ironhorse_iv Review of Kopps

Kopps (2003)

Good Cops? Bad Cops? Kopps was alright cops. This police farce movie was somewhat funny.

[7/10 · 12 June 2017]

For the vast majority of police, sitting in his or her patrol car and stopping motorists for traffic violations would really be a slow day. For the police force of the Swedish town of Högsboträsk, it's every day & it's starting to be, a problem. Crime to so low, that their station is in danger of being closed. Fearing closure, a few, good cops started to do, a few bad things in order to prevent that. However, an out of the city, superior Jessica Lindblad (Eva Röse) is starting to become suspicious. Can the small town cops, be able to get away with the crimes, and preserve their jobs or will the outsider chief inspector, catch up with them? Watch the movie, to find out! Without spoiling the comedy film, too much, I have to say, while, the movie does have some flaws. I wouldn't call the movie, awful. It wasn't police brutality of any kind. This movie directed by Josef Fares was watchable for the most part. Somewhat enjoyable. Nevertheless, the movie is not as funny as it should had been; due to odd mixer of having dry, long drawn out adult driven filler scenes intermingle with quick cut, outrageous childish slapstick daydreaming comedy. It made the movie, more jarring and confusing, than anything else. A good example is the opening to 'Cops'. Instead, of starting the film, with the crew on patrol. This Swedish film instead, opens with the main character, Jacob (Fares Fares) on a blind date, answering question. Not once, during, this date, did he mention what he does for a living, nor establish how quiet, the town was. The dialogue was little to nothing to work with, and it just ends with abruptly with nothing really, much said. It's so strange, why that scene was even there!? Honestly, when I think, deep about it, that scene, was not needed, due to the fact, that bitter couple cops, Lasse (Göran Ragnerstam) & Agneta (Sissela Kyle) bring up his horrible skills in building relationships, a few scenes later. So, why does Josef Fares felt like he needed to open with that!? Also, what the deal with the cop out ending. Without spoiling too much of it. It was disappointing and weak. It also seem very unrealistic, seeing how other agencies, was involved, yet, none of them, reported it. Also, the whole pizza business that one of the cops, came up with, comes out of nowhere. It kinda ruins, the whole driving force, why they want to protect their jobs. Honestly, I would love to see, an ending similar to 2001's 'Super Trooper', instead. Anyways, the comedy quickly spirals more out of control, when they introduce Benny (Torkel Petersson), whom daydreaming sequences, are a mixed bag for me. While, some of these silly super cop fantasy set pieces were extremely amusing, like the reasons, why the hotdog stand was burned to the ground AKA 1995's 'Die Hard with a Vengeance' & the notorious 'dick gun' sequence. Others jokes fall flat for me, like Benny dreaming of himself, driving a DeLorean like 1985's 'Back to the Future' or him, doing slow motion flips like 1999's 'the Matrix'. It was all, over the place. Its things like the examples, I mention, are the reasons, why you shouldn't hired, four screenwriters to beef your script. They all have, different ideas of where the story should be steered at, with none of their jokes really connecting. Despite that, the movie does have some positive things about it. For a foreign international film, where the main language is in Swedish. The dialogue is easy to understand with English subtitles. There isn't a lot of deep Swedish cultural references or slang in this film, so I didn't get as confused, on what they meant, like other foreign language comedies. Honestly, with the look of the film. The story could had pass, as something that came from the Great White North. It's just that transparent with its American influences. Also, most of the Cops were, pretty likable & relatable, even, if some of their characteristic were one note. Still, if I have to nitpick, I felt the cops in the film, should had target on people that kinda deserved, their property being damaged, rather than them, targeting innocent good people like Kent (Sven-Åke Gustavsson) & Janne (Viktor Friberg), just because one of them, always cook sausages. I felt, like the town needed more jerks. It would had made me, feel a little more sympathetic to the cops cause if the cops targeted them. Overall: While, on the surface level, this film might seem like it's just another parody with cops that we had seen before like 1984's "Police Academy' & 2003's 'Reno 911'. "Kopps' did surprised me, by twisting the clichés comedy script, by having the bumbling cops do the crime, in order to save their jobs. Because of that, I can say, it's a film, worth watching, at least once, because how unique, the premise was. I just wish some of the gun kata fantasy sequence were more imaginative. Don't know if the Adam Sandler's version will ever be made, but at least, we have this to look back, on. So do your duty, and check it out!