8A - Monday, March 5, 2007
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily~a
8A - Monday, March 5, 2007 The Michigan Daily - michigandailvcom
Reno an ill fit in Miami
By BLAKE GOBLE ately assembles a response, but the
Daily Arts Writer local government collapses and the
police are helpless and irrelevant.
Our culture may be ripe for sat- The jokes are there for the picking.
ire, but in film Too bad so little is satirized. A
that genre has film that so readily mocks govern-
all but died. Such *'( ment protocol ought to have the
incisive commen- nerve to say something bold about
tary seems to be Reno 911: the current state of affairs. When
the aim of "Reno an FBI man in charge of cleanup at
911: Miami," but Miami a major disaster blows himself up
it certainly isn't with his own grenade, you'd think
the film's effect. At Qualityl6 that the movie was trying to say
If this is an and Showcase something.
example of social 20th Century Fox No. It's only interesting that the
satire, then mas- guy was The Rock in a cameo.
turbation is sim- The film resorts to hackneyed
ply a more gentle version of sex. "Scarface" and "Miami Vice" jokes,
The film is one long, stale joke. never brave enough to push the lim-
It's easy enough to follow: Eight its of social commentary. But that's
dumb-ass cops from Reno struggle all right, I guess.
to find acceptance in Miami. Or The film, based on the cult hit
rather, the Reno cops go to a police Comedy Central show "Reno 911,"
convention in Miami only to find keeps its lowbrow, boys-club feel
themselves excluded. But when intact. The eight misfits are as
their ensuing Spring Break-esque obnoxious and misinformed as
antics shield them from a viral epi- ever. Officer Travis Junior (Robert
demic let loose at the convention, Ben Garant, "The State") is brave
they're the only law enforcement and reckless with the material, but
left. Homeland security immedi- evokes little understanding. The
film shows cops as dumb and mean.
Everyone gets that. But what makes
them so awful? This is where the
film fails to make any statements
worth making.
The only real thrills of the movie
come from jokes recycled from the
show, and even more noticeably, the
trailer. "Reno 911: Miami" is a poor
man's "Borat," full of easy gay jokes,
black jokes and leftover '80s jokes
- never smart, clever or creative
If oniy all cops
wore horrifically
short shorts.
ones.
The bureaucratic establishments
of this country are long overdue for
some creative scrutiny. With pri-
vacy slowly evaporating, paranoid
endangermentgrowingandsomuch
happening that baffles us every day,
The photo might be funnier than the movie.
where are our greatsocial commen- Fireman's Ball," he wasn't just mak-
tators? Yes, Jon Stewart tries, but ing broad comedy. Forman took
that's not enough. What happened harsh jabs at the establishments
to our Emersons, Fassbinders and of the time, questioning authority
Milos Formans? while entertaining audiences, too.
When Forman made "One Flew Though it was 1960s Czechoslo-
Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "The vakia, it was a bold feat that still
Insight comes from
al direCt ons
courtesy of 20th entury Fox
inspires filmmakers and pundits
alike.
In that light, the film is actually
kind of depressing. In any case, the
lessonhere is clear:Keep these boys
on television. They don't crack near-
ly as many laughs in the theater.
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