Rent-a-Cop : Assistance à femme en danger

This late-80s Burt Reynolds vehicle, while fun at times, is very cliched and run-of-the-mill as a whole. All the basic police-themed action thriller elements are there. It's not without its moments though, and it is still entertaining, if you can forgive its obvious flaws.

The tough but disgraced former cop seeking a purpose. The helpless hooker looking for help. The budding romance. The bad guys on their trail. Sound familiar? It should. It is, after all, the plot to pretty basically ANY 80s cop movie, with a few changed details. This film follows the formulas to a T. It even has the opening shootout in which a sting operation goes badly, and the cop is taken off the case. It has the loud and stubborn superior officer who chews out the good cop. It also has the obligatory climax in the villain's mansion. These are only a few of the cliches.

It's also awkward sometimes, with some lulls in the story's pacing and some boring moments. I've seen this described as part comedy, basically an action comedy, but the only potentially funny moments come from Liza Minnelli, who is the most annoying thing about the film. But while the movie is obviously a cookie-cutter copy of so many other 80s action movies, it's still fun. Burt Reynolds is there, and even when he looks bored, he's still entertaining. The action is fun and the characters are interesting enough.

The action sequences are pretty good, even if they are few and far between. There's a bloody opening shootout, a fine fight scene at a party, a car chase, and the final showdown, which is the film's highlight. The action isn't really plentiful, but it's well-directed and entertaining enough, and the climax, as I said, is pretty good.

Overall, this isn't the greatest Burt Reynolds movie for sure, but it's fine, and you could do a lot worse.

Well I was entertained. I like it. Sue me! I'm not saying it's art but it's an enjoyable time-passer of a movie. I'm not sure if I would call it a romantic comedy since there's a lot of violence and dark parts but there is comedy and there is romance so...yeah. Seems like most Burt Reynolds movies I like are the ones most people hate and the ones most people like I don't care much for. Anyway Burt isn't even the best part here. The best part is Liza Minnelli, who I'm not normally a fan of but she's good here. Also James Remar's psycho villain has some memorable scenes.

Motorcycle helmet-wearing psycho thwarts a hotel drug bust by the Chicago police force, leaving several cops dead plus $2M of the department's money and three keys of smack missing. Seasoned vet Burt Reynolds is the only one to survive the ambush--he and chatty hooker Liza Minnelli, who was with a trick that night after getting a good look at the killer sans helmet. Not exactly sophisticated, but a reasonably entertaining action-thriller with comedic and romantic asides. Reynolds and Minnelli are too old for their roles, but Liza at least gives her all (she "won" a Razzie Award for this performance, but she's a comfortable match for her aging co-star--she keeps his head up). James Remar is an interesting villain (a fired cop and former ballroom dancing instructor who reeks of liniment!), but Dionne Warwick as a madam, Robby Benson as a rookie, and Richard Masur as a dirty ex-cop (speaking with a ridiculous nasal voice) are all pretty bad. Chicago locations were used, but most of the movie was shot in Italy (hence all the Italian names in the end credits). If a you're a fan of the stars, this could rate as a guilty pleasure, although there's nothing cheesy about Jerry Goldsmith's fine score or Giuseppe Rotunno's sharp cinematography (which includes a wonderful opening shot flying over the city). **1/2 from ****

Detective Frank Church resigns from his job when a drug bust goes wrong with the blame being put on him, as he survived along with prostitute Della Roberts who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Della saw the face of killer and now finds herself a target. So she seeks help from the out-of-work Church. Burt Reynolds seems to have his fair share of nothing features and the late 80s crime-thriller "Rent-a-Cop" is hard not to categorise in that bracket, but still it can be amusing and at the same time overbearing. Thanks to the appearance of Liza Minnelli as a flamboyantly overactive hooker who just won't quit talking. She overpowers many scenes. Not helping the case is that the off-balance script is asinine. I just wished it kept on the straight and narrow, than throwing in some light-hearted touches and trite comedy elements. It can be violent pulp and the main killer (a terrifically threatening James Remar) is rather a cold-hearted maniac who has a noticeable costume get-up and deadly arsenal, although he does like to dance (swaying back-and-forth in front of a mirror) and a good dancer he is too. With a nickname Dancer, he must be. Burt Reynolds is pretty much on cruise-control and the chemistry with Minnelli just doesn't seem to click. Someone has already mentioned it, but its true that I couldn't get Reynolds 1981 cop-thriller "Sharky's Machine" out of my mind when watching this. Both films have similar plot threads and are staged in the windy city Chicago, but "Rent-a-Cop" felt like a self-parody of it. Also making appearances are Richard Masur, Bernie Casey and a stern John P. Ryan. Director Jerry London (who mainly does TV) surprisingly gives the film a certain crisp slickness, creating moments of suspense (like the glorified cat and mouse shootout climax that ends with someone losing their head) and uses the wintry urban Chicago backdrop to good affect. Jerry Goldsmith contributes the music score. Routine, clingy star vehicle.

"Read my lips. Don't screw around."

A low-rent, cheaply made police thriller that's kept bearable by some fair humorous bits, the nice chemistry between the two leads and, especially, by James Remar's satisfying turn as a narcissistic, psychopathic (and, naturally, indestructible) villain. Obviously a low-quality picture, both visually and dramatically, with a rather resigned Burt, but not unwatchable. (**)