After Bruce Willis' cop flop 'Cop Out' it seemed that the revitalisation of the comedy cop genre was over; Adam McKay thought otherwise: with emphasis on comedy. The Other Guys gives you what you want from a comedy/action crossover: parodies of the cliches and an odd couple of sorts. Will Ferrel plays Allen Gamble; a desk jockey who wants nothing more than a secure job where he can't lose control (He did once before as at university he was a pimp who went by the name of 'Gator') and Mark Wahlberg plays Terry Hoitz: a cop who was on the hommicide team until he shot a baseball legend and got demoted to desk work. This unlikely duo go out on a case and make a fool of themselves after the best cops the city had died by jumping off a building. Allen is researching Dave Ershon (Steve Coogan) who has broken scaffolding permits, they meet him and arrest him but a team of lawyers take him from them and they are told not to investigate any more but they are sure there's something fishy so they continue. They discover that to pay his debts: Ershon has stolen money from the national lotteryand has taken some police money as well. In the highlight of the movie there is a brilliant office shootout and car chase to kidnap Ershon and he tells them how they can stop the money transfer; they do and all is well.
This film is hilarious and most of it comes from the chemistry between Wahlberg and Ferrell who both perform very well. The idea of a car chase to the tune of 'Monday Mornings' is inspired and they try to destroy the explosion cliche. The problem is that it can't decide whether it wants to tell cheesy predictable jokes or witty, film defining ones. They should either make it a cheesy comedy or make it New Yorker style. You still get your laughs so I give it 7/10
