Rock and Hopkins Breath Life Into Unoriginal 'Bad Company'

The story of two unlikely heroes paired together to save the day is one of the most unoriginal and overused plots in Hollywood today. Joel Schumacher's "Bad Company" is yet another one of these fish-out-of-water action-comedies, a film that has every one of the genre's all-too-familiar characteristics from the trained, Caucasian veteran to the streetwise, African-American newcomer. However, while "Bad Company" could easily be dismissed as yet another "48 Hours," "Lethal Weapon" or even "Rush Hour," brilliant casting and an action-packed script make "Bad Company" not only a summer movie worth seeing, but an action-comedy worth remembering.

"Bad Company" features the unlikely pairing of Sir Anthony Hopkins and funny man Chris Rock as Gaylord Oakes and Jake Hayes-- two strangers who would have never met each other if it wasn't for Hayes' twin brother, CIA agent Kevin Pope. While negotiating a deal to purchase a nuclear bomb, Kevin is murdered just days before the deal is complete. Determined to have the deal go through and get the bomb out of terrorists hands, CIA agent Oakes tracks down Kevin's twin brother whom he was separated from at birth to finish the deal. With only nine days to transform the street-wise, ticket-hustling loud mouth into a sophisticated and trained government agent, Agent Oakes must work day and night with Jake to not only find out who murdered Kevin, but also save the world from nuclear attack.

Like most comedies, the trailers for "Bad Company" give away majority of the film's punchlines. In fact, there are only a few laugh-out-loud moments in the movie that viewers won't have previously seen. Luckily though, the trailers don't spoil the best action sequences-- something that (typical of Jerry Bruckheimer's films) "Bad Company" is filled with. Additionally, unlike the other dime-a-dozen action-comedies the film could easily be lumped with, screenwriters Jason Richman and Michael Browning write a script that has just as many twists and turns as it does punchlines. Richman and Browning deliver a seat-squirming, edge-of-your-seat climax that's filled with surprises, making "Bad Company" a joy to watch from start to finish.

No matter how action-packed or well-written "Bad Company" is though, the main reason to see the film is for the odd-couple pairing of Hannibal Lecter with the former "In Living Color"/"Saturday Night Live" comedian. Hopkins and Rock are great together, and their on-screen chemistry is easily comparable to Mel Gibson and Danny Glover's or Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker's. Hopkins (as always) is splendid as the serious CIA agent who has his doubts about his latest recruit, and although Rock has his shaky moments, they are easy to dismiss since his character's supposed to be uncomfortable in his new atmosphere. Furthermore, the dual roles of Jake Hayes and Kevin Pope lets Rock's talents shine as both a stand-up comic and a budding actor, showing both Chris Rock as the side-kick comedian audiences loved in "Dogma" and "Lethal Weapon 4,” as well as a more serious actor.

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