I love Kevin Hart don't get me wrong. His stand up is hilarious and I also love Ice Cube's movies AND the two of them have great chemistry on screen and all but....it wasn't that funny. This movie had its' funny parts but the problem is most of them you already saw on the preview. This won't go on my list of funniest movies I've ever seen but it had decent action and decent humor. It had a little twist toward the end but thinking of the premise movies like Meet the Parents were funnier or Twenty one jump street or The Heat but what can I say it was filmed well and the two of them together provided enough entertainment so the film is worth a watch.
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doofuspoofus22 January 2014
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bravesfanc25 January 2014We've all seen this type of movie before. It's a buddy cop flick where the 2 guys don't see eye to eye in the beginning but by the end they learn to appreciate one another. The only difference with this one is that Kevin Hart is trying to get approval from Ice Cube to marry his sister.
No need to dwell on the story as the trailer pretty much describes it. Ultimately, if you like Kevin Hart you will more than likely enjoy this movie. I for one, am a huge fan and love his stand up. I also liked him in "Think Like A Man". His physical comedy as well as comedic timing are very good. I probably wouldn't have even seen this movie if he wasn't in it.
So a 6/10 is purely based on the fact that I wasn't bored throughout the film and I did laugh quite a bit, not extremely hard but enough to where I didn't regret seeing this in theaters. Like I said before, the main reason is Kevin Hart, if you're a fan of his see the movie. If you're not, skip it. -
ArchonCinemaReviews28 August 2014Ride Along with Kevin Hart and Ice Cube isn't reinventing the game but Hart is hilarious and worth the watch.
Ben is trying to win over his girlfriend's brother James, so James invites him on a 24 hour Ride Along patrol. Ben thinks it's to get to know him but James is really trying to scare him away.
Technically speaking the plot is about how Ben interferes while James tries to capture a leader of a crime syndicate Omar while on the ride along. Really the ride along is just excuse for insane situations to occur within that setting.
Long term this movie will probably be pretty forgettable. As a comedy it is consistently funny and reminiscent of old school improv riffs with the antagonizing eccentric and the straight man. Kevin Hart gets to be absolutely ridiculous, per the usual as Ben: running his mouth, acting a fool, letting self deprecating jokes happen at his expense. I'm a huge fan of the character Kevin Hart has created – while it is the same in every movie it is enjoyable in every movie. Ice Cube is a good polarity as James to Hart's Ben. His smile muscles might be broken. At times he might even be too serious detracting from the chemistry of the duo.
The situations these temporary partners get into are random and feel like filler but are funny comedy routines and I'm glad they are still in the film. In an ideal world the writers would've cleaned up the script for a more believable story. Despite this Ride Along is definitely worth the rental just for Hart's antics.
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torstensonjohn18 October 2014When you think of Ice Cube you think of the hardcore rapper from NWA, the gangster persona, not complex actor. Yet since becoming an actor Ice Cube; real name (O'Shea Jackson), has developed himself into quite the character actor. The comedic prescence of Kevin Hart and this budding police comedy brings the movie full tilt. There is a great story line that suggests looking for comfort and approval betweent Hart's character and Cube's. There are hilarious comments throughout the film and the writing was quite original. This is a great movie with strength in the plot, the characters and just fun throughout. There is no doubt I would highly recommend this to everyone. Kevin Hart is becoming the fast uprising comedic actor of late.
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didonatope16 January 2014Fresh off of his hit stand-up comedy film, "Let Me Explain," Kevin Hart returns to the big screen with "Ride Along." While it may be far from the most memorable comedy, I can't help but admit I enjoyed sitting through it.
Kevin Hart plays Ben, an eccentric man who wants to marry the love of his life, Angela (played by Tika Sumpter). Before he does, he seeks to get the blessing of her brother James (played by Ice Cube), a tough, loose cannon cop. In order to prove he's worthy of marrying James' sister, Ben must join James on a day on his job as an officer. Eventually, the two get wrapped up in a case neither of them were expecting.
As expected, the film plays out like a typical buddy-cop comedy: a cop teams up with someone he doesn't like or agree with and the two have to attempt to get along. While this basic plot line has indeed been done to death, this film makes the fortunate decision to skip out on many movie clichés. There is no third-act-breakup, no mopey montage, and no "you're off the case" or "you're fired" scene. While a lack of these clichés does hamper the conflict, it is quite refreshing to see them absent from the film. On the other hand, the script lends itself to other flaws. Several scenes seem to be included for the sole purpose of filling time (such as a random cameo by Jacob Latimore that amounts to nothing). Moreover, the story can be very predictable at time, even with a couple of random and nonsensical plot twists thrown in. Still though, there is a lot of good to this film.
