Let's Be Cops (2014)

Let’s Be Cops (2014)

3/10

Starring

Jake Johnson

Damon Wayans Jr.

Directed by Luke Greenfield

Here’s my conclusion on this movie: Johnson and Wayans Jr. have good on-screen chemistry, but the script feels like it was written by toddlers who think being a cop is cool. The movie is directed and written by Luke Greenfield (Something Borrowed (2011)).

Let’s Be Cops is supposed to be an action-comedy about two friends who pretend to be cops in a town full of fools—that town being LA. This movie is an insult to the police force and an insult to viewers. Nothing in the movie made enough sense to make me laugh at the predicament the two friends found themselves in, and nothing meaningful happened that would make you want to recommend this movie to anyone.

Yet, Let’s Be Cops was a financial success. Why? Because we love comedy, and anything that promises to make us laugh will get us rushing to see it. That’s why I watched it—I wanted to laugh. But in the end, I wished I had spent my time doing something else.

The movie stars Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr., who are both from the FOX TV comedy series New Girl. Personally, I think the show is lame and not funny, so seeing these two try something else made me think, “Hey, maybe they can pull it off.”

The movie is about two life-long friends—or, better yet, two life-long losers. Justin (Damon Wayans Jr.) is a video game designer struggling to pitch a game about policemen to his employers, and Ryan (Jake Johnson) is a washed-up college quarterback whose career ended because of his own stupidity.

On their way to a college reunion, Ryan convinces Justin to go dressed as cops, only to find out it’s a masquerade party. They leave upset, but while walking home, people on the street start treating them like real cops. The idea sticks, and Ryan convinces Justin to keep pretending to be cops for real. They buy a used cop car, and the charade continues. At first, it’s going well—they get respect and attention from women—until they get into major trouble with gangsters.

The movie made ten times its production cost (which is a surprise), but I hope the producers don’t take that as a sign to make another. With all the sequels and reboots churning out of Hollywood, I hope this movie stays a one-part story and never sees the light of day again.