Unless you're blessed one indestructible, all-action tour de force on the beat, ready to stop at nothing to catch a criminal or disarm a bomb (see: Willis, Bruce in "Diehard"), Hollywood has made clear that, to truly save the world, it takes not only bravery and sacrifice, but also unlikely friendship, personal growth and a flourish after reluctance when called to action. Think of crime fighting as an holistic experience, if you will, bringing to life an audience's fears and assuaging them, on their behalf.
And hence: the buddy cop comedy. Older than The Lone Ranger and Tonto, the genre came into its own in the 80s and 90s, with "Police Academy," "Lethal Weapon" and a plethora of other odd couple pairings, matching a straight guy who needs a heart and a goofball who needs some guts, and putting them up as the world's last hope. And now, a new pair.
Having already tried their hands at the genre, Mark Wahlberg ("The Other Guys") and Jonah Hill (yet to be released "21 Jump Street") will team up in the action comedy, "Good Time Gang," according to The Los Angeles Times. A film more heavy on action than comedy, it's being touted as a new spin on "Lethal Weapon," about a pair of mercenaries who take on a terrorist case that gets a serious twist of familial drama.
It's a solid choice of film for each actor; Wahlberg has been upping his already formidable funny credentials, with the aforementioned Will Ferrell cop team-up last year and his new, Thanksgiving-themed Ferrell project that was just recently announced. He's also committed to yet another action comedy, "Bait and Switch." In addition, Wahlberg just wrapped up filming "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane's live action comedy, "Ted," which co-stars Mila Kunis and a giant teddy bear.
Meanwhile, Hill has been proving he has dramatic chops, with "Jump Street" and his role as a serious stat cruncher in upcoming "Moneyball," the real life story of the Oakland A's baseball team, providing an opportunity to build on his more serious turn in "Cyrus."
Of course, Wahlberg isn't giving up the drama, either; he recently signed on for gangster film, "When Corruption Was King," and a remake of the 1971 ex-Green Beret film, "Billy Jack," and is planning to team up with "The Fighter" director David O. Russell for both a sequel to that film and "The Silver Linings Playbook," about a depressed man just released from a mental institution.
For more, click over to The Los Angeles Times.