Let’s be honest, no ‘Super Troopers’ fan is going to read this. They’re probably watching the movie for the 420th time right now in anticipation of the sequel. So if you are reading this then chances are you're not a ‘Super Troopers’ fan - but you want to be. I was once like you. The gasps of horror, those looks, the “I’m not mad, just disappointed” talks - for 17 years now, every time someone found out I’d never seen the movie. Well that all ended - April 11th, 2018, 8pm...ish. I sat down. I got comfy. I hit play. And then, over the following one hour and forty minutes, it blossomed before my very eyes. With each petal that unfurled, the pieces began to click together. The last 17 years flashed before my eyes - every time someone worked “meow” into a sentence and I didn’t understand why. Every time someone said “enhance” while staring at a computer screen. Every time a litre of cola was apparently funny. I understood it all, and I’ve never felt so alive. I loved it. As it turns out, my 33-year-old self loved it just as much as my 17-year-old self would have. I’m older and wiser, but my maturity level has stayed the same - and I’m not the only one.
I suppose when you’re a comedy troupe in the same vein as National Lampoons, consistency is key. These are not “as the audience grows, so do we” kind of people. And this shows in Broken Lizard’s ‘Super Troopers 2’. Despite claims over the years of grand new ideas, they’ve basically stuck to the same successful formula - warring police departments and a drug case to tie them all together. I guess if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
So Thorny (Jay Chandrasekhar), Mac (Steve Lemme), Rabbit (Erik Stolhanske), Carl (Paul Soter), Captain O’Hagan (Brian Cox, ‘Churchill’) and of course Farva (Kevin Heffernan) have been scattered in the wind since we last saw them, with only what is referenced as the “Fred Savage incident” to account for their lack of police jobs. When a border reassessment declares that a small Canadian town just across the Vermont line is actually on American soil, the Governor (Lynda Carter - look kids, it’s Wonder Woman! ...no, the other one) assembles the Avengers - I mean, the State Troopers to assist in the transition, along with a trio of Canadian Mounties. The locals and the law enforcement are less than happy with the changes, and soon it becomes a turf war between the two departments - until a drug smuggling operation forces them to change focus and discover who’s behind the contraband.
It’s not exactly the “thinking man’s comedy” but it’s comedy nonetheless, and it’s going to make someone laugh. Is that someone you?
There are more than a few throwbacks to favourite jokes and cameos from the first film here, and even the story is pretty similar, but they’re more than just a couple of quick, cheap jokes. It almost plays more like sketch comedy with their crafted scenes and sequences that bring plenty of laughs. These are very funny guys who know and trust each other implicitly and can essentially create comedic magic with impeccable timing. Okay, so the humour displayed here is only a notch above dick and fart jokes, but it’s still funny... if you're into that kind of thing - which apparently I am.
‘Super Troopers 2’ may not be the best made movie and it’s not exactly the “thinking man’s comedy”, but it’s comedy nonetheless and it’s going to make someone laugh. Is that someone you? You’d be surprised.
NB: Like a fine wine or a Marvel movie, ‘Super Troopers 2’ gets better with time, i.e. - stay during the credits, there’s a blooper reel. You’re welcome.
