Showtime (2002)

2.5 out of 4

Starring: Robert De Niro, Eddie Murphy, Rene Russo, Frankie Faison, William Shatner

Director: Tom Dey

Time: 95 mins

Eddie Murphy has been on a box office resurgence lately, what with hits like the Nutty Professor and Dr Dolittle series as well as animated offerings like Mulan and last year's Shrek. Likewise, Robert De Niro, that tough guy star of many a crime saga, has been seen lately in the comedic successes Analyse This and Meet The Parents. Throw them together in the new reality TV spoof Showtime, and what do you get? A sure-fire winner? Well, that's what the producers would have hoped for, but Showtime is not quite the success such a pairing and concept could have been. Sure, it has its fun moments, but there are some slow spots and an action-filled subplot that seems to have been inserted to fill up time.

Mitch Preston (De Niro) is a tough, no-nonsense cop who's paired up with slick rookie Trey Sellars (Murphy) on a new reality TV show about cops called Showtime. The trouble is, Sellars likes the Hollywood-style trappings, but Preston doesn't. Throw in the show's persistent producer (Rene Russo) and a gang of gun smugglers on the loose and you have one volatile mix of action and comedy.

Showtime contains some on-the-spot jabs at reality TV shows like Cops and cop movies in general. It explores the cliches, and the implausibilities. There are also hilarious segments featuring the personality clashes between De Niro's Preston and Murphy's Sellars, and a funny sequence with William Shatner (playing himself) as an advisor on the show. The problem with Showtime, however, is that there are several slow moments when the humour dries up, and the script then reverts to those cliches it attacked earlier on, such as needlessly long action scenes. The action scenes aren't boring or anything like that - in fact, they're quite well-filmed. It's just that the editing seems to suggest the jokes are about to stop flowing, so let's throw in an action scene.

There's a nice rapport between De Niro and Murphy in the film. De Niro is his usual gruff self, though he lightens up considerably by the end. Murphy, however, is at his best in a live action film since his Buddy Love sequences in the first Nutty Professor. Murphy has been fairly low-key in the past few years, but his smart mouth and charisma shine through here, and reminds one of the great Murphy performances in Beverly Hills Cop and Trading Places. Special mentions go to William Shatner (TV's T.J. Hooker), for parodying himself, and to Rene Russo, who shows a fine comedic touch while looking absolutely gorgeous in a variety of simple outfits.

The team of director Tom Dey and screenwriters Alfred Gough and Miles Millar had some mild success with the Jackie Chan western Shanghai Noon. In Showtime, they come up with some good gags, but seem to lose their way towards the end. While not a failure, Showtime is not a film that will stick in one's memory (or in cinemas, for that matter) after a month or two. Enjoy it while it lasts.

(c) Joe Wong (31 March 2002)