Reno 911!: Miami (2007)

Director:

Robert Ben Garant

Writers (WGA):

Robert Ben Garant (written by) &
Thomas Lennon (written by) ...

Release Date:

23 February 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

This Febuary, get ready for action that is so raw and unpredictable, it could only fit on the big screen.

Plot:

A rag-tag team of Reno cops are called in to save the day after a terrorist attack disrupts a national police convention in Miami Beach during spring break. Based on the Comedy Central series. |

Plot Keywords:

Police | Spring Break | Beach | Scene During End Credits | Police Officer

Cast

Lennie Loftin	...	Chief of Police
Danny DeVito	...	District Attorney
Robert Ben Garant	...	Deputy Travis Junior
Niecy Nash	...	Deputy Raineesha Williams
Mary Birdsong	...	Deputy Cherisha Kimball
Kerri Kenney	...	Deputy Trudy Wiegel (as Kerry Kenney-Silver)
Wendi McLendon-Covey	...	Deputy Clementine Johnson
Carlos Alazraqui	...	Deputy James Garcia
Cedric Yarbrough	...	Deputy S. Jones
Thomas Lennon	...	Lieutenant Jim Dangle
Alejandra Gutierrez	...	Miss Acapulco
Brandon Molale	...	Kevlar Guy
Kathryn Fiore	...	Cheyenne the Helicopter Model
David Koechner	...	Sheriff of Aspen
Dave Holmes	...	Persnickety Desk Worker

Also Known As:

Reno 911!: Miami: The Movie (USA) (complete title)

MPAA:

Rated R for sexual content, nudity, crude humor, language and drug use.

Runtime:

USA:84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

USA:R | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Singapore:M18 | New Zealand:M | Netherlands:12 | Australia:MA | Norway:15 (TV rating) | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the end of the movie when Terry comes around the bus on roller skates playing a ukulele, you can see the smoke stacks of the RMS Queen Mary (a museum/hotel in Long Beach, CA) reflected in the bus windows.

Quotes:

Jeff Spoder: Any last words?
Lieutenant Jim Dangle: Ummm... Uhhhh... Ummm He liked it? NO! Wait!

Movie Connections:

References "CSI: Miami" (2002)

Soundtrack:

Police And Thieves

Funny and Satisfying, Even for Non-Fans of the TV Series

I'd only seen part of one episode of the TV show before seeing the film, so my knowledge of the characters and the premise of the show was limited. No matter: the film does an excellent job of establishing its tone and the specifics of the characters right off the bat. No roadmap required.

My biggest fear with seeing a theatrical version of a TV series is that the film tries to overinflate the stakes of the plot to justify the increased length and budget and fails. Reno 911!: Miami took that necessity to its logical next step by moving the small town incompetence to a much larger scale in Miami, but due to some clever (and minimalist) writing, the relocation works. And, since nearly all of the humor in the film is derived from the characters and their reactions to their situations -- all of which speed by at a brisk pace, so as to not overmilk a joke -- the relocation never felt forced or unwelcome.

Impressively, the film veers into cliché territory on numerous occasions but never delivers the expected punchline. The actors know their characters so well that their improvisations keep the audience and their costars on their toes at all times. Even the traditional "caper" plot, which is really just an excuse to tie all the vignettes together, is handled with more originality than I would have expected.

Perhaps I should start expecting more from this creative team, since they're capable of sustaining my interest (and my amusement) over the course of a full-length feature. In fact, perhaps I should start watching the series...