Bon Cop, Bad Cop

Plot synopsis:
When a body is found hanging on top of the sign demarcating the Ontario-Quebec border, police officers from both Canadian provinces must join forces to solve the murder. David Bouchard (Patrick Huard) is a rule-bending, francophone detective for the Sûreté du Québec, while Martin Ward (Colm Feore) is a by-the-book anglophone Ontario Provincial Police detective. The bilingual detectives must resolve their professional and cultural differences as well as their bigotry and prejudices.
The body is identified as Benoit Brisset, a hockey executive. The clues lead the pair to Luc Therrien (Sylvain Marcel) at a roadside bar. After a fight in the bar, they imprison him in the trunk of Bouchard's car. Bouchard has promised to watch his daughter's ballet recital, so he drives to the recital and parks the car in front with Therrien still locked in the trunk. When they emerge, they find the car being towed from the no-parking zone, and as they try to chase down the truck driver, the car explodes.
With their prime witness dead, they decide to search Therrien's house where they find a large marijuana grow-op in the basement. They also discover another body, a former hockey team owner. A laser tripwire is activated by Bouchard, which sets the house on fire, destroying the house and causing the two cops to get high on the fumes of the burning marijuana. When they are disciplined by Bouchard's police chief shortly afterwards, he angrily removes them from the case after they start laughing hysterically because they're still high.
The next victim is discovered in Toronto. They realize that the killer has a pattern of tattooing his victims, with each tattoo providing a clue to the next murder victim. Each murder is in some way connected to major league hockey. (The film uses thinly disguised parodies of National Hockey League teams, owners and players, however, rather than the real league). The pair anticipate the next victim, but he goes missing before they reach him. Ward and Bouchard appear on a hockey broadcast to warn people in the hockey community to be vigilant. The "Tattoo Killer" calls in to the show and threatens the two police officers, causing a brawl between them and the anchor (played by Rick Mercer) when they attempt to hang up.
Ward is attacked in his home by a masked assailant whom he discovers is Therrien. Meanwhile, Bouchard has sex with Ward's sister.
The "Tattoo Killer" kidnaps Bouchard's daughter, leading to the final confrontation with the two policemen. It is ultimately revealed that the murders are being committed by a bilingual portly hockey fan (Luc Therrien), as previously mentioned, under the direction and unequal partnership of a sadistic, psychopathic, sociopathic, fan of the notion of the game of hockey as a Canadian nationalistic symbol that he feels is being permanently corrupted by attempts to move ownership of Canadian teams to venture capitalist groups in the United States. He is therefore having Therrien commit the murders along with him (with the tattoos as a signature), as revenge against the hockey league for desecrating the game by moving Canadian teams such as the "Quebec Fleur de Lys" to the United States. They try to reason with him that hockey is just a game, but this only angers him. Ward distracts the man while Bouchard unties his daughter. After a fight, the killer is blown up by one of his own explosives. During the credits, a news report is shown, revealing that the hockey teams will not be moved.

Tags: murder

Review:
Being bilingual, I can say I may have laughed twice as hard as anyone else in the theater; However, this half-English half-french movie is sure to please anyone regardless of maternal language thanks to perfect subtitles which only add to the amazingness of the film.Highly recommended..
When the body of the executive of hockey Benoir Brisset is found on the billboard of the border of Quebec and Ontario, the jurisdiction of the crime is shared between the two police forces and detectives David Bouchard (Patrick Huard) from Montreal and Martin Ward (Colm Feore) from Toronto are assigned to work together.
With totally different styles, attitudes and languages, the reckless David and the ethical Martin join force to disclose the identity of the Tattoo Killer, a deranged serial-killer that is killing managers of hockey."Bon Cop Bad Cop" is a sort of parody to "Lethal Weapon", exploring the rivalry in Canada between Quebec and Ontario and the passion of Canadians for hockey.
The film is a hilarious police story, using the common clichés of two different cops that become partners but in very funny situations.
I liked this film a lot, but I believe it is funnier for Canadians and fans of hockey.
In fact, there is an entire tutorial on swearing in french given by Bouchard fairly early on in the film which some might find educational.There are some hilarious digs at hockey culture: the entire character of Harry Buttman being the most obvious; but it never descends into forced jokes or "strategic" set-ups a la Will Ferrell.Though it is a very Quebec film, it deserves a wide audience..
It's a shame it isn't show as widely outside of the province of Quebec, I'm sure a whole lot of English Canadians can get a good laugh out of it.
