Director Dax Shepard
Genre Action | Comedy | Drama
Cast Michael Peña, Dax Shepard, Jessica McNamee, Adam Brody
Rating R
Release Date March 24th, 2017
“A rookie officer is teamed with a hardened pro at the California Highway Patrol, though the newbie soon learns his partner is really an undercover Fed investigating a heist that may involved some crooked cops.”
CHiPs is the feature-film reincarnation of the popular T.V. show that made its debut in 1977 and ran until 1983, starring Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox. Even though I was born a year after the show stopped airing I somehow have vivid memories of watching it, and I remember really enjoying it as well. The film version is directed by actor turned director Dax Shepard, casting himself in one of the lead roles. The rest of the cast includes Michael Peña, Jessica McNamee, and Adam Brody.
CHiPs stumbles due to a weak script and no real identity, but if you can appreciate silly humor Dax Shepard and Michael Peña will have you belly laughing nonetheless. First and foremost, this movie had next to nothing in common with the original show, aside from the title and the motorcycles. I can only assume the decision was made to use the name in the hope of pulling in fans of the original show. Although it seems to me the demographic that watched the show religiously back in the late 70's/early 80's wouldn’t really be into a movie like this, but what do I know? Fun fact, during the entire run of the show (6 seasons) the lead characters never fired their guns, not once. Bottom line, the show was a crime drama and this is well, not. CHiPs (the movie) is very much the definition of the love it or hate it R-rated comedy that focuses all of its energy on getting laughs, and basically lets everything else go by the wayside. I was looking forward to this for quite some time, mainly because of the cast and what seemed like a decent premise, and all in all I still left the theater feeling entertained. It didn't blow me away by any stretch of the imagination, but I was never bored and laughed about as much as I could have hoped to. CHiPs is raunchy, ridiculous, over-the-top, and will definitely offend some viewers, but that is essentially the definition of slapstick comedy. It could have been much better, no questions about that, but it still serves its purpose. As a director Dax Shepard did some great things, as a writer, he has plenty of room for improvement. Still, the ability to write, direct, and star in a big movie like this, that is impressive.
The original show was all about the chemistry between the two leads and the CHiPs movie has that in common. The cast is without a doubt one of the film’s biggest strengths. Dax Shepard split his time between directing and acting as he put himself in one of the lead roles. Shepard is actually a bit more reserved in his role compared to some of his other films and I actually enjoyed his character. His backstory is equal parts ridiculous and plausible, which somehow works for the most part. Casted alongside him is one of my favorite actors, the very versatile Michael Peña. I have been a huge fan of Peña ever since Crash, which is one of my all-time favorite films. He is a unique actor in his ability to play a goofy and hilarious character one movie and take on a very serious role the next. He is hilarious in this role and the chemistry he develops with Shepard is without a doubt the saving grace for the film. Kristen Bell, the wife of Dax Shepard, has a small role in the film but I must acknowledge the fact that she is absolutely gorgeous. I love that he has her in pretty much any film he directs. The supporting cast takes a backseat to the leads but everyone held their own. The film also includes an entertaining cameo from former CHiPs leading man Erik Estrada.
CHiPs may be riddled with flaws but it had the theater I was in laughing out loud the majority of the time, myself included, and for me that alone is worth the price of admission for a pre-summer comedy. On the other hand, those of you who demand a little more should probably hold off until the Blu-ray/DVD release. It's difficult for me to recommend this to everyone simply because disliking the movie as a whole is a very realistic possibility, but if you can lower your expectations and maybe even have an adult beverage or two, CHiPs will put a smile on your face and send you home happy.
