'Other Guys' Unfunny

"The Other Guys" - * - Action/Comedy - Will Farrell, Mark Wahlberg, Steve Coogan, Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson, Dwayne Johnson, Eva Mendes. Directed by Adam McKay. Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language, violence and some drug material.

"The Other Guys" opens in a big way. Over-the-top action sequences that are both impressive and appropriately cartoony. As you watch Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson take down the bad guys in a blaze of glory, causing millions of dollars in damage, you realize this is going to be a fun ride, seeing a brilliant satire of buddy cop movies.

Enter the film's real stars, Will Farrell and Mark Wahlberg. Initially, Farrell shows remarkable restraint as he usually goes through his movies merely yelling at everyone and everything. He shows potential as he brings back some of the acting chops he had in "Stranger Than Fiction". Wahlberg, on the other hand, takes his cue from other Farrell films and continuously screams at everything. Blowing up at every turn, with no real explanation.

Despite being a purely comedic director, some of Adam McKay's action sequences are quite fun and well staged. The scene where a helicopter full of well-armed bad guys is taken down by golf balls at a driving range is funny. His direction, oddly enough, falls flat on the comedic side as almost every joke made me cringe.

Although, Farrell ends up back in his old shenanigans with yelling the entire last third of the movie, you can tell he's enjoying himself. Wahlberg, on the other hand, looks pretty bored. Quite a feat to make an actor of his caliber look like an amateur. As a matter of fact, most of the cast looks bored, including brilliant comedians and actors like Michael Keaton and Steve Coogan. Keaton's jokes are the worst in the film and Coogan doesn't really have much of anything to do except make faces at the bizarre actions taken by the two leads.

The real fun lies within the first ten minutes as we follow the hardcore antics of Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson. The engaging and fun beginning involving their characters makes you wish that the film had been about them. You can tell they enjoyed their parts, too.