The Age of Commercialism

Captivating movie !

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

"Showtime" is actually an enjoyable action comedy, but take it for what it is, because it is not a stroke of genius masterpiece in cinema history.The story is about two police men (De Niro and Murphy) who are forced together on a reality TV show about policemen in the line of duty, being followed around by a film crew as they solve cases and dish out justice to the criminals.The dialogue is fairly average for an Eddie Murphy movie, so if you enjoy his movies, then you will certainly enjoy "Showtime" as well.What works in the movie is the chemistry between Robert De Niro and Eddie Murphy as the two very different policemen coming from two very different aspects in life."Showtime" is the type of movie that you will watch, then shelf it for a long, long period, and then perhaps do take it out once again a couple of years down the line. It is right up the likes such as "Lethal Weapon".

Not a great buddy-movie. Not a great comedy. Maybe the average both yet with some very good action. The thing to complain about, after the unoriginality of the script, is the no-interplay between the 2 leads. (Robert De Niro) and (Eddie Murphy) weren't so good together. (De Niro) was kind of spoofing his seriousness in other movies. (Murphy) was watching (De Niro) more than doing his stuff creatively. They were great in just one scene, the frank conversation in the car, now I think that this scene was totally something of their improvisation! Another point, (De Niro) was 59 and (Murphy) was 41. True that the 20 years difference worked well but I think that Murphy's character as young actor who wants desperately to be a star is just younger than him. However (Showtime) isn't a bad experience at all. Maybe a little disappointing compared to the names of its stars. Its action compensates for the less good rest anyway. And it's only where you got the chance to hear (William Shatner) says about (De Niro) "This guy is the worst actor I've ever seen !". It's, in the best analyzing, simple fun to entertain for an hour and a half. Despite its reputation as a flop (Budget $85 million. Gross $37 million !) you maybe appreciate it more when you know that this, as it is, was the best buddy-action or comedy for its year beating movies like (Men in Black II), (I Spy) for Murphy, and (Analyze That) for De Niro too.

'Showtime' didn't work for me much during the first viewing but I got a chance to watch it for the second time and enjoyed it more. The film toys with the interesting idea of a cop reality show, comparing how police life really is to how it's portrayed on screen but the over the top action sequences which are also very long, goes against this very concept. 'Showtime' falls in its own trap but it did have potential to be a better film given the concept. It is the comedic track between Murphy and De Niro that stands out. The two actors, along with Rene Russo, somewhat make up for the deficiency of this movie and during the second viewing I was able to pay more attention to this rather than the storyline which is weak. I would like to see the two work together again, with a better script.

I've read a lot of reviews about Showtime on IMDb and many seem to miss the mark. I've noticed a lot of reviewers calling this the typical "buddy" film. De Niro is in no way Murphy's buddy throughout most of this movie. In fact, part of the comedy of this film is De Niro's reluctance to be friends with anybody.Murphy really shines in this one. He is back at doing what he does best, acting like a complete ham. He is a cop who wants so much to be an actor and enjoys being in the reality show. De Niro is perfect as the straight man who thinks the entire thing is stupid. I thought the two of them had great chemistry and were a perfect casting choice. Rene Russo is also great as the TV producer. Of course, she loves everything Murphy does and tries so hard (along with Murhpy) to get DeNiro going too.A lot of reviewers have touched on the hilarious scene with William Shatner, reprising his role as TJ Hooker to train Murhpy & De Niro how to "act" like cops. But, my favorite scene involves Murphy in the "confessional" hoping he could get a Wesly Snipes-Like cop to team up with instead of De Niro. Man, that was hilarious! Comedies often depend on your personal tastes. Sure you could poke holes in the plot, most often you can with a comedy. I was psyched to see the pairing of Murphy and De Niro...I think it brought out the best in Murphy, which was nice to see him at the top of his game again. I can only imagine it was a great honor for Murphy to be paired with the great De Niro. Rating 8 of 10 stars.