My Review: Let's Be Cops (3/10)

 “I look like somebody hit me in the face with Lil Wayne.”

Let’s Be Cops is a buddy comedy that falls flat as a feature length film and makes one wonder what the director and the rest of the crew were thinking when they decided to make this. I could understand how this might work as a short two to three minute sketch in Saturday Night Live, but you need much more than the simple premise to make an engaging full length film. I can honestly say that I laughed at two or three small scenes, but the rest of the jokes felt completely forced or out of beat. It was also rather unfortunate that once they  established a solid funny scene instead of building on that moment, the film was edited in such a way that every scene felt disconnected with the other. Let’s Be Cops also lacks originality and many of the jokes that didn’t even work in the first place are repeated throughout the film in a predictable manner. I assure you that you will laugh more from the trailers than during the entire film. There is a moment halfway through the film where the pacing also becomes an issue and you can’t wait for the credits to begin rolling. I tend to like films with this similar premise of people pretending to be cops (I was one of the few people who actually enjoyed Martin Lawrence’s Blue Streak), but the premise isn’t enough. Let’s Be Cops is just too tiresome, lazy, and repetitive. 

I haven’t watched Luke Greenfield’s prior films, Something Borrowed and The Animal, but I had really enjoyed The Girl Next Door. After this film I really don’t care too much for his upcoming projects because the directing was a major letdown. I know that a huge part of the success of these buddy comedies relies on the chemistry between the two lead actors, but there were several technical aspects of the film I had a problem with as well. The editing was poorly done, which hurt the overall flow and pacing of the film. The script was also a major letdown as none of the characters had any interesting or memorable lines that teenagers would be quoting for years to come. Nothing stands out either.

Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. might be great together in New Girl, but in Let’s Be Cops their scenes felt so forced that the comedic elements never work. If one of the best things about 22 Jump Street was the strong chemistry between Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill, then one of the worst things about this movie was the lack of chemistry between the two leads. Just thinking about this makes me want to give 22 Jump Street a higher grade. I wasn’t a huge fan of that sequel, but the chemistry was so strong that it worked. Not even the talented Andy Garcia was able to give a saving performance here. If Nina Dobrev continues to choose scripts like these for her next films, she might as well stick with The Vampire Diaries. The only character I sort of enjoyed here was Rob Riggle’s, but he wasn’t in this film very much. In summary, I would recommend you watch the trailer instead of the film because I promise the trailer has better editing and you will laugh more.