The original TV series, Starsky and Hutch, revolutionised - in fact, probably invented the buddy-cop genre. It was as hugely popular, possibly more-so than Charlie's Angels in its day, so it was inevitable that after the success of Charlie's Angels, S+H would be next in line for the movie treatment.
But whereas Charlie's Angels was dynamic and plot-driven, with (a good many) knowing references to the original series and its disco-seventies setting it still retained a respect for the Angels. S+H has no respect for the original series... instead of action, it plays it purely for laughs, turning the original streetwise tough-guy cops in to fumbling buffoons.
While the film will undoubtedly be popular, its popularity is unlikely to be with fans of the original series - for two reasons, one is as they approach their forties they are hardly core cinema audience, but mainly because no-one with fond memories of the original series could warm to this irreverent crap.
Snoop Dogg is superb as Huggy Bear, and has the one stand out comedic line in the film. In reflection to our heroes being portrayed as idiots, the originally flaky Huggy is upgraded to a super-fly pimp daddy. At the end of the day, it is Huggy who captures the bad guy, as Starsky and Hutch mess up disasterously, and not entirely amusingly.
The final scene, where Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul, make a cameo to hand over the keys of the famous Gran Torino (the REAL star of the movie), merely serves to drive home the fact that S+H2004 is really Starsky and Hutch light. The original actors tower over their modern counterparts both literally, and in terms of screen presence.
Starsky and Hutch is not unwatchable, Stiller and Wilson are likable as ever, but on this occasion, the material lets them down. Without the value of the original series, Starsky and Hutch is about as good a movie as Hollywood Homicide was... and that's no recommendation.
But whereas Charlie's Angels was dynamic and plot-driven, with (a good many) knowing references to the original series and its disco-seventies setting it still retained a respect for the Angels. S+H has no respect for the original series... instead of action, it plays it purely for laughs, turning the original streetwise tough-guy cops in to fumbling buffoons.
While the film will undoubtedly be popular, its popularity is unlikely to be with fans of the original series - for two reasons, one is as they approach their forties they are hardly core cinema audience, but mainly because no-one with fond memories of the original series could warm to this irreverent crap.
Snoop Dogg is superb as Huggy Bear, and has the one stand out comedic line in the film. In reflection to our heroes being portrayed as idiots, the originally flaky Huggy is upgraded to a super-fly pimp daddy. At the end of the day, it is Huggy who captures the bad guy, as Starsky and Hutch mess up disasterously, and not entirely amusingly.
The final scene, where Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul, make a cameo to hand over the keys of the famous Gran Torino (the REAL star of the movie), merely serves to drive home the fact that S+H2004 is really Starsky and Hutch light. The original actors tower over their modern counterparts both literally, and in terms of screen presence.
Starsky and Hutch is not unwatchable, Stiller and Wilson are likable as ever, but on this occasion, the material lets them down. Without the value of the original series, Starsky and Hutch is about as good a movie as Hollywood Homicide was... and that's no recommendation.