Mickster Movie Review - "The Heat" (2013) **

     I guess this was my weekend to pick films that are A.) Comedies  B.) Are pretty predictable C.) Have a few laugh-out-loud scenes  D.) Have language that make a sailor blush...You could take my previous review of We're The Millers, change the plot, and the rest of the review would fit almost identically. The Heat is directed by Paul Feig and stars Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. Feig and McCarthy previously worked together on Bridesmaids, a film I enjoyed much more than this one. Bullock is FBI agent Ashburn who is great at her job but her cockiness has earned her no friends in the department. Her colleagues understand perfectly why she is single. She is up for a promotion but due to her uptight behavior which has alienated her, she is not given the job right away. She is sent on a special assignment to Boston to track down an elusive drug kingpin, named Larsen. If she can solve this case, her chance at the promotion will be much higher. What awaits her in Boston though is more than she can handle, and that comes in the form of foul-mouthed and loud street cop Mullins (McCarthy), who is not happy to see a fed running her case now. The two female officers find their styles clashing, and their heads butting, until they realize they must work together to solve the case.

     McCarthy was new to me when she showed up in Bridesmaids, a role which earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination, and if I had a vote she would have been my choice for the award. She is definitely the funniest part of this movie as well, but it just doesn't work nearly as much. When I say she is foul, I mean FOUL. In my review of We're The Millers, I got on a soapbox about the use of F-bombs in movies when it wasn't necessary. Here it makes a little more sense with her being a Boston cop, but my gosh is it really necessary to have so much of it. She uses the F-word like I use the word "the". It just takes away from things I feel. Don't get rid of it altogether, but cut back. It's just not necessary. Bullock is my early choice this year for Best Actress, not for this, but for her amazing performance in Gravity. I've never been a huge fan of her comedies, but almost always enjoy her in dramatic roles. This performance doesn't change that. Just like We're The Millers, there are some good laughs here but the story is pretty predictable and you really don't care about any of the secondary characters. It's just an average film. If you are fan of McCarthy or Bullock, give it a shot, if not, you can skip it.

Mickster