Despite being based on a somewhat overdone format -- that of two totally opposed policemen forced to team up to resolve a crime -- "Bon Cop, Bad Cop" still manages to come up with a quite entertaining story line, and all that was done with a total budget that would not even pay one half of some of Hollywood superstars.
The movie is not without fault; the Bad Cop character (Patrick Huard) is essentially overdone.
The scenes featuring the hyper active medical examiner (Louis-Jose Houde) are brilliant (and the actor is not really acting, that is how he is in real life!) or when the Quebec policeman is teaching how to curse "en Quebecois" to his Ontario counterpart, helped along the line by the criminal he his beating and stuffing in his car trunk, are worth the prince of admission.
Despite all the clichés that are expected of this format, the movie comes up like a most entertaining one, and no doubt this well served recipe will lead to a "Bon Cop, Bad Cop 2"..
This movie tries to use the gimmick of Canada's French/English rivalry as a launching point for some sick humor in the approximate vein of say, the Police Academy series.
What I saw is more like a B action movie, trying to be humorous at times but not managing to decide whether it takes itself seriously or not.
This got green-lit in the first place???"Bon Cop Bad Cop" may have sounded like a good idea on paper, with a somewhat witty premise: a murder on the Quebec-Ontario border results in cross-cultural hilarity and non-stop action.
It's supposed to be a comedy but it rarely makes any sort of joke beyond some childish slapstick or ironic twist (e.g. this character only swears in french, but at then end he swears in English).It's like the people who made this agreed on an idea, but never agreed on what kind of film it was supposed to be.
I was expecting a deeper perspective on the whole Quebec/Ontario situation and Canadian culture in general but all you get is over the top stereotypical characters and really lame jokes.Canadians are so desperate for bilingualism and the whole Quebec in Canada thing to succeed they will laud even the most pathetic of movies that has a semblance of us "all just getting along"It seems we're doomed from getting a successful bilingual commercial movie that happens not to suck..
I am laughing now just thinking about the first scene.I smell sequel with many more to follow....this is a mega hit that I honestly believe all will "get" and understand...even those that don't like hockey and are not Canucks, okay non Canucks will miss a few references...only in Canada!!.
Any group that defines itself by who it hates or who it decides it's better than, doesn't have much going for it.The movie "Bon Cop, Bad Cop" plays this hostility towards Ontarians to the hilt, in a way that is totally foreign to me, as a Torontonian.
...Which is a shame, because it was really trying to be a good movie, otherwise.If this Ontario/Toronto/English hatred is really an issue for some Canadians, they really need to get over it.
This film proves one thing only: that Canadians are equally as capable of making hackneyed, clichéd "buddy cop" movies as Hollywood is.
If there were a "Mad Lib" template of "plug in the cliché" for cop movies, the result would be this film.For that reason, I was bored, I checked my watch, I rolled my eyes more times than I can count.
I would only ask, if "Rush Hour 2" looks professional, does that make it a good movie?If you've seen "48 Hours," "Lethal Weapon," "Bad Boys," or any of the other endless trite by-the- numbers rehashes of the formula, then you've already seen "Bon Cop, Bad Cop." Unless you're interested in Canada's opinion of hockey in America, there's nothing to see here..
The concept would have been great if 15 minutes into the film the Ontario Cop, Colm Fiore character did not revert to the French language and adapt to the French culture.
And I'm no stranger to Feore's work either, living in the Capital region, I've come to watch more English television shows/movies than french ones.
Even if David Bouchard (Huard's character) is a bit Americanized, he's not that unpleasant.Overall a great movie, truly Canadian, laugh out loud funny..
A fun cop movie,fast paced and laced with delicious humor highlighting the differences and stereotypes about Englisha nd French Canada!.
It moves slickly,and show cases both Quebec and Toronto,while at the same time making light hearted fun at that most Canadian of sports- hockey!There is a plethora of "bad" language and some light hearted sex scenes- extremely funny too- which may make it unsuitable for a general audience- but it is fun,memorable,and a real kick!
I think this crime plot was probably in movies in the 1960s.But regardless of the bad core surrounded by a good candy coating, it shows that Canadian cinema can stand up with the best and worst of what Hollywood has to offer, even if it both stands up and falls down in the same movie.
Montreal, the OPP, the Quebec Police, hockey)...there's even an entire scene about French swearing which is perhaps one of the funniest parts of the film.
Canadian cinema has struggled for so long to find an identity and create something that is unique and that can be appreciated world-wide but this movie would be sadly lost on anybody who lives outside of Canada and, in some cases, outside of Quebec.
