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Starsky & Hutch
Well, this was certainly a step up from Dodgeball, but I still remain unconvinced that Ben Stiller is actually funny. This time, he at least has Owen Wilson to back him up, and the results are fairly amusing. For some reason, I have always found Owen Wilson amusing — sort of the anti-Ben Stiller, I guess — ever since I first saw him in Shanghai Noon.
In Starsky & Hutch, they each play their usual shtick, with Stiller as the hyperactive loser type and Wilson as the laid back devil-may-care type. I don't recall seeing the original TV show, but from reading some other reviews, it sounds like this is a decent approximation of the original personalities. Snoop Dogg throws in a scene-stealing performance as Huggy Bear the pimp informant.
Fortunately, this movie doesn't rely much on either of my ranting points from Dodgeball. The humor comes mostly from the 70's cop show parody, and for the most part, it works pretty well. There's even a disco dance-off scene — what more could you want? :-)
Overall, this isn't great art, but I laughed enough to make it worth the time. 2.5/4 stars.