The dialogue, while far from quotable, is consistently funny and is almost guaranteed to keep the theater laughing. The jokes are delivered on a regular basis and never stray too far into campy or mean-spirited territory. Unlike films like "Identity Thief" and "A Madea Christmas," the tone of the film never strays from a comedic romp and always keeps the laughs coming.
Kevin Hart's performance itself is arguably worth the price of admission. Hart's lines are delivered with the impression that he is enjoying making this movie, and his high-energy presence is sure to please his fans. If you are a fan of Kevin Hart, you will most likely enjoy his screen-presence and his great chemistry with Ice Cube even if you find the script to be lacking.
"Ride Along," may not go down as a comedic legend, but in my eyes, it is certainly worth checking out at least as a rental. The flawed script can indeed be overlooked by the gleeful dialogue and Kevin Hart's enthusiasm. I'd say give it a shot, it wouldn't hurt to check it out. -
Kingslaay24 January 2021Kevin Hart and Ice Cube carry this film. Nothing too out of the ordinary and quite predictable, I had a feeling some cops would end up being dirty and Kevin's character would come to the rescue. Overall though an easy and kind of fun action flick to follow.
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xylofonfisk6 February 2014I Really wanted to like this movie. I usually enjoy Kevin Hart and Ice Cube I have followed since the Friday movies. But even the last Friday movie was more fun than this. The problem is it has all been seen so many times before and better! the characters are more caricatures than characters. The jokes you know long before they actually happen. Ice Cube is being more "badass" than in XXX 2, which only makes him appear more moronic. But my biggest problem with the movie is Kevin Hart. That guy can be sooo hilarious! this movie is the ONLY movie where I did not find him funny at all, and at the end were only annoyed by him. A real shame......
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lisafordeay17 June 2017Ride Along is a 2014 action crime comedy starring Ice Cube and Kevin Hart and tells the story of a trainee cop played by Hart who wants to marry his girlfriend. Of course his girlfriend's brother is a cop played by Cube and in order for Hart's character to prove to Cube's character that he wants to marry his girlfriend,Cube's character decides to train Hart's character and learns to prove himself.
Now this type of film has been done before,you know what is gonna happen straight away and I am now becoming a fan of Kevin Hart's as I didn't know who he was till last year when he was in another action crime comedy called Central Intelligence.
Overall I enjoyed it it was a decent flick and I was glad to have gotten it on Blu Ray and a good price. -
Video game obsessed high school security guard Ben Barber (Kevin Hart) has ambitions on becoming a police officer. When he's accepted in the academy, his girlfriend's brother James Payton (Ice Cube) decides that Ben must partake in a 'Ride Along' with him in order to prove that he is worthy to marry his sister. James initially makes life hell for Ben and deliberately tries to discourage Ben from joining the force. However, when James finds himself in danger it's down to Ben to really show what he's made of....
The opening credits for this film are shamelessly (and perhaps knowingly) over the top and ridiculous. The chase sequence at the start looks like it's come from Need For Speed or Burnout and in these sequences it feels like you're watching a mate playing a computer game. I'm sure it's no coincidence that the following scene shows Kevin Hart playing a video game. It's actually quite fun in a dumb way.
Ride Along has two strands to its plot; you have the main plot which basically sees Payton attending various 126 situations (which are police codes that they use to wind up rookies). We then have a sub plot involving a Serbian gang that are attempting to buy fire arms. The main plot does provide us with some laughs, but I suspect that how funny you'll find this aspect of the plot will really depend on whether you find Kevin Hart funny or not. I'll admit that he was occasionally funny here, but when watching him I can't help feel that I'm watching a poor man's Chris Tucker (no matter how much I try to shake this thought). I did find that he also got a bit annoying at times. The main plot does start to become a little repetitive and tiresome towards the end, but there are just about enough laughs here to make it tolerable. The sub plot involving the Serbians seems to merely act as a back drop for the majority of the running time till towards the end when the writers decide that it's time to wrap the film up. In some ways it didn't bother me as the sub plot is never as strong as the main plot.
