(spoiler free)
Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson are two of the most likeable actors working in Hollywood today. Many question their abilities in terms of acting but what can’t be questioned is their work ethic. These guys are always up to something and are worth a follow on their social media. They seem like genuinely nice people as well so it’s hard not to get on board with their film efforts. Kevin Hart has already starred in buddy cop comedy ‘Ride Along 2’ this year which wasn’t great so will trading in Ice Cube for The Rock make ‘Central Intelligence’ a worthwhile comedy?
Unfortunately ‘Central Intelligence’ is a fairly dull and predictable film that we have seen countless times before, one being ‘Ride Along 2’ earlier this year! The biggest problem with the film is that it’s just not funny enough. Like most comedies these days there are a small number of moments that will make you giggle but the majority of the film is lacking that comedic edge. Alongside the comedy a good buddy cop movie needs to have good action. Whilst the action in ‘Central Intelligence’ isn’t bad there isn’t enough fun or spectacle in it to make it overly enjoyable. It’s fine, it does the job but there isn’t a good enough blend of the comedy into the action and vice versa. If you’ve seen the trailers then you’ve seen the best clips from all the action sequences featured in the film. With the lack of any big action set piece, especially in the finale, for a CIA secret agent style movie it really fails to impress. There is usually some drama thrown into the mix as well in these double act movies and ‘Central Intelligence’ is no different. It’s shoehorned in on several occasions and when it is given time it’s simply too boring to get the audience to care about it.
It’s certainly not the worst comedy I’ve seen this year and there are some positives about it. Kevin Hart is great as always, he’s perfect at playing the out of his depth character thrown into situations that he just shouldn’t be in. When he has the right material he can really be hilarious, so it’s a shame that ‘Central Intelligence’ didn’t have a funnier script. Whilst Dwayne Johnson gets a lot of stick from critics regarding his acting I’ve always found him to be very watchable on screen. The addition of him to the ‘Fast & Furious’ franchise was a stroke of genius, he nails the tough guy act. I thought he fared well with the drama included in ‘San Andreas’ last year too but in ‘Central Intelligence’ when dealt the comedy hand I thought he did struggle slightly. He has an uphill battle though as I thought his character was terribly written. One minute he is this touch guy spy and the next he is deeply insecure and then he’s trying to impress Hart’s character. There was too much confusion with this character and as a result The Rock’s performance was halted from being anything more than average. The chemistry that the pair have suffered too being just ok rather than great which is such a disappointment considering the pairs real life chemistry! The rest of the cast are fine and there is an appearance from Jason Bateman which I really enjoyed as he seems to reprise his role from last year’s ‘The Gift’. His scene was a nice change of pace from the buddy cop dynamic and the film maybe could have benefited from more moments like these.
‘Central Intelligence’ is more of the same dull, unoriginal buddy cop comedies that we’ve now surely lost count of. It’s not the best work of either of the lead actors but the quality of the film can’t be blamed on them. The lack of exciting action, funny jokes and engaging drama meant that ‘Central Intelligence’ was never going to be a good film. Nonetheless it passes the time and doesn’t ever become boring and it may just have the best tagline of any movie this year!
Rating – 4/10
Question: What is the best ever buddy cop movie?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)
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