Paul Blart : Mall Cop

• Genre : Action, Comedy, Crime, Family...
• Running time : 87 min.
• Director : Steve Carr
  
• Studio : Columbia Pictures
  
• Writer : Kevin James, Nick Bakay
  
• Cast : Kevin James, Keir O'Donnell, Jayma Mays, Raini Rodriguez..

If Paul Blart: Mall Cop had been made 20 years ago, it would have starred John Candy. That's a complement, by the way. Candy had a knack for playing bungling, yet good-hearted people who mainly wanted to please. He certainly specialized in playing people who tried too hard to be nice to cover up past pain. There's a lot of this in Kevin James' performance as the title character here. He's more than just a comic goofball. James turns him into a likable and surprisingly sympathetic hero that we find ourselves cheering for by the end.

Kevin James rose to fame on television starring on the sitcom, The King of Queens, and has been trying to break into movies for a while now. He's acted along side stars like Will Smith and Adam Sandler, but this is his first shot at a stand-alone starring role. Sandler is still there behind the scenes (His Happy Madison production company produced the film.), but this is James' film all the way, and he doesn't waste the opportunity. His Paul Blart is admirable in a way. He's overweight and he suffers from hypoglycemia, but he always tries to do the right thing. He's passionate about his job as a mall cop, but he'd really like to be a police officer on the street. He's taken the physical entrance exam many times, but his health problems have prevented him from finishing. He makes up for his shortcomings by being the best mall cop he can be, and by also being a good single father to his teen daughter (Raini Rodriguez), who respects him and wishes he could fall in love again. Paul has his eyes on a young woman named Amy (Jayma Mays), who also works at the mall. The first half hour or so of the film is devoted to Paul's life, and it certainly helps us get into his corner when the actual plot kicks in.



It's Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, and some high tech criminals stage a lock down and a hostage situation at the mall as they pull off their theft plan. They place motion sensors and small bombs at the entrances, so no one can get in or out. They think they've removed everyone from the building, but didn't notice Paul was in the back of the arcade playing Guitar Hero. When he emerges from the arcade, he quickly learns about the hostage situation, and discovers that both Amy and his daughter are amongst them. This kicks off the main action, where Paul must use his resources around him to out think and outrun the criminals while keeping everyone alive. I liked this aspect of the story, and how Paul Blart actually has to be clever in order to outsmart the captors. The movie is rated PG, so it's never too violent or scary for kids, which is the perfect target audience for the film. They'll like the film's gentle and goofy humor, and accompanying adults may find themselves charmed by Blart himself.

I never laughed out loud while watching this movie, but I did smile a lot, and I found myself caring more about the main character than I imagined. Let me tell you, that's more than I expected walking into a movie called Paul Blart: Mall Cop. There's plenty of sweetness during the early moments, establishing Paul's shy relationship with Amy, and the caring one he shares with his daughter. When the time comes for him to be a hero, we can cheer for him, because the movie makes him into a true underdog. He's constantly battling with his own shortcomings and health issues, and it's clever the way he keeps on finding ways to keep himself going, driven by saving the ones he loves. If I'm making the movie sound too serious, it's not. There's plenty of slapstick gags, surprisingly no bodily fluid or toilet humor to be found, and some pretty good physical comedy on display. If there's any major shortcoming to be found, it's that the movie is pretty inconsequential, and will probably be forgotten by me a few months from now.



Now there are some funny moments and it is really a pleasure to see a very NICE character in the lead, but just not enough laughs to keep the audiences coming back. Kevin James stars (and helped write) here as Paul Blart, who ended up as a mall cap because he couldn't control his blood sugar levels, and passed out during the state trooper camp. The bit here is that he takes his mall job very seriously and to no one's surprise, is a loser in love.

I found his initial physical attraction to kiosk salesperson Jayman Mays (Epic Movie) a bit ironic ... since there are so many jokes about James' weight. I can only assume that Mays' performance is so over the top bad because that's what director Steve Carr (Daddy Day Care) takes has humor. Better support work was delivered by Keir O'Donnell (very funny in Wedding Crashers), Bobby Cannavale and the very classy Shirley Knight as James' mom.

Kevin James is talented and he likes to compare himself to Jackie Gleason, Chris Farley and John Belushi - other comedy "heavy weights". After Mall Cop, Hitch, and Chuck and Larry, he is still searching for just the right movie vehicle to compliment his TV success on King of Queens.



That film received plenty of attention because as Sarah was dumping Peter, his towel slipped off, and the camera revealed full frontal nudity. Viewers questioned the purpose of the scene. Well, practically speaking, it was designed to pull those viewers into the audience, however in the story, Peter, a nice guy who's socially inept, was demonstrating to Sarah and the rest of us that he at least possesses the "equipment" Sarah desired. The paradox was that Peter, although wanting something more from a relationship, let his gonads overrule his judgment. Yeah, Peter like Paul, except during Paul's PG mall adventure, we'd anticipate no indiscreet revelation.

Okay, back to Amy. I ask your forgiveness for my commenting that she's solely interested in what's below a man's waist and since Paul is overall bigger, she imagines his equipment is bigger. While I'm sure the actress herself is a wonderful human being, the script clearly shafts her character.

It gets worse. The movie belatedly arrives at the major interaction developed in the previews, namely, the mall taken over by a gang, and Paul is trapped inside forced to defend good over evil. Incredibly, we witness a plot deviation where Paul has an escape route and is ordered to evacuate with everyone else. He proceeds to the parking lot, sees Amy's car, and figures she's still inside. He returns to the mall foolhardily to try rescuing her and while he's there, he might as well rescue the other hostages. So much for dedication to one's job and serving the public.



Consequently, at this point, the film lost what little credibility it had retained. In addition, his capture of the villains was not remotely believable or even entertaining. Thankfully, there was a humorous scene straight out of the previews, where Paul thinks he's gravely injured and slowly rolls up his sleeve, disclosing only a minuscule scratch to which he affixes a children's bandage.

When the siege ends, he kisses his beloved, and admittedly it's cute. I mean, I had attended the showing because I liked Paul from the previews, and despite my disappointment, maybe I was having second thoughts. Also I was munching a candy bar 'cause my blood sugar was low and I was getting foggy and sentimental.

The credits began to roll, and to my delight, included the only images making me burst out laughing! Paul and Amy are being married! I then fantasied that they had saved themselves for their wedding night. Amy will finally discover if she was correct about Paul's size! Perhaps the DVD will include an unrated version where we can all look on. In this scenario, I'd bet Paul Blart: Mall Cop outshines Forgetting Sarah Marshall!

My Rating

Paul Blart : Mall Cop : 5.5/10