One thing that needs to exist in order for these cop-buddy films to work is chemistry between the two leads and to my surprise the chemistry between Ice Cube and Kevin Hart was actually pretty good. Ice Cube is not the greatest of actors, but the writers play to his basic strengths by giving him the tough talking 'straight man' role. Likewise, Hart is the crazy one and again the writers play to his strengths by giving him the 'Chris Tucker' type role - sorry I've made the analogy again. Despite some of the annoyances, Ice Cube and Hart do make this film watchable and do make a winning combo. Laurence Fishburne arrives late in the game as the villain of the piece giving Ride Along that little bit extra class.
Ride Along is an OK film and is perfectly watchable (albeit Hart does get a little annoying from time to time). However it is just an OK film and is far from the best that the genre has to offer. -
WadeBLURAYTHEWAY29 December 2014I will first state that I watched this movie without seeing any previews so I was watching the movie fresh and not seeing any key scenes which may have been shown in the trailers.
Ride A long is a simple story with funny results. A tough guy cop takes his daughters loser boyfriend on a ride along to see how much of a man he is.
The chemistry between Cube and Hart was smooth, witty and funny. The film didn't contain great acting, for instance Miggs and Santiago where not portrayed that well, these characters are quite bland. However the comedy from Hart and Cube was amazing and a joy to watch. I didn't go in to this film expecting a compelling story arch, I went in expecting to laugh and that's exactly what I did. I believe Kevin Hart is arguably the funniest man to watch right now, go watch the scene where he's asking the bikers to move on and try not to cry laughing.
To summarise a very enjoyable and fun movie, not an in depth, acting masterpiece but that's not what it is meant to be. -
Tweekums23 May 2018James Payton is a gruff Atlanta cop determined to bring down Omar, a crime boss who is so secretive that many doubt he really exists. Ben Barber is a school security guard who spends his free time playing video games... he is also living with Payton's sister and hopes to marry her. Barber successfully applies to the Police Academy so Payton invites him to spend a day with him learning what it means to be a cop... hoping that it will lead to him changing his mind. He asks the dispatcher to send him to the most annoying calls; asking bikers to move from a handicapped parking zone, dealing with a drunk in a market and asking a child to divulge the whereabouts of his criminal brother. A stop at a shooting range provides an unexpected lead to Omar. Before the day is over things are going to get far more dangerous than either man expected.
This isn't the greatest of police comedies but it still provides a decent number of laughs and a solid enough central story. Ice T and Kevin Hart are fun as Payton and Barber; two very contrasting characters. It is very easy to believe that Payton really doesn't like his prospective brother in law... admittedly Barber is one of those characters who are amusing in a film but would be infuriating in real life. It is Hart who brings most of the laughs as Barber gets caught up in events that he doesn't really understand. The action is decent enough with a fun little car chase at the start and a good shootout and explosion at the end. There aren't too many surprises but that isn't really a problem as the hunt for Omar is there so we can see our protagonists in a dangerous situation rather than just the early 'Code 126' annoying callouts. Overall this certainly isn't up there with the likes of 'Beverly Hills Cop' or 'Lethal Weapon' but it is better than some of their sequels... not a must see but fun if you enjoy the genre. -
fallyhag24 November 2018There are some good actors in this film. But it was all following such a lazy storyline. Painfully bad. At some points they must have got so bored because they couldn't even be bothered to try and make it believable. The climax in the warehouse was an appalling example of direction. It dragged on and stalled half way through. Then they realised so just added a very poor shootout scene. It was just so lazy.
It had its mildly amusing bits but that's it. I can't recommend it. -
DareDevilKid3 February 2014Reviewed by: Dare Devil Kid (DDK) Rating: 3/5 stars
Lighthearted, easily pleasing, simplistic, formulaic, yet sufficiently entertaining buddy-cop action comedy. What it lacks in memorable action, it makes up for in it's funny scenes and dialogues. Buddy-cop action comedies are never about great plot-lines. unexpected twists, and riveting direction; so we don;t expect "Ride Along" to be any different. But where it fails to enter the elite in its genre, is the apparent lack of memorable chemistry between Ice Cube and Kevin Hart.
Don't get me wrong, they are both affable in their respective roles and Kevin Hart is actually funny (even though he isn't in the same league as Eddie Murphy). But as the two main leads, they don't feed of each other and create that sizzling chemistry which elevated films like "48 Hrs.", "Lethal Weapon 1 & 2", "Midnight Run", "Beverly Hills Cop 1 & 2", "Hot Fuzz", "Rush Hour 1 & 2", City Heat", "Red Heat", "Dhoom 1 & 2", and "Last Action Hero" to certified classics.
