Sometimes I wonder what happened to Chris Tucker. Then I realize that he was just a prototype that got mothballed when the smaller, more powerful Kevin Hart was released. Tucker’s career is pretty much defined by “Rush Hour” (1998), a standard, 1990s buddy-cop action flick. He’s in full Hollywood Shuffle mode playing a motormouthed Eddie Murphy for a cheap rip-off of “Beverly Hills Cop.” There are typical international crime hijinks and even a heavyset nemesis detective with a handlebar mustache. Fortunately, layered on top of that mediocrity is Jackie Chan’s incredibly choreographed fight scenes. It’s worth seeing just for those.
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I vaguely recall a lousy sitcom plot years ago where a dude stages an event that puts a woman in danger so he can save her, and therefore win her heart. Little did I know in 2022 someone would try to twist that concept into an action flick. Who needs couples counseling when you can rescue your abducted wife? “Last Seen Alive” finds a fractious couple near the end of a long car trip when missing persons hijinks ensue. Grumpy real estate developer Gerard Butler turns into Liam Neeson, except his special skills don’t include avoiding an absolutely ridiculous conclusion.
In the middle of “The Devil’s Own” (1997), Brad Pitt mentions that a story he just told doesn’t have a happy ending because it’s not an American story, it’s an Irish one. I’ll let you find out for yourself which kind of story this film is, but the ending disappointed me. An IRA commander (Pitt) goes undercover in the U.S., living with a cop (Harrison Ford) and his idyllic, Irish-American family while trying to conclude an arms deal. There’s plenty of great performances amidst the irony (wife Margaret Colin particularly shines), but the plot doesn’t go out with a bang.
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