<p>Hot Pursuit <br />English (A) ¬<br />Director: Anne Fletcher<br />Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Sofia Vergara<br /><br /></p>.<p>Here’s a storyline as hackneyed as Hollywood gets: Socially incompatible and physically diverse cop-and-fugitive/ witness drama, with the differences played up. Only this time, the gender of the two protagonists is added to the mix, but to little effect. <br /><br />Director Anne Fletcher (“Step Up”, “27 Dresses”, “The Proposal” and “The Guilt Trip”) had two good actors to work with, and each was given a role that would play up their strengths. People from a generation or so ago still swoon over the southern charm of Reese Witherspoon's Melanie Carmichael/ Smooter from “Sweet Home Alabama”, while Sofia Vergara transcends generational boundaries to appeal to fans as Gloria, the Latina wife of a much older man on multi-Emmy-winning sitcom “Modern Family”.<br /><br />However, both seem a shadow of these roles — Witherspoon more so — as extremely-by-the-book cop Rose Cooper trying to protect Daniella Rive, the widow of a man slated to testify against and bring down a notorious drug lord. <br /><br />Witherspoon tries to oscillate between bubbly and neurotic as a law-enforcement officer, but the range is badly mangled. Vergara is somewhat of a saving grace in an otherwise disappointing film, but the “loco chica” personality is only just there, and that too not all the time. <br /><br />Add to that a story so boring, predictable and illogical that it puts Indian potboilers to shame, and you know why barely 85 minutes of “Hot Pursuit” seem longer than a William Wyler or Ashutosh Gowarikar epic. Also, let's not get started on the verbal and visual imageries that are passed of as jokes: They range from as painful as a root canal to as cheesier than some of the most calorific pizzas in the world. <br /><br />In the end, “Hot Pursuit” is never a thing to pursue, let alone hotly so. It is a stale tale, best reserved for the worst of the “chick flick” marathons.</p>
<p>Hot Pursuit <br />English (A) ¬<br />Director: Anne Fletcher<br />Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Sofia Vergara<br /><br /></p>.<p>Here’s a storyline as hackneyed as Hollywood gets: Socially incompatible and physically diverse cop-and-fugitive/ witness drama, with the differences played up. Only this time, the gender of the two protagonists is added to the mix, but to little effect. <br /><br />Director Anne Fletcher (“Step Up”, “27 Dresses”, “The Proposal” and “The Guilt Trip”) had two good actors to work with, and each was given a role that would play up their strengths. People from a generation or so ago still swoon over the southern charm of Reese Witherspoon's Melanie Carmichael/ Smooter from “Sweet Home Alabama”, while Sofia Vergara transcends generational boundaries to appeal to fans as Gloria, the Latina wife of a much older man on multi-Emmy-winning sitcom “Modern Family”.<br /><br />However, both seem a shadow of these roles — Witherspoon more so — as extremely-by-the-book cop Rose Cooper trying to protect Daniella Rive, the widow of a man slated to testify against and bring down a notorious drug lord. <br /><br />Witherspoon tries to oscillate between bubbly and neurotic as a law-enforcement officer, but the range is badly mangled. Vergara is somewhat of a saving grace in an otherwise disappointing film, but the “loco chica” personality is only just there, and that too not all the time. <br /><br />Add to that a story so boring, predictable and illogical that it puts Indian potboilers to shame, and you know why barely 85 minutes of “Hot Pursuit” seem longer than a William Wyler or Ashutosh Gowarikar epic. Also, let's not get started on the verbal and visual imageries that are passed of as jokes: They range from as painful as a root canal to as cheesier than some of the most calorific pizzas in the world. <br /><br />In the end, “Hot Pursuit” is never a thing to pursue, let alone hotly so. It is a stale tale, best reserved for the worst of the “chick flick” marathons.</p>