Also, though the film has some decent action scenes, they are completely derived and none of the scenes stand out as fresh and long-lasting. What actually holds "Ride Along" together are the quirky and natural humor of Kevin Hart and the deadpan personality of Ice Cube. It's good and entertaining enough for passing time on a lazy afternoon. -
bobsgrock27 January 2014No matter how popular this film becomes at the box office, Kevin Hart no longer has to prove himself as being worthy of a lead star. His comedic timing and graceful style more than prove that in Ride Along. The trouble is that the film itself is so lacking in almost any originality or intelligence that he would have had to do a lot in order to show himself worse than the movie.
Playing the comic relief in a pale yet obvious retread of 48 Hrs. and Training Day, Hart fully utilizes his short stature and body language to his strength. Being rather short, indeed shorter than his female co-star Tika Sumpter, Hart compensates by playing a man-child with a large inferiority complex. Constantly attempting to prove himself capable of something of value, he still cannot help but invoke his knowledge of childish things, mainly video games. He also cries in terror, jumps into his brother-in-law's arms and looks for acceptance at every turn. He is, in fact, a fully-grown imp. What is astonishing about him is how he uses this to carry the movie along. Scene after scene drags along with the obligatory sense of having been done countless times beforehand but it is Hart's sentimentality that shines beyond the dull narrative. Though his facial expressions are often overwrought, he is still capable of carrying scenes purely through his timing and understanding of comic development. At times, he sounds like he is improvising a stand-up bit. Other times, he seems to invoke the speed-demon, whirlish style of Eddie Murphy. No matter his tactic, he makes it count despite a lack of support.
Making things more frozen than necessary is Ice Cube, scrunching up his face in attempting to portray a hard-ass of a cop; one of those lone, righteous moralists who is willing to go against any and all authority in order to prove himself as being right all along about his case. Of course he is, but what is confusing is how the film seems to condemn his behavior as a loner, yet justifies his actions during the course of the story. It is never clear which side the movie falls on and it most likely does not matter. Truthfully, none of the characters or plot points seem necessary at all except to showcase the difference between Hart's ambitious high-school security guard trying to become an Atlanta policeman and Ice Cube's tough-as-nails detective on the hunt for the most ferocious kingpin in the city, so terrifying and imposing that no one has ever seen his face (You will guess who it is right away; the opening credits give it away).
The biggest fault in the screenplay is its lack of developing the relationship between the two key characters: Ice Cube and his sister. Supposedly, they are very close due to being raised in foster homes, leading to him playing over-protective daddy to her. The trouble is the writers never give them a scene for themselves. What kind of relationship did they have or have now? And how has it changed as they have gotten older? And, furthermore, what is Ice Cube's personal life? Does he have one? Clearly, these were not on the writers' or director's mind. The final priority seems to have been only to ensure Kevin Hart came out looking like a fine-bred, comedic leading man for years to come. In this, the movie has succeeded. However, the makers of the movie should not pat themselves on the back. Save that for Mr. Hart himself, the only saving grace in this entire tired, formulaic story. -
TheBrianator8825 January 2014OK first off, let me ask you people where the hell you guys got this 1 star rating for this movie. Seriously? WTF?? Did you guys even actually go and see the movie or did you take a guess by watching the trailer? 1 star? Really! Well I'm just gonna point out, in my opinion, honestly, because I saw it and all. It was good and funny nonstop. I'd give it 7/10 stars. Kevin Hart and Ice Cube are both legends, and they got together and made a movie that was funny and action packed. Think of them as Shrek and Donkey, Ice Cube being Shrek, quiet and serious, and Kevjn Hart, who is talkative and slightly annoying, in a good way. That's what it reminded me of. The movie was worth my $12.00 I spend last night and Im glad I saw it. So I hope this review helps for those who haven't seen it yet and you can forget about that 1 star rating thing.
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Amari-Sali18 January 2014In the first of three films in which Kevin Hart is starring in this year, February will have About Last Night and then in the summer we'll have Think Like a Man 2, we have Kevin and Ice Cube combining talents. And for those who like Hart's comedy act persona, meaning him acting tough until things get serious and then he starts screaming like a child, this maybe the movie for you.
Characters & Story
Ben (played by Kevin Hart) is a high school security guard with a love for shooting games, and with dreams of becoming a cop. He lives with his fiancée Angela (played by Tika Sumpter) and, from what it seems, they both are quite and love and are even at the point of planning to get married soon. Thing is, Angela's brother, and sort of father figure, James (played by Ice Cube) doesn't like Ben and this bothers Angela.
