Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
CHIPS
Cert 15 Running time 100mins ★
The 1980s’ TV show about motorbike cops has been remodelled as a comedy. And the result is a car crash.
Although it doesn’t take itself seriously, it isn’t clever enough to mock its own stupidity or the ridiculousness of the old shows. Instead it delivers a wreck of vehicle porn, extreme sport fetish and limp jokes. With added explosions.
An off-the-shelf plot sees an undercover FBI agent investigating corruption in the California Highway Patrol police department.
Michael Peña plays sex-obsessed agent Frank Poncherello who is teamed up with over-eager new recruit Jon Baker.
He’s played by Dax Shepard, who is also the writer, director and producer.
So we all know who to blame. He even finds a bimbo role for his wife. Which is nice of him. This is action movie road kill stuck in a comedy cul de sac.
CHIPS is remarkable only for its leering sexism and woeful inability to make you laugh.