Movie Review: The Other Guys

Will Ferrell, Steve Coogan and Mark Wahlberg in Columbia Pictures' comedy <i>The Other Guys.</i> Photo / Supplied

Rating: 3/5
Verdict: Average story elevated by a great cast.

Writer director Adam McKay knows how to get the best out of Will Ferrell, he's done it before with previous collaborations Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. While this madcap action comedy isn't quite as fabulous as their previous collaborations, Ferrell fans will find plenty to laugh about with The Other Guys.

A cop movie spoof, you'll remember this film for individual gags rather than for its story. The set-up is good: loser detectives Allen Gamble (Ferrell) and Terry Hoitz (Wahlberg) get the chance to become New York's newest heroes if they can nab a Wall St criminal. The story falls apart from there, becoming more nonsensical and forgettable as it lurches towards the finale. It's almost as if they started by trying to make a film with a small amount of sense and sanity, and then went "nah, let's just make this as ridiculous as possible".

This works for Ferrell. The more carried away he gets, the more unpredictable he becomes - and the results are at times very funny. Gamble starts out as a naive, perky and polite forensic accountant, but once he's forced from his desk by his angry, old-school partner Hoitz, he shows a dirty, nasty side.

Wahlberg does well surrounded by seasoned comedians. Occasionally he comes close to stealing a scene, but his partner's improvising and ability to pull off over-the-top, crazy comedy reminds you that this is a Will Ferrell show.

The supporting cast also do their bit, with Keaton nailing his role as the Police Captain, while Mendes somehow makes being married to Ferrell seem plausible, and Coogan fluctuates between taking it seriously and playing up to the spoof element. Unfortunately though, something isn't quite right. The Other Guys does a good job of emasculating these 80s TV cops, and Gamble and Hoitz's bad cop/bad cop routines are hysterically funny, but there are too many subplots, too many different styles of comedy and too many distractions from the key story for the film to really hold together.

Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Will Ferrell, Eva Mendes, Steve Coogan
Director: Adam McKay
Running time: 107 mins
Rating: M, violence and sexual references

-TimeOut