Thanks to vacation, I have a slight backlog of reviews on DVDs, Books and comics to post. Please bear with me as I plow through them. If they’re not helpful, say so as well. I can funnel my writing energies on something better.
Recently I saw Carlos Alazraqui perform at the local comedy club. He was fantastic but I regretted not having a good question for his Deputy Garcia character when he donned the sunglasses and mustache. Using the fallacious logic of guilty-by-association, I decided to rent this DVD because I figured that if he’s funny, odds favored the movie would be. I have friends who dig the TV show/source yet I have always had a strong aversion to Reno 911 for several reasons: key cast members were part of MTV’s awful program The State, shows dependent upon improv are often terrible, and most original content on Comedy Central is either really great or eye pollution. Thankfully I was wrong, Reno is consistently funny from start to finish without depending on Carlos to carry the film.
The story begins with Lt. Dangle and his seven bumbling deputies screwing up as they always do around the outskirts of Reno. At the next day’s briefing, Dangle cheers everyone up by announcing their invitation to a police convention in Miami. Of course, every city’s police department was invited regardless of competence which is why they’re attending. When they arrive, the organizers don’t have Reno on the list so they’re stuck staying at a sleazy hotel because no one wants to go home. Then the Action Movie part kicks in. Terrorists have released a bio-agent into the convention center, trapping several thousand officers. If the cure isn’t found in time, all those people will die. Unfortunately, the Reno crew are the only uninfected people with police commissions and it’s up to them to maintain order in Miami Beach for the interim.
Overall, it’s just different antics in Miami instead of Reno but I couldn’t stop laughing at their misadventures: Jones and Garcia constantly being kidnapped by a Scarface-like villain played by Paul Rudd; Jones and Garcia investigating a report of an alligator in a swimming pool; Dangle and Junior answering a noise complaint coming from a rapper’s house; and the whole gang using the same infamous solution to remove a beached whale. The movie does often resort to vulgar sex jokes since the writers/cast can’t do them on basic cable. Most are still funny even if resorting to them frequently is a lazy move. Finally, there are appearances from Patton Oswalt, Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman), Danny DeVito, Mindy Sterling (Frau Farbissina), Michael Ian Black, David Koechner and Dwyane “The Rock” Johnson—his performance as a stereotypical supercop was as hilarious as it was messy.
It’s genuinely funny and I have misjudged Thomas Lennon, Kerri Kenney and Robert Ben Garant. Their comedic skills have evolved since The State and Viva Variety much like Dave Chapelle’s did. I know that I’ll eventually take the time to dig around for the boxed seasons of Reno 911 the show and see if they make me laugh as much.