(Movie Review) The Heat (2013)

The Heat turns out to be a slow burn for me

I worry about actors. I know that this feeling is not reciprocated. I know that they do not sit around at night and say “I sure hope Jonathan makes the right choices in his career”, but I do feel that way about them. Hollywood is a fickle temptress and a lot of times good actors go down bad roads for the sake of a paycheck and exposure.  Melissa McCarthy is one of the people that I worry about in that aspect. From her forgettable appearances in The Hangover Part III and Identity Thief, I hoped that this movie would be the one to get everything back on track with me being a fan of hers. While she is really not at the root of the problem I have with this movie, I do feel like her “shtick” is beginning to wear a little thin. 

Storyline: FBI agent Ashburn (Bullock) is a hardnosed agent that lives by the letter of the law and, while proving herself as an outstanding asset to the FBI, she is universally disliked by the other agents in her department. She is campaigning hard for a promotion but her superior is reluctant to give it to her because of her personality. She is assigned the case of taking down a dangerous drug lord as a final test to prove that she is ready for the promotion. But this will require her to partner up with a foul mouthed Boston PD officer named Mullins (McCarthy). Worlds collide when straight-laced meets unhinged. 

The movie is actually pretty funny. There are a lot of really great comedic moments that help both McCarthy and Bullock shine. The problem that I had with the movie is that Bullock’s character is not really entertaining until the end of the film. The way that she plays Ashburn is so grating to me and seemed to be really wasted. She has played an FBI agent before, and it was a lot funnier as Gracie Hart in Miss Congeniality (2000). So for me, it felt more like she was playing a less funny version of that character. 

As for McCarthy, she was really funny, but the role is basically the EXACT same thing she has played in every other film that she has been in. Roughneck and foul mouthed that ultimately shows a tender side. The woman can actually act, but Hollywood is happy having her play a modern version of Roseanne Barr. She could do so much better with some original material. 

Worth the admission? Despite all of my criticisms, I have to admit that I did enjoy it and think that it is worth watching. While it falters, the movie does deliver a lot of laughs. I just hope that the planned sequel will not suffer the same pitfalls that I felt parts of this movie suffered. Especially from Bullock.