other and there is some very funny dialogue between Ferrell and Wahlberg including a classic exchange. That classic exchange of dialogue involves a group of tuna attacking a lion and you have to hear it to believe how confusing but nutty and funny it sounds. There is also a very funny performance by one of my all time favorite actors in Michael Keaton. This is the old, classic Keaton from "Night Shift" and "Clean and Sober". He steals the movie as the police captain who moonlights at Bath and Beyond. I love Keaton and his performance is subtly hilarious and I think Oscar worthy. Eva Mendes is also very funny as Ferrell's wife. Another of the side splitting moments from the first hour deal with Ferrell not noticing how hot his wife is. Wahlberg's reaction and his constant hitting on Mendes is classic and worth the price of admission. Now the last hour gets bogged down in unfunny chases and shootouts and Coogan is not funny as the villain. The plot dealing with the bad guy is topical but confusing and needless. It doesn't matter because I laughed so much in the first hour more than I have in most full comedies this year.