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    Ride Along

    Reviewed by
    adamwatchesmovies@

    Have you ever watched a movie and thought to yourself that it was alright, but then when someone asked to what you liked about it, what made it good, you drew a complete blank? All you could recall was what you hated about it? Initially I was going to write, “I’m not going to say that ‘Ride Along’ is a good comedy, but it did make me laugh enough that I was invested in it. ” Now, I’m not even sure that’s true. Kevin Hart can be really annoying, but he has his funny moments as well. When he is irritating, Ice Cube does a good job voicing what you’d like to do to his big mouth. I think I just have to write down my thoughts and then I’ll know how I feel about this movie.

    Ben Barber (Kevin Hart) is dating Angela Payton (Tika Sumpter) Her brother, an undercover police office named James (Ice Cube) isn’t pleased. James hates Ben. He’s short, annoying, plays video games all day and has the audacity of dreaming of becoming a police officer. Determined to prove his worth, Ben agrees to accompany James on a “ride along” to prove himself.

    I will not deny that the plot of “Ride Along” is predictable. You know these guys are not going to get along at first. Once the ride starts, it’ll be a series of outlandish calls that will put Ben in increasingly embarrassing situations because let’s face it, there’s no way the loud-mouthed buffoon could be a police officer in real life. From there, the two will wind up in a big case where only their teamwork can lead them to the capture of the big bad guy. There’s some last-minute reveals, but you know what they’re going to be simply because of the general structure of the story and the style of comedy that’s on display. It’s not particularly imaginative, even with the numerous gags and antics it gives to the leads. If you’re a stickler for realism, you’re in trouble. This madness is about as far removed from reality as a Godzilla movie. The key then, is whether or not you find the overall film funny. I think there are enough amusing bits throughout to make it worthwhile.

    I came into the film with low expectations. Kevin Hart is a funny guy, but much of his film career has not made great use of his comedic skills. He’s just the short black guy that talks fast, and loud. That’s the extent of his role here…. But he does it well. The guy’s got good timing and Ice Cube does the mean-mugging black tough guy well. The films laughs are due to these two vastly different people somehow managing to work in a bizarre unison. I can’t explain it any more than that. It’s a junk comedy that hit the right spot. I expected “Ride Along” to be downright awful and not to laugh a single time, but I did chuckle and even laugh out loud.

    Writing this review has been a very peculiar experience for me. I feel like I’m an interrogation room with myself. Here I am, sitting in a chair with a question being thrust upon me over and over. “So, what is it that you liked about this movie that you find yourself wanting to give it a 2.5/5? ” To be honest, I don’t know. Low expectations combined with a few chuckles throughout are what I blame! This is not an inspired comedy, it’s not memorable, not even that well put together. I feel like this is one of those instances where even though I just saw the film, and I’m writing about it honestly, I’ll look back one day and wonder if I didn’t get bashed in the head or slipped some kind of mind-altering drug prior to hitting “play”. None of this makes sense anymore.

    I found enough little nuggets in “Ride Along” to enjoy it. It’s not great, maybe the kind of comedy you could tolerate if you watch it at home for free on TV, or you rent it for just a few bucks on a particularly lazy day. Put “Ride Along” low on your priorities list but not quite in the “NO! ” pile. Consider it as an option if you’re a manic for Ice Cube or Kevin Hart. (On Ultraviolet, February 5, 2016)

    5
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    adamwatchesmovies@  17.2.2016 age: 26-35 2,867 reviews

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