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#Post#: 14948--------------------------------------------------
The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: December 22, 2012, 12:25 pm
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I went with what is the industry known term of Buddy Cop.
Everyone immediately knows what type of movie this is. But I
also wanted to touch on other types of "partnerships" that use
basically the same cliched scenes. Lethal Weapon and Rush Hour
are prime Examples of the Buddy Cop genre. But other movies that
aren't necessarily 'Action' type movies also use the paradigm as
well such as Training Day and Nothing To Lose.
So, a quick rundown of partnerships:
Good Cop / Crazy Cop - This in a nutshell is Lethal Weapon and
Rush Hour. The Good Cop is a by-the-books Cop that doesn't
really stick his neck out. The Crazy Cop is usually reckless and
dangerous to the point of disregarding all laws and rules in
said book.
Good Cop / Dirty Cop - Training Day uses this to full effect.
The Good Cop also is a by-the-books Cop that is tested with
regards to going over to the 'dark side' by the Dirty Cop. They
usually are at opposite ends by the end of the movie with Good
Cop prevailing.
Professional Thief / Novice Thief - The same rules above apply
here. But what makes Nothing To Lose succeed is that they give
the "bad guy" a reason for breaking the law. To support his
family. I think had they made him a straight up unlikable
character, the movie and the plot wouldn't work as it does. It
would turn out to follow the same path of Good Cop / Dirty Cop.
So, what other cliched scenes can you find in common among these
and other Buddy Cop movies?
#Post#: 15019--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: December 25, 2012, 8:53 am
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Dopplelanger Team - Whether they are Cops or Criminals, there
always seems to be a 'mirror' team to confront the main team.
They look, sound and act like them and they usually consider
themselves to be the far more superior team. But in reality they
are clueless.
#Post#: 15020--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Neumatic Date: December 25, 2012, 10:54 am
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Throw us some examples of the mirror team.
I do see that starting to pop up in movies like "The Other
Guys," where there's the cool team the movie SHOULD be about,
then you cut to these comedic actors who wind up actually
solving the crime in the worst possible ways.
Of course, no matter who you follow, they'll have to bend and
break a few rules to get things done. Might get them in trouble
with the chief or the top brass or the mayor's office, but
thankfully they've still got an off-beat tech buddy who noticed
something nobody else in the world noticed. And even if they
have to turn in their badges, that just means they'll solve the
case in the next thirty minutes.
Of course, if one of the main actors gets a new girlfriend
(they're both always straight, I might add), she'll be in
jeopardy in the climax.
#Post#: 15024--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: December 25, 2012, 11:13 am
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[quote author=Neumatic link=topic=1594.msg15020#msg15020
date=1356454459]
Throw us some examples of the mirror team.
[/quote]
They are in more movies than you think. Most recently in movies
I just watched, they can be found in Starksy & Hutch
HTML http://pennycan.createaforum.com/dvd's-blu-rays/starsky-hutch-(2004)/msg14860/#msg14860<br
/>as well as Nothing To Lose
HTML http://pennycan.createaforum.com/dvd's-blu-rays/nothing-to-lose-(1997)/msg15021/#msg15021
#Post#: 15472--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Neumatic Date: January 5, 2013, 9:44 am
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How many false leads actually show up in these flicks? Because
with the limited 3-act structure and the desire to cut for time,
the line of action in these types of flicks is very
straightforward, there's no wasted time so everything informs
the end which is nice and streamlined but it's not realistic,
but at the same time audiences hate useless information, so what
do you do?
#Post#: 15473--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: January 5, 2013, 9:56 am
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Off the top of my head, I can't recall ever getting any kind of
'Red Herring' in a Buddy Cop movie. As you point out the genre
itself really isn't about "mystery" and more about how the two
interact with each other. But I will say I do remember a couple
of instances where the "dumbest" one of the two actually figures
it all out by the end. I need to figure out what movies I've
seen that in though. Need my coffee.............
#Post#: 15947--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: January 18, 2013, 9:08 pm
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It just hit me a few seconds ago that one of the best Duo Genres
actually combines the Buddy with Criminal. I am of course
speaking of the kick ass Midnight Run. I have to re-watch this
ASAP!
#Post#: 15952--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Neumatic Date: January 18, 2013, 11:26 pm
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And that's more mission directive than anything else, got to get
from point a to point b and everyone else tries to stop them.
#Post#: 15954--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Chiprocks1 Date: January 18, 2013, 11:30 pm
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The idea for this genre is really about trying to come up with
unique pairings that work. I think it's more about their
relationship and everything that comes after is secondary.
#Post#: 15959--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Buddy Cop / Criminal Genre Cliche Thread
By: Neumatic Date: January 19, 2013, 12:30 am
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I like that 21 Jump Street played with that by making them
mismatched, then become friends BEFORE becoming partners in the
police force. Saved us a nice bit of time.
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