A Canadian film about the relationship between a man from Ontario and a man from Quebec but the subtitles are in American English.
Other than that, its an okay film but knowledge of Canadian hockey and the Ontario/Quebec relationship will make this movie easier to understand.
That said, it was a VERY Canadian film with excellent acting, dialogue and Canuck-specific cultural references.If you haven't already, watch it and have a good time..
Just like The Dark Hours, another great Canadian movie of which I had little to expect, Bon Cop Bad Cop manages to deliver great 2 hours of entertainment.
Yes, the storyline may sound cheesy to a Canadian like myself, you got too much hockey involved, but it's integral to the stereotype and the fun effect of the movie and especially for international audience.
While Bon Cop Bad Cop mines deeply from existing cop-buddy flicks of the past (in particular, the Lethal Weapon series), the Canadianization of having the cops come from Ontario (straigh-laced Martin Ward (Colm Feore)) and Quebec (rebel David Bouchard (Patrick Huard)) adds a very interesting dash of difference to the whole affair.
It really helps out matters that the leads share a great chemistry on-screen, and both can really act.Feore is a popular actor in English Canada, while Huard (who shares writing and producing credits) is perhaps the most popular actor in Quebec.
Put the two of them together with a decent budget, a good script and taut direction and you have a real winner of a movie.The story starts off with a dead body found draped over the sign at the Ontario-Quebec border, forcing the two mis-matched cops to work together.
Experienced Quebec filmmaker Eric Canuel directs with a tautness that borders on French cinema and keeps the action moving quickly.Look especially for the performances of Pierre Lebeau as Captain Le Boeuf and Rick Mercer as the Don Cherry-like Tom Berry (the names comprise a wonderful set of jokes all on their own).
An Ontarian cop and a Quebec cop forced to work together could only lead to this, right?Stereotypes Quebeckers have of English Canadians are also exploited.
The car chases, the bad guys, the plot, everything is always the same, right down to the characters...except this time, the characters are clever and the plot, although not unique, is intelligent and honest (a cop, crying?) If you're french, or understand the rift between Quebec and Ontario even a little bit, this film will entice you into laughter as nothing has ever before.
The French-English bantering between the two cops which is the premise of the entire movie is funny - for about five minutes!
The mixing of French and English works quite well and I'd like to see it tried again in a quality movie.
But Bon Cop Bad Cop tries to be American with a twist (which means French/English speaking characters, small budget, a poor script and of course a hockey theme!) That's just not good enough.
The Canadian movie Water won a Academy award nomination for best foreign film this year and this is hopefully signs of better things to come in the future!.
Great, funny, buddy movie!Excellent action, funny jokes, off-beat, fresh morbid humor (hang around after the first shocker - it gets funnier but no grosser).The 2 leads are perfectly matched, & their characters develop to show the depth of the values they share.
And the twist in this film is that the superficial differences that keep the dialogue tense and quick underscore that they both just want the same thing - their kids, a job & someone to smile at.I loved the hockey angle, and while I'm sure many of the Canadian jokes sailed right over my American head, the twisted, subtle and clever patter smoothed that right over.
A Canadian Hockey Fan's Buddy Cop Movie lot's of Quebec vs Ontario vs America.
If you like Quebec french you are going to get a bunch and even the unique Quebec style of swearing is explained to an extent.This is a buddy cop movie of the unlikely partner with the different style but they picked a very rich culture to play with so there' plenty of material.Favorite line: "YOU ARE OFF THE SUITCASE!!".
entertaining from the get-go with that Canadian sense of humor that over the years has powered stars like Martin Short(Canadian) John Candy(Canadian) Dan Ackroyd(Canadian) Jim Carey(Canadian)etc.plus an originality that is as refreshing as it is funny.the acting is superb and the movie flows between French and English in a very natural and easy to understand way for everyone.
the cop/buddy flick is nothing new, but this movie brought a couple of new twists to the genre, and colm feore and patrick huard make a great odd couple - the hooligan with the muscle car and the "gay accountant." the laughs started right at the beginning, and the effects looked great - i was a-feared that it would have some of the usual Canadian poor-production values and embarrassing dialogue that we seem to suffer too often, but no!
It's a buddy cop movie with some distinctly Canadian humour that's all about hockey.
I thought at first it was going to suck (most Canadians movies have let me down...a lot), but it's completely fast paced after the first 5 minutes and the cultural jokes were fantastic!
