Showtimeêê ( PG-13 )

Reviewed By Cathy Edsey Collins

One more buddy flick to add to the heap

Mitch Preston: Robert DeNiro	Trey Sellars: Eddie Murphy
Chase Renzi: Renee Russo	Director: Tom Dey
William Shatner as Himself

30 Second Bottom Line: A "Dirty Harry" cop is forced to team up with a ham-bone police officer on a reality-based TV series. Grudgingly, they merge their divergent styles to solve a tough drug case.

Story Line: Robert De Niro is Mitch Preston, a veteran cop who takes his job seriously, doesn't have time for showboats and makes pottery to keep his blood pressure down. The press ranks at the bottom of Mitch's popularity meter, so when a cameraman gets in the way of a drug bust, it's no surprise that he blasts the videocam to bits.

Enter a beleaguered TV producer-Chase Renzi (Renee Russo)-still stinging from a failed news expose on flammable baby pajamas and smelling an opportunity for redemption from Mitch's temper tantrum. Threatening to sue the police department for equipment damages, she offers to drop the suit if Mitch and a partner will be the "stars" of a reality-based TV series. The program-jazzily pegged "Showtime"-will follow the dynamic duo as they cleanup the streets of Los Angeles.

Mitch's enthusiasm for this drivel sinks even lower when he is teamed with Trey Sellars (Eddie Murphy), a cop who would rather play one on TV. Constantly mugging for the cameras, Trey annoys Mitch endlessly as the ego-driven actor wannabe poses and screws up even the most routine police work. Mitch, on the other hand, is all business, bucking everything Chase does in her ambition to give the show an edge.

When the nasty villain appears-complete with a gun that can knock a house down-the familiar buddy formula really kicks into high gear. Mitch and Trey find that they can combine each of their talents to snare the baddies and become life-long friends.

Tell Me More About It: Director Tom Dey's only other film Shanghai Noon, tread similar territory. Then again, so have a dozen films in recent years. Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in the Lethal Weapon franchise, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker in the Rush Hour flicks, Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy in the 48 Hours series-these just skim the tip of the iceberg.

At its outset, Showtime seems to be parodying this stalwart, yet stultifying genre. Indeed, the first half of this 95-minute buddy jaunt is actually quite funny. The opening sequence with a cranky-faced DeNiro seriously lecturing a classroom of kindergartners about how he has never flipped a police car over had my audience giggling.

And there is much to like about Murphy's performance as well. His excessive preening for the ever-present TV camera adds another dimension to the usual unwanted partner characterization in the overdone buddy film.

William Shatner appears to be having the most fun, playing himself as the show's director. Always complimenting Trey for his natural acting abilities, Shatner's lament that DeNiro is "…the worst actor I have ever seen" garnered the film's biggest laugh.

The movie falls apart, however, as soon as it veers away from the duo's in-fighting and begins focusing on the bad guys. There are multiple car chases with vehicles screeching through the streets. At least a dozen cars crash-many exploding in flames, scenes that could easily be taken from archival footage, they have been repeated so many times.

And when will we be spared those terrible out-takes at the end of a film? Neither clever nor humorous, these snippets only confirm why they are called "out-takes."

Yet, it is impossible to deny the chemistry between these two acting dynamos as they kick butt onscreen-admittedly coasting on past comedic laurels like Meet the Parents and Shrek. Though the story is glaringly familiar, the principals in Showtime manage to yank this comedy a notch above your average time-waster-simply because we like them.

Now if Hollywood would just give this over-worn genre a well-deserved hiatus-or at least change the gender for a fresh look. Meryl and Sigourney as seasoned police officers, anyone?

Rated PG-13 for action violence, language and some drug content

Cathyedsey@aol.com