ON THE OTHER HAND, IT WAS GREAT SEEING MICHAEL KEATON WORKING AGAIN: But beyond that, Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg's The Other Guys didn't do a lot for me. Like Kevin Smith's Cop Out, Adam McKay's film is so tethered to the action movie tropes which it's riffing on as to not quite be anarchic and silly enough as the film approaches its conclusion.
Some elements worked -- Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne "I No Longer Have A Nickname" Johnson as the more aggressive officers, the existence of Steve Coogan**, everything involving the gator. But I think about Will Ferrell at his best in film -- Ron Burgundy, Mugatu, Bob Woodward, Frank the Tank and Buddy the Elf -- and there's nothing in The Other Guys which quite rises to those inspired levels of considered silliness. It's not a "don't see," but just "don't get your hopes up."
**It's been a long time since I've mentioned this, but, seriously? Rent 24 Hour Party People. Brilliant filmmaking, great story, tremendous performance by Coogan.
