Ride Along

Director Tim Story ("Think Like a Man") brings us a crowd pleaser that had the screening audience laughing from the first frame. Of course that is partly due to the great popularity of fast-talking Kevin Hart, but this silly odd-couple story is fun. Any self-respecting police department would NEVER allow the sorts of capers we see, but what's a few plot holes between friends? It certainly didn't handicap writers Greg Coolidge ("Baby Mama") and Jason Mantzoukas (Lots of TV) as they pile laugh upon laugh while we happily suspend disbelief and wait for the happy ending.

Even through our hero is steadily employed as a security guard, he really, REALLY wants to be an Atlanta police officer like his finance's brother James. He feels prepared: after all, he has played a cop in countless video games. There are three important things in his life: Being a cop, those video games and his gorgeous fiancée Angela.

We watch:

• Kevin Hart ("Grudge Match") is our hero Ben, who has finagled a ride in a cop car with his potential brother-in-law to prove he is worthy to marry into the family. (Every legitimate PD in the country is shaking its collective head.)
• Tika Sumpter ("Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas") plays our hero's lovely sweetheart, Angela. This patient gal seems to find his immature ADHD-type personality appealing.
• Ice Cube ("21 Jump Street") brings us James, a no-nonsense cop who has trust issues, particularly with this haywire fruitcake his sister Angela has unaccountably fallen for.
• Bruce McGill ("Lincoln") will always convince ME that he is a tough but fair police captain who is running out of patience: Detective James is highly effective, but his unorthodox methods are difficult to justify.

Of course we have other cops who provide backup, plus a surprise mystery guest whom I won't divulge because he is uncredited, so that would be a spoiler.

This is PG-13, so expect mild profanity, no nudity, no sweaty bodies, some vehicular mayhem, some dandy blowie uppie stuff and a LOT of gunfire! By the time Ben gets his hands on a loaded gun, I was ready to slap him! I've been around guns all my life and have never seen such careless mishandling! I know, I know, it's a comedy, but....

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Hitch a quick ride on this one:
http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1804904729/
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