2/10

Hot Garbage would be a better title. ‘Hot Pursuit’ is the latest film from Director, Anne Fletcher, a woman who knows a thing or two about awkward pairings with her 2012 directorial debut, ‘The Guilt Trip’. Her latest film is about an uptight and rule following cop (Reese Witherspoon) who tries to protect the vivacious and outgoing widow (Sofia Vergara) of a drug boss as they race through South Texas, pursued by crooked cops and murderous gunmen. If i am thankful for one thing in the dull, unfunny film, it’s the short run time of 82 minutes. The movie has just enough storyline to make a feature film, but it’s structure is stretched unbelievably in the standing still progression of the duo’s adventure. Not many things are believable in this mess, and that includes the duo’s friendship as well as Reese Witherspoon’s character being a cop who can’t 1) Do a pull up, or 2) Figure out a Longhorn tattoo from a shooting suspect that she has drawn upside down. Witherspoon is so much better than this movie, it’s not even funny (Double meaning). After the role of her career in 2014’s ‘Wild’, this has to be one of the biggest steps back for an A-list actress. That unwelcoming presence is enforced by a lack of chemistry with her big mouth co-star, and a southern accent that has her fighting for mediocrity. The two ladies bicker back and forth, and by a half hour into the film i felt like i was close to walking out with the torture it unloaded on my ears. They both play for comedic laughs with neither one playing the straight person role for the film. Every comedy needs a straight laced no nonsense character to bounce off the jokester of the movie for great comedic timing reactions. Those reactions never happen here because both ladies are played off like their personalities turned to eleven. If this handicap isn’t enough, the two have to work their way out of some of the worst comedy lines i have heard in a film this year. ‘Hot Pursuit’ feels like it could’ve been directed by Seth Macfarlane for it’s unapolagetic repitition of on-going jokes. No fewer than three times are we reminded by breaking news reports on televisions that Witherspoon is short and looks like a boy, and Vergara is old. Reese’s height is smaller with each passing story (5’2 then 5’0 and so on), and Sofia’s age increases (40 then 45 and so on) with each briefing. Fletcher is clearly trying for a buddy cop movie that was the rave in the 80’s, and there are some noticeable winks to that genre, but a lack of action scenes combined with an odd couple paring that doesn’t do anything spectacular when compared to other films of that stature. ‘Hot Pursuit’ is the ‘Tammy’ of 2015. Both movies with two leading actresses who should keep moving forward and forget that these career killing mistakes ever existed to begin with. There should be no pursuit even for this DVD. It’s better left collecting dust before making it’s way to the bargain buy-one-get-one pile.