RENO 911: MIAMI

"You're the only cops left"

When Lieutenant Jim Dangle (Lennon) and the rest of the Reno Sheriff Department are invited to a police conference in Miami, they see it as a chance show the rest of the law enforcement community that they can do the job. After a chemical weapon attack on the conference that infects the whole of the Miami police force, it is now up to the Reno officers to save the day.

Giving cult TV shows the feature film treatment is nothing new but can 'Reno 911' successfully switch to the big screen?

Series creators Robert Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon and Kerry Kenney-Silver take their cult TV show that offers a comedic version of the hit show 'Cops' to the big screen but the transition to theatres does seem to have improved the comedy. The main problem is that the show might be a hit on the 'Comedy Central' network over in the US but outside of American this improvisational comedy tries to be the new 'Spinal Tap' but just ends up been a bad version of 'Police Academy'.

Improvisational comedy is always hit and miss and for the most part 'Reno 911!: Miami' misses. The main reason for the failure of the movie is the fact that you have to have watched the TV show to get the most out of the film. The fact that there are no real introductions or backstory to the characters or the Reno Sheriff department means that this is a movie made for fans of the TV show. This fact alienates new fans coming to the movie and then becoming fans of the show.

With the characters not introduced and the set up of the film and the Reno Police force not forthcoming the humour is extremely hit and miss. You really need to know the characters, their connections and their relationships to get the most out of the movie. This means that all of the in-jokes fall on deaf ears and the rest of the gags are pretty lame. The premise has promise but it has been done before in the 'Police Academy' series and you will be ashamed to admit that those movies were better.

If you are a fan of the series then you will probably love the big screen adventure of your favourite dysfunctional police department. For everyone else, you will struggle to connect with these already established characters and the sense of humour. This is one for the fans only.

Just Plain Smutty: Commentary By Deputies Garcia, Johnson, Jones and Kimball
Wildly Inappropriate: Commentary By Lt. Dangle and Deputies Junior, Wiegel and Williams
Politically Incorrect: Commentary by director/writer Robert Ben Grant and writers Thomas Lennon and Kerri Kenny-Silver
6 outrageous extended scenes
Hilarious "public service announcements"
Fox movie channel presents: world premiere

Police Academy

Reno 911

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2007