Hot Pursuit (2015)
Certified: PG
Duration: 87 minutes
Directed by: Anne Fletcher
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Sofía Vergara, Jim Gaffigan, Robert Kazinsky, Joaquín Cosio, Vincent Laresca, Michael Mosley, John Carroll Lynch, Matthew Del Negro, Richard T. Jones
KRS Releasing Ltd
Reese Witherspoon is policewoman Rose Cooper, who after an accident that included a taser and a college student, is now desk-bound to the evidence room. Captain Emmett (John Carroll Lynch) has a case on his hands and he gives Rose a chance to return to active duty.
He partners her with Detective Jackson (Richard T. Jones) and the two are given the task of keeping drug lord Vicente Cortez (Joaquín Cosio) from meting out punishment on Felipe (Vincent Caresca) and his over-the-top wife Daniella (Sofía Vergara). Felipe is about to provide testimony against Cortez and he and Daniella have to enter the Witness Protection Programme, something that Daniella is not happy about.
Everything goes topsy turvy when they are attacked from all sides. On one side, there are cops-gone-bad Hauer and Dixon (Matthew Del Negro and Michael Mosley) and the two hitmen Angel and Jesus (Michael Ray Escamilla and Benny Nieves). This leads to Daniella and Cooper going off on the run with the two clashing at every possible turn and moment. Daniella has something to hide that can possibly place them in even more danger while Cooper ends up meeting Randy (Robert Kazinsky) who had been convicted and gets besotted with her.
Both actresses opt for manic and exuberant screwball antics
Anne Fletcher, who has directed such hits as The Proposal and 27 Dresses and the not-so-much-of-a hit The Guilt Trip, is here given the task to direct an action comedy designed to capitalise on the recent spate of movies aimed at the female audience, very much in the same manner as 2013’s The Heat. She is given a pretty much standard script, but luckily enough she has Witherspoon and Vergara to work with. Both actresses opt for manic and exuberant screwball antics aplenty and a Looney Tunes kind of slapdash show.
Members of the audience who are already familiar with the two actresses will enjoy this girl buddy movie. Vergara here plays another version of Gloria, her character from the ABC sitcom Modern Family: she is loud, shrill and very vocal about it with her cleavage being a very important acting tool! Witherspoon’s character is designed to be the complete opposite – she is a straitlaced cop – and it is in the meeting of these two opposites that the fun is to be had.
This type of action comedy is usually male oriented with male stars ending up in all these opposites-attract screwball numbers. The fact that the two actresses are placed into situations where they have to use feminine wiles in order to get out of the danger is an interesting aspect that brushes off this movie. The males, however, also seem to end up screeching.
It’s perfect popcorn entertainment for the hot summer days.