Lots of good bilingual dialogue which came fast and furious and some interesting bit parts - the Quebecois coroner being one (neither the French nor the English could follow what he had to say).The plot follows the old cops and robbers clichés, but was made on a virtual dime compared to others of its type.There was much to like - the two main characters are fully developed and find more in common with each other as the story moves along.
Canada's two solitudes meet when 'by-the-book' English Toronto cop (Colm Feore) and 'loose cannon' French Montreal cop (Patrick Huard) are assigned to investigate a border-straddling (literally) murder.
Bon Cop, Bad Cop (2006) This is a Canadian action comedy about two police officers - one from Ontario and one from Quebec, who reluctantly join forces to solve a murder.
It shows that they wanted to make another funny cameo character like Louis-José Houde in the 1rst film, but that one was badly handled and her part felt to much forced and unfunny.But, still a good movie!
Bon Cop/Bad Cop: What makes a good Canadian movie?.
It has a lot of good elements that make it fun to watch but it ultimately falls short of any serious message except that Canadian filmmakers don't have to act like Canadian filmmakers.Bon Cop/Bad Cop: What makes a good Canadian movie?
The two officers couldn't be more different and the movie certainly plays with a lot of clichés, but because of the two brilliant actors, there are many funny elements in the movie and the viewers learn really a lot about the French-Canadian culture and style, but also about Ontario's way of life and the conflicts and main differences between the two states.
I've seen this film maybe five times and I'm still liking it and laughing a lot even though it's difficult to make me laugh and though I'm more into other movie genres.
And still by the way, it's is really great to see actors, directors and musicians from Ontario and Quebec collaborate and ridicules the clichés of each other's culture to bring those two twisted nations - French and English Canadians - closer to each other.
Imagine this scenario: an English Canadian movie producer, impressed by the strong box office showings of Quebec films like C.R.A.Z.Y., decides to see if he can develop a cross-over product that will appeal not only to Quebecois film goers, but popcorn munchers from the ROC (Rest of Canada) as well.
The end result is Bon Cop, Bad Cop, and in spite of all its clichés, stereotypes, telegraphed scenes and flimsy excuse for a plot, the film works on some base level that defies logic.Starring the Shakespearean stage actor Colm Feore and Quebec star Patrick Huard as a quarreling Canuck version of Lethal Weapon's Riggs and Murtaugh, Bon Cop, Bad Cop throws virtually every hoary cliché imaginable at the theater screen.
In fact, I actually expect to see this movie spawn a sequel, irregardless of whether or not the film is able to hold its own at English Canada's box offices.
I don't know if it was a translation problem (I saw this movie in French).I'm proud of that film.
What would a movie be like if the main guideline to the movie are the cultural differences between french Canadians from Quebec and the anglophones of Canada, especially the Ontarians.
Basically, french from Quebec, and English from Ontario kind of...don't like each other.
And its not only since the Maple Leafs and The Canadians hockey clubs exist, its from way back...Anyways, the movie itself has great acting from Patrick Huard (The Frenchy in the movie from which the idea of the movie came to) and Colm Feore (The stiff cop from Toronto.
In all, I think this movie is finally the one and only thing that all politicians in Ottawa wished for...a way to unite Canada and Quebec in a good jolly laugh!!!.
The premise itself is believable enough not to affect the film.It's just one of those movies that makes you feel pleasantly entertained with a good few laugh aloud jokes..
However, coming from a Kiwi in Canada that doesn't understand French, nor hockey, I found this movie to be thoroughly refreshing and humorous.
This is a classic buddy-cop caper movie with a twist: it's entirely bilingual, featuring two leads (Colm Feore and Patrick Huard) who are cops teamed up from opposite sides of the Quebec-Ontario border to solve a murder.As a murder mystery, this movie doesn't really work.
The hockey theme, of course, is more an excuse to make fun of people like Don Cherry, Eric Lindros and Gary Bettman than it is an actual plot device.But this movie really gets it right when it comes to exploiting - and making fun of - the Quebec-Ontario cultural divide.
The premise for this movie is good, if somewhat cliché - straight-laced Ontario cop has to work with cynical, does-nothing-by-the-rules Quebec cop.
The movie has a great plot, which, if not ruined by the bad acting and swearing, could have been a wonderful and hilarious movie.I can understand the appeal of a french cop and an English cop working together, and having to work out their differences, but, unfortunately, it just didn't work.Some people may like it, and to be fair, it's not the worst movie out there.
Like I said, a small thing -- and it won't distract you from a genuinely funny Canadian movie!