Leading to what is the meat of the film which deals with Ben proving himself not just worthy enough to be Angela's husband, but join James on Atlanta's police force. So, James gives him a chance by taking him on a ride along, filled with crimes which are all self-made, and along the way the James' current 2 year case against a crime under lord named Omar (played by Laurence Fishbourne) gains traction. Thus leading to an adventure in which originally James is just trying to get Ben out of his life, but ends up with Ben becoming more than he expected him to be.
Praise
In total, I at least got 45 laughs out of this movie and must say though Ice Cube and Kevin Hart pretty much play the same people, with slightly different backgrounds, in all of their productions, they do it so well. Kevin Hart playing a sort of man-child allows him to be a good counter- balance to Ice Cube's dead pan type character, but perhaps what is odd is that despite Ice Cube doing comedy films for longer than Hart has been a well-known name, he pretty much gets shadowed by Hart who consistently delivers from the start of the movie to the end. And what really drives Hart's performance home is that he works so well with anyone who he is in a scene with, that he makes them better in the process.
Criticism
However, though the film itself is funny, the story itself is very basic. Don't expect anything which will set a new standard or make Ride Along stand out amongst the many buddy cop films made. James is as generic as they come and even his troubled childhood back-story sounds a bit like a cliché. But, to me the worst thing about this movie is the build to Omar. Now, don't get me wrong, Laurence Fishbourne makes a hell of a villain as Omar, but considering how mysterious Omar is setup and then he decides to not only show up to an arms deal, but then stick around after a warehouse blows up, and then other acts which require him to get his hands dirty, much less be visible, it is like they just changed the character in a snap and took him from this mysterious guy lurking in the shadows, to your generic villain trying to make the 10 o'clock news.
Overall: Worth Seeing
To me, Kevin Hart's style of comedy is really what saves this film for it would be mediocre without him. I say this because it seemed like the script was following a checklist and made sure to check everything needed without trying to be innovative at all, or at least try to put a unique spin on the buddy cop Action/ comedy. But, despite a tried and true story, this is definitely worth seeing, if just because it further substantiates the argument that Kevin Hart truly maybe one of the few comedians to come out during the last decade who deserves to be amongst the names Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence, in their prime, when it comes to a conversation about some of the greatest comedians. -
cheapbird-5841812 April 2021If you like the silly humour of Kevin Hart you shouldn't be disappointed! It's what it says on the tin. I enjoyed it. Not the best film ever, but wasn't expecting that!
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jameswilson44663 February 2014I like Jason Mantzoukas work and it is a shame to him involved in this. I can't blame him for getting a check. At its best, Ride Along is tolerable. Ride Along was only watchable due to the fact that I've enjoyed these actors in other movies. Kevin Hart is the sole actor to bring any humor out of the script, but given the flat performance of Ice Cube, Lawrence Fishburne and the rest of the cast, I just can't say that Hart's part is enough reason to watch. Also, plot points are often introduced to soon be abandoned for the next minor plot point.Ride Along tries to be a comic version of "Training Day," only there's nothing in it as funny as Denzel razzing Ethan. There's nothing much funny in it at all. At its worst, it borders on insulting. A collection of moldy gags that director Tim Story tries to polish.
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kevin_robbins4 June 2023Ride Along (2014) is a movie that I recently watched for the first time in a long time on HBOMAX. The storyline follows a young man who wants to take his education, Call of Duty experience and will and apply it to becoming a police officer. Fortunate for him his brother in-law is a police officer...who can't stand him. The two brothers in-laws decide to do a ride along to see if becoming a police officer is in the cards for the Call of Duty expert.
This movie is directed by Tim Story (Barber Shop) and stars Ice Cube (Friday), Kevin Hart (Central Intelligence), John Leguizamo (Spawn), Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix), Gary Owen (Meet the Blacks), Bruce McGill (Animal House) and Tika Sumpter (Sonic the Hedgehog).
This movie did have a fairly original storyline and well put together plots and sub plots. The writing is actually pretty good and how they worked video games into the storyline consistently made me smile. The comedic content is hit or miss, but it's funnier than it gets credit for. Hart was actually pretty good and the chemistry between him and Ice Cube was perfect. The opening video game scene with Hart and Shumpter was hilarious. The action scenes were pretty funny and the soundtrack was excellent.
