Cop Out

COP OUT (2010) - Aug. 1, 2010
A surprisingly inept "comedy" about a couple of cops who get embroiled in a case involving the Mexican mafia when they start investigating a stolen baseball card.  There is almost nothing that works here.  First and foremost, there are the performances; Tracy Morgan is essentially playing his 30 Rock character, and he is so wildly over-the-top that he generally just comes off as desperate (plus, I never bought for a second that his buffoonish character could have been an actual cop).  On the opposite side of the bad acting spectrum is Bruce Willis; he completely phones in his performance, and actually looks bored much of the time.  The movie is awkwardly directed by Kevin Smith, and features action which is completely bland (there isn't much of it, though).  It isn't funny, nor does it particularly work as a parody of buddy-cop action films.  I did like the score, but even that didn't particularly work in the context of the film, as the movie otherwise doesn't evoke an '80s vibe in the slightest, making the score feel a bit incongruous.  *