Sophia Vergara and Reece Witherspoon in Hot Pursuit
Reese Witherspoon. An Academy-Award winner. Sophia Vergara. A Golden Globe winner. Hot Pursuit, the new comedy starring said award-winners; an absolute disaster.
The trailers for this new comedy from Warner Brothers did promised big things, and I giggled all of the way through each one of them, but I didn’t once laughduring Hot Pursuit.
The plot of Hot Pursuit is simple. Reese Witherspoon is a disgraced policewoman working the evidence room at her local precinct, who, following a few years being punished in the bowels of a San Antonio police department following a botched arrest, is given a shot at the bigger time by escorting Sophia Vergara’s crime witness across state to Dallas. As you may expect, things don’t go according to plan, and much hilarity ensues. Or so you’d hope from this mid-budgeted comedy fare from seasoned comedy helmer Anne Fletcher, director of films like 27 Dresses and The Proposal.
The problem with Hot Pursuit is that it just isn’t funny. At all. In fact, from the opening frames I found it completely excruciating and almost intolerable to watch, despite quite an inventive opening sequence that sets up the Witherspoon character quite nicely. It’s got a pretty good set-up too, with mob-bosses, corrupt cops, small-town cowboys; all intent on taking down the two central character. However, Witherspoon’s cop Cooper, and Vergara’s mob witness Riva, are so annoying for every second they are on-screen, which is 95% of this movie, and grate at you from the outset until the final frame, 88 long minutes later.
It’s formulaic, routine, run-of-the-mill, absolutely mind-numbing stuff with out two leads exposing every cliché in the book. Just when there’s hope, the script throws a curve ball that sets it back even further. Out of place lesbian jokes? A scene where it is absolutely necessary for Vergara to take her top off? Witherspoon dressing up as a boy? Countless age and height jokes that were unfunny the first time, let alone the third. Really?
It’s really disappointing to see something like this churned out by an extremely talented cast and director. I really was hoping for more.
