Wacky crew back in ‘Super Troopers 2’
Seventeen years after the release of “Super Troopers,” a comedy written by and starring members of New York City comedy troupe Broken Lizard, comes “Super Troopers 2.” Why did it take so long?
Jay Chandrasekhar (“Beerfest”) once again serves as director, cowriter and plays the righteously mustachioed, ethnically distinct, but unidentified Thorny. Also back are Steve Lemme as Mac aka the miniBurt Reynolds, Erik Stolhanske as middleaged “rookie” Rabbit, Paul Soter as Foster, Brian Cox as apoplectic Capt. O’Hagan and standout Kevin Heffernan as supervulgarian Farva.
Ever since the (fictional) death of reallife actor Fred Savage on a ride along with the Vermont State Troopers, the men have been fired from the force and working unhappily and unfulfilled in construction with a manager who just can’t get over how funny the word “caulk” is. One of the extroopers even dreams of Vermont troopers played by Damon Wayans Jr. and Seann William Scott in opening scenes involving a highway chase and shootout with a rock band on a bus.
As it turns out, the border between the U.S. and Canada has to be revised, making more room for Vermont and giving the men a second chance at being Vermont State Troopers. But that makes it necessary for them to convince a town full of hardcore Canucks that they are the right law enforcement team for them and the change puts several unhappy Canadian Mounties out of work. The town’s mayor is a former hockey player, of course, named Guy LeFranc (Rob Lowe) and is welcoming.
The mayor is also the owner of the local brothel/ strip club. Also part of the welcoming party is FrenchCanadian beauty Genevieve Aubois (Emmanuelle Chriqui, who was born in Montreal, so I assume her terrible FrenchCanadian accent is a joke). The Mounties are so unhappy they lure a grizzly bear into the Vermont troopers’ new headquarters at about the same time that Rabbit is being handcuffed to a bench to be hazed by his fellow troopers. The plot will involve smuggling counterfeit Canadian iPhones known as ayPhones and drugs, including female sexual enhancers that Thorny gets addicted to. Onetime Wonder Woman Lynda Carter is back as Gov. Jessman. Danny DeVito gets what amounts to an homage in one verbal exchange. Will Sasso is a hoot as one of the unhappy Mounties.
Men behaving like idiots is the source of the comedy here, and anyone familiar with the antics of The Three Stooges or Abbott and Costello is going to enjoy “Super Troopers 2.” Heffernan especially channels the spirit of the Stooges’ late, great Curly Howard.