Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson aren't necessarily the first names that come to mind when thinking of suitable candidates to revive the roles of the 70s TV cop team of Starsky and Hutch. That is until the notion of making the film a comedy is posited. Then the pair, who have exhibited a great screen chemistry in such films as Zoolander and Meet The Parents, would appear the perfect choice. Indeed, there are moments during the course of Starsky & Hutch when the two tap into their natural camaraderie with amusing results, but sadly not enough to dispel the feeling of a good opportunity missed.
The original TV series was laced with a self-deprecating wit that lends itself perfectly to being exploited along with a wealth of nostalgic gimmicks and fashions. At one point Starsky (Ben Stiller) struggles while running under the weight of giant headphones while drug lord Reese Feldman (Vince Vaughn) talks on a primitive and cumbersome car phone. Just seeing the customized red and white Ford Torino, the car that spawned a wealth of Datsun resprays, is enough to solicit a grin. Which in some ways appears the problem here. It's almost as if director Todd Phillips hoped simply jogging audiences' fond memories of the original would be enough.
Along with the car, the film includes plenty of the elements from the TV series. The flamboyant Huggy Bear is perfectly embodied by Snoop Dogg while the exasperated police chief Captain Dobey (Fred Williamson) is back. At its heart, though, is the mismatched pairing of David Starsky and Ken Hutchinson (Owen Wilson). Stiller's trademark neurotic persona is molded to the role of the tightly wound Starsky while Wilson lends his easygoing charm to the free spirited Hutch. Their clashing personalities are the trigger for much of the humour as Hutch finds himself teasing his partner one minute then trying the extricate themselves from some predicament invoked by Starsky's hot temper the next.
The skeletal storyline revolves around them trying to crack a murder that's linked to a cocaine smuggling operation. To play the film's two central villains, Philips wisely turned to Vaughn and Will Ferrell, who plays the perverted Big Earl, both of whom served the director so well last year in Old School. But Ferrell's hilarious cameo only underlines the paucity of laughs. At times it feels as though no one is really certain of what tone the film is trying to strike.
After ambling along its directionless way, things peter out rather than get resolved. The finale is chiefly notable only for the guest appearance of Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul, the originators of the title characters. Both appeared a trifle uncomfortable and unsure what they were doing. Thankfully for them, the moment was brief. Everyone else was not so lucky.
