Super Troopers

Directed by Jay Chandrasekhar, Super Troopers is focused on the off-the-wall antics of several highway-patrol officers, including Steve Lemme’s Mac and Kevin Heffernan’s Farva, and their increasingly exasperated captain (Brian Cox’s O’Hagan). There’s little doubt, ultimately, that Super Troopers fares best within its briskly-paced and often laugh-out-loud funny first half, as the movie, which kicks off with a hilarious segment detailing three stoners’ encounter with a couple of the aforementioned officers, boasts an easygoing sensibility that’s reflected in its sketch-comedy-like structure and raft of appealing performances – with, in terms of the latter, Chandrasekhar eliciting solid work out of both his stars and his periphery players. (Though folks like Chandrasekhar and Heffernan are quite strong here, it’s clear from start to finish that Cox’s completely captivating turn remains an ongoing highlight.) And while the picture’s thoroughly watchable vibe persists for much of its bloated 100 minutes, Super Troopers eventually (and dishearteningly) progresses into a padded-out and hopelessly uninvolving third act, revolving around the heroes’ exceedingly tedious attempts at solving a crime and clearing their names, that ensures it concludes on about as underwhelming a note as one could envision – which does, in the end, confirm the film’s place as a palpable misfire that could only have been improved by a much shorter running time.

** out of ****