(1991) Currently appearing in Smoking Gunn II, Nick Lang (Michael J. Fox), Hollywood movie star, who regards his performance as another "piece of crap," announces to his agent Angie (Penny Marshall) that he wants to play the part of a "real" cop, Ray Casanov, a man who's "been to the edge, tasted fear." In order to get the role, he uses his wiles to tag along with a supercop, NYPD's Lt John Moss (James Woods), on the case of the party crasher (Stephen Lang).

Detesting the whole idea of having a "Hollywood rump wrangler" accompany him, badass Moss nevertheless can't dissuade Capt Brix (Delroy Lindo) from approving of the temporary partnership, though he's ordered not to involve the actor in any action. Of course, this being an action-adventure comedy, loaded with .45-caliber, hollow-shell violence and lacerating language, from director John Badham, that's exactly what happens.

"Do I get a gun?" asks Lang, whom Moss calls Dickless Tracy. In the ghetto on a murder investigation while Moss is recommending that the Dead Romeos graduate from high school so that they can advance into white-collar crimes, Nick (told to stay in the car) loses his cellphone to a rival Asian gang, who proceed to shoot up the neighborhood.

In his attempt to ingratiate himself with Moss, and get into the detective's personal life, Nick offers dating advice to the divorced cop, trying to win the affections of Susan (Annabella Sciorra), who has a little girl Bonnie: invite the daughter along for dates and loosen up a little. In a bar in a funny scene, Nick role plays as Susan with uptight Moss.

Nick's constantly observing and imitating Moss's moves and speech soon gets under the cop's skin: "You get seventeen takes to get it right. We get one take, and it lasts our whole life. Mess it up and we're dead."

A crisis occurs - "You wanted to know what it feels like to kill someone," says Moss, telling the celebrity that he'll take full responsibility: "You're an actor, Nick. Pretend it never happened."

Who's the real actor here? Moss says to Susan: "Cops are too violent and risky to care about, until you need one, and then they're the Second Coming." Things go from uproariously crazy to boneheaded stupid (especially the unrealistic scene in the garage with Crasher), from funny to phony ("People need real heroes") before resurrecting for a crafty finale, beginning inside a theater where Smoking Gunn II is playing and finishing on the picture's billboard (featuring Lang's photogenic phizog smoking a cigarette) over Broadway.

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Copyright © 2009 Patrick Ivers. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.

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