The Other Guys

Gamble (William Ferrell) and Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg) play two desk bound cops who seem destined to a life of pencil pushing and office mockery. Until, that is, they get caught up in the investigation of an elaborate Ponzi scheme.

The financial chicanery has been perpetrated by David Ershon (Steve Coogan), a slimy banker whose financial tentacles seem to stretch into the most unexpected of places.

Hilarity ensues as the cops pick apart the puzzle and ultimately become the heroes in traditional Hollywood fashion. Walhberg plays it relatively straight, proving a useful foil for Ferrell's usual wackiness.

Co-written by Adam Mckay, this got middling reviews on its release, but Exploding Helicopter found it a pretty funny movie.

Verdict

A cinematic helicopter explosive first! Death by Titleist. The helicopter is pelted by golf balls from a nearby driving range until the pilot loses control and tailspins into a nearby bridge. Pretty realistic denouement (such are the quality of modern effects it is hard to tell computer generated explosions from real ones) with a hearty and satisfying explosion.

Number of Helicopters

1

Relevance to Plot

Pretty tenuous. There seems to be a shadowy organization that is backing Coogan’s financial impropriety but would they be able to fly helicopter gunship around a post 9-11 New York City without any comeback?

This is a comedy so we will let them off.

Artistic merit

For a few seconds the viewer might think that the helicopter might just make it out unscathed. However it slowly spirals and as metal grinds into concrete we get the pay-off as the whirlybird bursts into a frame-filling fireball. 

Exploding Helicopter Innovation

In a mature niche genre it is nice to know that filmmakers are still taking the time to think of new ways to kill a helicopter. Where else are you going to see a helicopter being taken out by a 3 wood?

Positives

Er..have you not been reading? Helipcopter gets killed by golf balls.

Negatives

None whatsoever. It has taken me almost 2 years to watch a film with an exploding helicopter in it and thus it was a deeply gratifying moment.

Review by: Neon Messiah