Central Intelligence - movie review

Central Intelligence

Plot: After he reconnects with an awkward pal from high school through Facebook, a mild-mannered accountant is lured into the world of international espionage.
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Danielle Nicolet
Director: Rawson Marshall Thurber
Rating: 12A (moderate sex references, violence, infrequent strong language)
Runtime: 1hr 47 mins
Release Date: Friday 1st July 2016

Central Intelligence stars two of the biggest Hollywood stars right now and the most in-demand actors of our time; Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson. It seems baffling that these two haven't already teamed up. The buddy cop genre isn't new to either of these actors but in Central Intelligence it works. 



There never seems to be a week where I don't read an article about Dwayne Johnson being cast in a upcoming blockbuster. He's everywhere and he does run the risk of being overexposed but the reason as to why he isn't, is because Johnson is charisma in a bottle. Everything he does, be it in a serious action film, a comedy or wrestling, I find myself cheering him on. And that obviously isn't just an act when you look at Johnson in interviews and behind the scenes. What you see, is what you get. Most of the time, we see him play the straight man, a level headed dude who can simultaneously kick ass and makes jokes. But now he gives us a change of direction in this film. Bob Stone (Johnson) was bullied in high school, but after joining the CIA, he now fights against bullies. Whilst retaining the hardcore nature that he always does, Bob Stone is much more of a friendly loving character who is desperate to make friends whilst also saving the world. He's very simplistic in nature and at times, Johnson plays that with sincerity (especially the bullying aspect) but there are moments where his daftness and buffooneries became too much and too in your face to the point where it boarded a spoof rather than basic comedy. But what Dwayne Johnson lacks in perfect comic timing, he makes up for in his chemistry with Kevin Hart. Having appeared in Ride Along 2 already this year, Hart has yet another film set for release soon, so he too suffers from overexposure. Central Intelligence stands as one of my favourite Kevin Hart performances because he doesn't spend the whole movie screaming in a shrill voice. Instead, he plays against type and as Calvin Joyner, Hart manages to find a balance between over-the-top humour and clever comedy. I thought that he was the best character in the film giving some cracking one-liners and starring in brilliant set pieces. His relationship that he forms with Dwayne Johnson is second to none and I could have easily watched two hours of their back and forth. It's better than Hart and Ice Cube's chemistry in the Ride Along films and this is primarily where the best humour comes from. As for the other actors, no one shines as much the two stars. Hart's wife barely features and the villains of the piece are introduced right at the very end and they do nothing great. It's just thrown at you last minute and they're your typical clichéd Eastern European criminals that we see in countless action films. There are however, three cameos that I did not see coming. I won't mention them by name but all three were particularly surprising and funny, especially Bob's previous partner. Those scenes had me near tears with laughter.

Where this film begins to suffer is it's plot. I would've given Central Intelligence a free pass and a higher score if it knew that it didn't have the strongest of stories and thereby, didn't focus on it too much. A clear example of this would be the Jump Street films. Their main intention was comedy but in this film, they want a mixture of story, action and comedy with the comedy being the only hit. We've seen this sort of story before as well as it's multiple other plot points. Bad guys stealing codes for warheads and weapons has been done so many times, unoriginal doesn't even begin to describe it. As has two old friends reuniting and amongst all the chaos, a marriage in trouble. What I'm trying to say is that whilst Central Intelligence is laugh out loud funny and would be a great film to watch with a group of friends, from a story aspect it mumbles along shuffling its feet until Johnson and Hart get another chance to bounce off one another. The most unexpected part of this film is the action. Like I said, there was too much of it for my liking and I would have preferred the comedy to take priority but the action scenes were still enjoyable. The shootouts were fun and the car chases were pretty cool.

This isn't going to win any awards for a story and it did distract from the comedy at intermittent times, but my main selling point as to why you should see this film, is Dwayne Johnson's and Kevin Hart's brilliant comedic pairing. The humour is pretty much consistent, heck, even the tagline had me laughing: "Saving the world takes a little Hart and a big Johnson".

My Verdict: 7/10

What did you think of Central Intelligence? Who is your favourite buddy cop duo? Post your comments below.

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