Central Intelligence - Not even nearly as bad as I feared

Despite being a die-hard fan of Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, I didn't bother watching 'Central Intelligence' in the cinema.  I just didn't like the look of it.  It just came across as yet another tired spin on the 'mismatched buddy-cop' genre and probably all the best jokes were the ones featured in the trailer.  However, after watching it, I'm actually quite surprised at how good it was.  Actually, it is just another example of a 'mismatched buddy-cop' film, but, seeing as it had laughs and a high-entertainment factor, who cares?  It was fun!

The film opens twenty years ago during a High School finishing event where star quarterback (Kevin Hart) helps fat loser (Dwayne Johnson - courtesy of either one hell of a 'fat suit' or CGI effects) during some extreme public humiliation.  Skip forward to present day and The Rock is now a super CIA agent and Kevin Hart works with spreadsheets.  However, the pair meet up and inadvertently have to stop a major conspiracy from doing those dastardly things which will probably topple governments... or something.  Do you care?  Like I say... it's just fun.

So, take one generic genre, add one generic plot and you may not be left with much.  However, the charisma of the two leads elevates it to a great time if you're into some light-hearted entertainment and you're not expecting much.  The jokes land and you won't care about the story much, as there's plenty of over-the-top action to allow Johnson to do what he does best.

A couple of unexpected faces show up (unless they're featured in the trailer, or marketing in general - however, if you're like me and didn't know too much about the film - their inclusion was unexpected).  And, as a massive fan of 'Breaking Bad' I would have liked their representative to have been in it for little more than just his extended cameo.

There's not that much more to say about 'Central Intelligence.' If you're looking for something funny, easy-going and you're a fan of either/both Dwayne Johnson or Kevin Hart then you're going to have a good time here.  On the other hand, if you're in the mood for something deep, meaningful and will blow your mind for its originality then you won't find any of that here.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that