Director Rawson Marshall Thurber
Genre Comedy
Cast Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Aaron Paul, Amy Ryan
Rating PG-13
Release Date June 17th, 2016
“After he reunites with an old pal through Facebook, a mild-mannered accountant is lured into the world of international espionage.”
Central Intelligence is directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber, who previously directed Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, which has developed into a bit of a cult classic. He also directed the 2013 comedy, We’re The Millers. The film stars former professional wrestler turned actor, Dwayne Johnson, and successful pint sized stand-up comedian turned actor, Kevin Hart.
Central Intelligence flips the script by reversing the type-cast roles for two of Hollywood’s biggest names, and it works. Although some would argue that it fits in the category of “leave your brain at the door” style comedy, and don’t get me wrong I would have a difficult time arguing against that fact, but guess what? Who cares! Whether we want to admit it or not, audiences crave mindless humor, myself included, and Central Intelligence spares us the complex story line and instead sets the table for just under 2 hours of laugh-out-loud humor and good old fashioned buddy comedy. I left the theater entertained and I never felt board, and to be quite honest I am looking forward to seeing these two actors together again soon. Rumor has it they are in production for a new Jumanji film, which will also star Jack Black.
It took a little getting used to but I enjoyed the quality of the acting in Central Intelligence. Dwayne Johnson steps into relatively unfamiliar territory (not counting family movies of course) as he plays a fairly goofy role. At first I was a bit taken back by his character and unsure what I thought of this transformation, but I’ll admit it grew on me. He does a superb job balancing between his goofy character and a serious CIA agent while always maintaining his good nature, which should be well received by audiences. Kevin Hart played a much more grounded role compared to the overly eccentric roles he tends to play, which was refreshing and should please viewers who consider themselves sick of his usual routine. The audience is also treated with a surprise appearance from Breaking Bad star, Aaron Paul, who certainly makes his presence known.
I had high expectations for Central Intelligence and I was quite impressed with the final product. What we were given is a film that will most likely serve as the jumping off point for a successful Hollywood duo consisting of Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart. Granted this is the epitome of mindless entertainment, but that’s fine because Central Intelligence knows how to entertain fans of good comedy, so if you fall into that demographic I suggest you check it out. Also, this was leaps and bounds better than Ride Along 2, and when it comes to Ice Cube or Dwayne Johnson tearing up the screen with Kevin Hart, Dwayne Johnson > Ice Cube. Period.