Overall, this was an above average addition to the comedy genre that's definitely worth a watch. I would score this a 6.5-7/10 and recommend seeing it once. -
Ice Cube seems to be playing the brother or father, who tries to "protect" one other family member from making a bad choice. There's another movie out this year (2014), if you watch that, you'll know what I mean. The other movie is also way funnier. But back to this one, which checks all the right boxes, with a weird beginning, that makes it look like a different sort of beast than it actually is.
But the light tone comes quickly, although a joke about a car used in a car chase did go over my head completely. Maybe you have to be a car person to fully get that, otherwise it just seems awkward and unfunny. The chemistry between our leads though is impeccable. It works from beginning to end and there is a progression, even if the end seems a bit tagged on and cliché (you probably see this coming). But try not to be too harsh, this is just trying to light up your day -
Ben(Kevin Hart) a security guard, who is trying to prove a cop named James(Ice Cube) that he is good enough for his sister, who Ben is currently dating, and wants to marry. Ben wants to become a cop, so James takes Ben along for patrol ride. Ben hopes to prove to James that he is good enough for his worthy enough for his sisters love.
I liked the comic chemistry that Cube and Hart had, they just played off each perfectly. But there times some moments that where too predicable, I mean even before they happen you can pretty see it coming. But all in all a enjoyable flick, never tries to hard to be something it's not. Not as good The Heat(2013), but almost gets there. -
neil-4767 March 2014Ben is a diminutive school security guard and shoot-'em-up video game addict. Wanting to marry Angela, he is persuaded to join her brother James, a cop, on his various cop stuff bits and pieces, to prove he is worthy of James' approval.
I watched the trailer with trepidation. It contained a number of things I have trouble with. One is black US urban patois - as an aged white Brit, I often have trouble understanding it. And another was Kevin Hart as Ben. Not a performer I am familiar with, it was clear that his schtick included loudness, and crossing his eyes while making faces because that's funny. I suspected that I would dislike Mr Hart's performance.
But I'm not one to pre-judge, so I thought I would give it a chance. Guess what? I had trouble understanding a lot of the dialogue, and I hated the loud face-pulling antics of Mr Hart.
But fairly early on there was a bit where, as school security guard, he is talking to a student who is about to play hookey. This is quite a funny piece, and it also gave his character some substance - passion and empathy. And that was something I hadn't expected, and which surfaced quite frequently during the rest of the film.
Don't get me wrong, this is a completely cliché'd buddy-cop, fish-out-of-water formula comedy with absolutely no surprises whatsoever. But, within those limitations, I enjoyed it much more than I had expected to. -
larrys319 April 2014There are some laughs here, but overall I found this comedy to be rather lame, stale and ridiculous. When you have 4 screenwriters listed, as in this film, it's usually a bad sign.
Kevin Hart and Ice Cube star here, with Hart portraying Ben Barber, who's a rather diminutive high school security guard and expert video game player. He's in a loving relationship with Angela Payton (Tika Sumpter), who's very proud of Ben when he's accepted into the police academy.
However, her highly overprotective brother James, played by Ice Cube, is a Detective with the Atlanta Police Department, and he feels Ben is certainly not good enough for his sister. James is gruff, volatile, and a loner on the force, but he agrees to take Ben on a ride-along for a day of police work.
James' main intention though is to place Ben in one impossible situation after another, on the streets of Atlanta, so he can prove to Angela once and for all that Ben doesn't have what it takes and is really a "loser".
Finally, as Ben closes in on a major arms deal that's going down with a major crime-lord, named Omar (Laurence Fishburne), it all culminates in an overly long, absurd, and predictable finale.
All in all, the plot here just seemed to be a "one-trick pony", with the same theme being run over and over. Combined with the flat humor, I was glad when it was over. -
sunraider19 January 2014I was in the mood for a fun movie with a little humor and action and that's exactly what I got. I checked out the "professional reviews" on mrqe.com before heading out to the theater and most were very negative. This movie was supposedly trite and cliché ridden and the two stars had only "passable chemistry." But, there was one 3/4 stars review coming out of Milwaukee that sold me and proved to be right on point. Sure, the movie had every cliché in the cop buddy action movie genre. But, the two leads had great chemistry, there were some genuinely funny moments and, most importantly, I cared about the characters. Both were good, decent people. I'm glad the film was PG-13 and devoid of the really filthy language and excessive violence that pervades so many R-rated films. I saw a Sunday morning 10:40 am show that was about 3/4 full. The entire theater laughed and seemed to be having a good time, just like me.