Ferrell plays Allen Gamble, an NYPD paper pusher who's partnered with hothead detective Terry Hoitz, a game Mark Wahlberg. If this were any sort of straight cop film, or even a more standard cop comedy, Gamble would be the tightly-wound straight man -Murtaugh to Wahlberg's twitchy Riggs. But THE OTHER GUYS' Hoitz and Gamble are equally loopy. So, this isn't a real satire of cop movies, as much as it is a bunch of banter held together under the canopy of a cop movie just as much as it needs to be, in order to keep focus on the laughs. And if you want more from a comedy than laughter, really, you must be European. Americans wanna laugh, and we want it now. Give us it.
STEP BROTHERS made it far on the idea that Ferrell and his co-star John C. Reilly were children, played more-or-less straight. The Ferrell/Wahlberg dynamic relies similarly on overreaction, and Mr. Mark is, in his way, as perfect a Ferrell foil as Reilly. But unlike Reilly, a better actor with a lot more range, Mr. Mark simply gets funnier the angrier he gets. That's OK, too.
While director McKay gives this film the same basic 'Machismo Olympics' setup as he did his last one, his sights are, apparently, higher now. Specifically, he's pissed off at Bernie Madoff... Or something. Hey, we all are. But when it comes to infusing this yukfest with a fuzzy anti-corporate message, McKay's reach exceeds his grasp. It's good that for the most part, the film's embezzler villains (Steve Coogan, Anne Heche, Ray Stevenson) don't distract from the dense riffing that comprises THE OTHER GUYS' first great hour. But when the maybe-sorta-muckracking finale arrives, it feels half-baked, if not schizophrenic. Depressing statistics about the Wall Street bailout accompany the end credits. Way to kill my buzz, old man! What movie did you think you were making?
McKay's not a great director, he can't keep all the plates spinning, and his movies are consistently unpolished. More than anything, he's a writer and comic himself, one who understands how to assemble comic performances - and his cast here serves him well with raw material. Will Ferrell in particular seems to be in his stride as half of the GUYS. After nearly a whole half-decade of inferior product, Ferrell's recent output has been revitalized. (YOU'RE WELCOME AMERICA, his Broadway show/HBO special is a must-see, as is his work on that network's EASTBOUND AND DOWN.)
Ferrell's maturing relationship with his most famous character, the 'chest-beating self-convinced moron,' is, shockingly, getting funnier. He marshals his affect here, and loses none of the effect. Who knows if it'll last, but McKay & Ferrell's groove is beginning to feel reminiscent of Blake Edwards & Peter Sellers', in their prime, almost fifty years ago. (Sorry if that makes you feel old, dad.) And THE OTHER GUYS is worth comparing the Edwards/Sellers PINK PANTHER caper comedies, even if it never hits the heights of that series. Those weren't perfect films either, but they were hilarious. So's this.