The Other Guys (2010) ***1/2

There's been a ton of comparisons between The Other Guys and Cop Out. They've been pasted together in the buddy-cop-comedy genre, but that's unfair to both films. After sitting down to The Other Guys I can give you the distinct difference between both films, namely that Cop Out is a cop movie that happens to be funny while The Other Guys is a parody of those kinds of films.

To illustrate this point just take a look at the first five minutes. A duo of supercops played by perennial bad asses Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson tear up New York City in a blaze of glory to stop a couple of hoods. These guys are playing a parody of themselves and when parody meets real life and ends tragically, the other guys step in. 

The Other Guys of the title are Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg) and Gamble (Will Ferrell) are a couple of desk jockeys. Hoitz is haunted by a shooting that he or the city of New York can't quite get over. Gamble is Mr. Safe, sitting at his desk and doing everyone elses paper work. As the film progresses Hoitz's anger and Gamble's paranoia build into an uneasy partnership in which they leave their office and pursue a crime that keeps getting bigger and bigger with every clue they uncover. Yeah, the plot's a little typical.

The Other Guys is a decent late summer comedy. There are some of those Ferrell guffaws but Wahlberg is able to play along and gets some good lines in himself, outshining Ferrell in some respects. What helps The Other Guys is the supporting cast, particularly Michael keaton as their captain and Steve Coogan as the money man/key to the whole thing. They help out when the interplay between the two leads starts to get a bit stale. It's a pretty good comic romp all around. Don't expect much more than that and you'll be satisfied.