Parents' Guide to The Other Guys

Let's get the basics out of the way: The plot of this chaotic action comedy wouldn't hold up in any court of law. That's annoying, yes, and at times even distracting; The Other Guys loses momentum in the end as it grapples with tying up the thin storyline's dangling ends (and there are many) and winds up giving the audience a tutorial on corporate fraud. Also, Anne Heche as a testy financier is woefully underused.

But all of that is a small-ish price to pay to watch Ferrell's singular and witty absurdity unspool on-screen. He milks every moment, no matter how it strains credulity and humor, and often pulls it off. He's paired perfectly with Wahlberg, whose air of danger is channeled into edgy hilarity. Some successes: A running bit about Gamble's seemingly unexplainable ability to lure attractive women like Eva Mendes (who plays his wife) and the bizarre fate that awaits a pair of celebrity cops who indulge in Bourne Identity-like action sequences, complete with explosions and gunfire and macho, canned repartee. Elsewhere, the humor can be crude: It's often misogynistic and overly sexual and revels in cruel put-downs. But there's no denying that the characters of Hoitz and Gamble are likable, and it's their chemistry that keeps things moving here.