Ein Cop und ein Halber

Burt Reynolds has shown a subtle comic flair in films like "Sharky's Machine" and "Shamus" (or even in "Stick"), but his work here, in a broader kind of comedy, is joyless. The kid does show some spirit, but as a "buddy" team these two rarely click. The film was probably supposed, among other things, to satirize the most familiar cop-movie cliches, but it's one big cliche itself, and has a rather erratic tone. (*1/2)

This is one of my childhood favorites! Yes, the plot is pathetic and unbelievable. Yes, the boy is no Dakota Fanning. But Cop and a Half is a very enjoyable movie for people between the ages of 4 and 10. I mean, this movie wasn't marketed towards art school graduate students. The situations are very light-hearted and the jokes corny enough for the young age demographic.

This is also a good movie if you enjoy making fun of B-movies (especially with your friends... and beer). There are numerous plot holes and the man-boy love undertones are hilariously disturbing.

Do not watch Cop and a Half if you are a cantankerous old geezer!

You people are crackpots, just insane with arrogance. This movie did what it intended. Golden's performance was incredible given his age. Not very funny, but witty and cute. Here's a clue people: Most 8 year olds over-act! And Burt--well, Burt is Burt, not even one dimensional...The only fault I can find is the Hollywood by the numbers script, which is plenty dreadful. That's what Hollywood does. You knew you were getting a kids movie, right?

When I saw this as a kid, I really liked it. So, for me, it did what it was supposed to--capture a child's imagination. Not an adults petulance.

Recommended for kids.

It doesn't rate MUCH higher than that, but Norman D. Golden II is so preciously precocious as to wax reminiscent of Shirley Temple's early performances.

Burt is great here, though his character is quite irascible and curmudgeonly, but he plays those parts very well. This film features some decent action, a story and plot line which is quite cliché, and some good elemental twists, which balance out the many clichés throughout.

It was muddled in that you had to suspend belief to an extreme level in order to embrace the work, but once done, there is a lot of heart and entertainment to be had. I'm not saying this is "great" or even "compelling," but I did derive some level of enjoyment from Norman D. Golden II's performance.

It rates a 5.2/10 from...

the Fiend :.

It's great to see Burt in a comedy, even though he's terrible as a long wolf cop, with a short fuse, who's now saddled with a not so normal partner, an 8 year old kid, who's seen Miami Vice too many times. He likes to play cop on the school grounds with his friend, and like all 8 year olds, likes to get lost in fantasy: pretend. This all changes, when he's witness to a murder committed by these dumb goons with low iq's headed by Ray Sharkey, this the last film he did, before he subsequently died, and we can see his sick form showing, which is sad, as he turned in a last great, bad dude performance. His character's hobby besides murder101, is he likes to sing 60's rock songs, in his sound proof booth, as thinking he's the re-inventive Elvis. Nothing can be further from the truth. Norman Goldstein 2n'd is a sheer revelation, bringing in such a natural acting performance, which is engaging, is it's bloody entertaining. Watching Burt and him go off at each other is gold. The premise has him agreeing to give Burt the plate number of the thug's vehicle, on the condition he rides shotgun with him. And of course, the kid gets his way, but this natural actor is such fun to watch. Cop And Half has a few funny bits, the same bits, which had me laughing again, the second time, around, but it's not overly funny. It's a very entertaining family film, and there's real cheese in a few places. The film has heart too, Reynold's becoming a possible father figure. As a police captain, a familiar Two And A Half Men face, was wonderfully warm, bringing softer more, understanding moments. One image you'll never forget are many flying Twinkies.