Hot Pursuit (2015) *

Directed by:  Anne Fletcher

Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Sofia Vergara, Matthew Del Negro

There is nothing about Hot Pursuit that we haven't seen before in much, much better movies.    It contains no surprises and nothing to care about.    Witherspoon and Vergara are talented comedic actresses.   Witherspoon is an Oscar winner.    What about Hot Pursuit attracted them enough to be away from their loved ones for weeks and months to film it?    The mind boggles. 

A buddy comedy by definition is not original, but it can be freshened up.    I can't fault Witherspoon or Vergara.    They try mightily to breathe life into Hot Pursuit, but their dialogue consists mostly of screaming at each other in high, shrill voices.    Midnight Run (1988) covered the same ground as two guys on opposite sides of the law go on the lam from seemingly everyone.    But Midnight Run was filled with delightful dialogue and an undercurrent of morality.    Each guy thought he was ethical despite evidence to the contrary.    It is what drives them to do what they do.   Hot Pursuit has no such lofty goals.    It is only interested in throwing its heroines into one inane situation after another at a frenetic pace.    It doesn't slow down enough to develop its people or even take a breath.

Hot Pursuit stars Witherspoon as Cooper, a second-generation San Antonio police officer forced to toil away in the evidence locker after she overreacts and tases an innocent citizen.    I won't describe how or why she overreacts, but it is the only laugh in the movie.    It happens early on, so if you wish to bail on the movie after that I would not try and dissuade you.     Cooper doesn't seem to have a first name.    I looked it up in the imdb.com credits and found nothing.     Maybe she and the Cooper from Interstellar are related.  

She is ordered by her boss to accompany a federal marshal to pick up a federal witness and his wife Daniella (Vergara).    Cooper and Daniella take an instant dislike to each other, but are forced to go on the lam after the marshal and the husband are conveniently gunned down.    Daniella grieves in a Lucille Ball type of loud cry, but that is about it.    Hot Pursuit isn't concerned with such trivial matters as grief.    Hijinks ensue.    The pair of pretty ladies falls into one bad situation after another as they try to make their way to Dallas for the trial.    Not one of these situations is funny.

Hot Pursuit, like anything else, could have been funny if the writers took any pains to make it so.    It is a comedy that feels like it's on autopilot and for very good reason:  It is.    Witherspoon and Vergara will survive this, although Witherspoon has also made dreadful comedies like This Means War and Legally Blonde 2, so maybe she should get a second opinion when choosing which comedy scripts to star in.