Bending the Rules

The trailer made the movie seem funnier. But like most trailers they picked out the best scenes. So what is left. Well,the main characters make a nice duo. Not really that much interesting interaction between them though.But it wasn't bad. Jamie Kennedy was out of his game somehow. He played a far too serious character and it did not work for him. They put him in all kinds of situations.And you would expect a character to freak out or something. But his reaction to those events was so under played that it did made you think why he was in the movie in the first place.Nice is good but a buddy movie,yes, that is what it supposed to be, requires great chemistry and fireworks.Or at least something that would put both characters on edge (no pun intended). Not being familiar with wrestling I don't really know the people involved. But I thought that the main character who played Nick Blades was very decent and extremely charming. And his charm and laid back character is extremely effective in otherwise a barely eventful movie. Decent enough for a rainy Sunday.

"In one week Willy Bieber gets his just punishment because I refused to compromise." Detective Nick Blades (Edge) is on trial for corruption and Assistant DA Gold (Kennedy) is the one prosecuting him. After a mistrial occurs and Gold's car is stolen it is up to the two adversaries to work together to solve the crime that gets increasingly more sinister. Yet another movie starring a wrestler. I will have to admit that this is one of the better ones and at least they realize that it is hard to make a serious movie with one. While this boils down to just another buddy movie it is actually not that bad and kind of entertaining. There is enough comedy in this to keep you watching and even though this is fairly predictable it is still very much worth a watch. Fans of wrestler movies will love this, everyone else will enjoy this. At least I did. Overall, much better then the recent wrestler movies. I kinda liked it. I give it a B.

If you're looking for something other than a light junk food movie, you probably shouldn't be watching this one.

Im almost tired of critics who critique based on what they think the movie should be, as opposed to what it is. There's nothing in this movie that shouldn't have played out exactly the way it did.

I've heard lots of arguments about how it wasn't quite a drama, but it wasn't quite a comedy. Its not so hard to imagine that when a movie tries to play both parts equally, we end up with a watered down version of each genre. Typically you either have a drama with a few comic scenes, or a comedy with a few dramatic scenes. This film splits it right in half, whether it upsets the viewer or not.

That said, i think that this was well executed. A buddy movie about two characters doing what they do best, despite the scorn of family, associates and management. What is received is an odd couple match up, with their own problems that make them human, as well as a understanding of the idea that they have their hearts in similar places, albeit different circumstances.

If you want cream of the crop, find another flick. Otherwise watch this and enjoy it for whatever it can do. Movies are made for a reason, not always the one a viewer wants. This movie probably hardly makes my top 500. But watching it from an unbiased viewpoint, i enjoyed it, twice, for what it was trying to portray.

Bending the Rules was one of these pictures I herd only bad things about. People would give it a 3 or a 4 or something. Then I see the movie and I got to say I was entertained and that's what it was all about.

They should rename The Edge The Charisma, cause he totally has it. It's one of those things where I know him as a heel (bad guy) in the ring, but in the movie he has the nicest persona, and I love to see the range in people who I only know one side of. He's no Rock, but he's good enough to carry a small movie that needs that spark. Plus it's hilarious hearing that deep Canadian accent coming out of a guy whose suppose to be playing a New Orleans cop.

Jamie Kennedy is definitely the weaker link of the somewhat buddy cop movie thing going on here. Kennedy plays a district attorney trying to put the Edge's character in jail for being a bad cop. Then they end up having to team up to find a car that leads to a bigger crime. Kennedy is the jerk in the relationship, and he plays it too well. Even thought he's at a bad point in his life with his wife leaving him and not getting the promotion he wants, and all his colleagues hating him for not being able to bend the rules, but I never fully feel sorry for Kennedy. He never really shows his redeemable qualities. He starts a jerk and ends still being a jerk. May not be all his fault, as that is what the character is suppose to be but it does put a little more work on The Edge to be likable.

It's a good story about the Edge doing detective work going around trying to solve a crime and interacting with interesting characters in New Orleans and it's a good movie for that. Kennedy does not hurt the movie but does not help it either.

Very fun to watch, and after watching, hearing what I herd I give it a 6, but it maybe a 5.

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Bending the Rules certainly isn't going to win any awards and it probably won't win over the critics, but it's an enjoyable film that simply doesn't make the most of its potential.

Adam "Edge" Copeland was impressive in his first film. Though I'm not familiar with his in-ring persona at all, I thought he was very comfortable in his role and could easily have handled more. Perhaps a more serious movie will be in his future. Jamie Kennedy was fine though not memorable, while Jennifer Esposito and Alicia Witt were essentially wasted in small roles. Pruitt Taylor Vince and Philip Baker Hall were excellent in their limited screen time and Jessica Walter did not disappoint, though her character was a bit campier than I was hoping for. Her fans should especially enjoy the scene where no fewer than nine pictures of Walter herself adorn the background. Hall and Walter were perfectly cast and it seems like a film based around the Gold family could be quite a treat - either as a comedy or a family drama.

The biggest problem is that while there are some great funny moments, Bending the Rules is not really funny enough to be a comedy - yet it's too absurd at times for a drama and I was torn between wanting more laughs and wishing it was a serious film. The assembled cast is certainly capable of either and deserved better. I'm giving the film an 8 out of 10 not because it's a stellar film but simply because it's a fun film that doesn't drag and it exceeded my expectations. Some of the film's weakest moments are in the trailer and if the first-day turnout in Memphis is any indication, too many people have written it off based on that alone. That's unfortunate, because the film deserves a better fate. Those shut out by the limited release only have to wait a few weeks for the DVD, which I hope will fare better than the theatrical release.