SHOWTIME
Lights, camera, aggravation — a funny but foul-mouthed cop spoof.
Should You Watch It?
SHOWTIME earns its three stars with a strong comic pairing. Robert DeNiro and Eddie Murphy are beautifully cast as unlikely partners, and Rene Russo brings energy as an ambitious, pushy, manipulative television producer. The humor is timed well, and the 90-minute runtime keeps the spoof moving.
The cost is substantial language. The movie also includes action violence, drug content and jokes that disparage certain groups. There is no sex or nudity, but the overall content still places this in the adults-only category for family viewing.
If you enjoy buddy-cop comedy and can handle the language and other concerns, it is worth watching. For children and young teens, choose something else.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESNo-nonsense Los Angeles police detective Mitch Preston wants to work alone. Patrol Officer Trey Sellars wants to become a television star.
After their paths collide during a drug operation, a television producer decides to pair the two very different officers for a reality cop show. As cameras follow them through Los Angeles, the reluctant Preston and attention-seeking Sellars must learn to work together while pursuing dangerous criminals.
Is It Any Good?
Three stars means SHOWTIME is entertaining and effective, though not without drawbacks. DeNiro and Murphy make a convincing mismatched partnership, while Russo does a fine job as the ambitious television producer. The humor is well timed, and the special effects, action sequences and all-star cast—including William Shatner—help the movie deliver plenty of laughs.
The action is exaggerated in an “A-Team” style, with car crashes, gun fights, explosions and chases but no blood-and-gore emphasis. The rough language, however, is significant enough to keep this from being an easy recommendation.
The Worldview
SHOWTIME carries a humanist worldview in which entertainment becomes an idol. The television show within the movie turns police work into spectacle, and the characters must work through relational obstacles and judgments before discovering the value of friendship and loyalty.
Those moral elements are among the film’s strengths. Friendship, loyalty and learning to work with people one has judged can align with biblical wisdom. Still, the movie’s entertainment-centered outlook does not point beyond human achievement or relationships to God.
The film’s central longing is for genuine friendship and loyalty amid competing ambitions. Scripture says, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity” (Proverbs 17:17).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Humanist worldview with entertainment being an idol; some moral elements, with relational obstacles and judgments overcome through true friendship and loyalty, plus one humorous stab at Jehovah’s Witnesses; 49 obscenities and 3 profanities; numerous gun fights, police chase bad guys, car chases and crashes, giant explosions of marquis, elevators, swimming pools, armored trucks, etc., but all in an “A-Team” style, without blood and gore but with implied death; no sex or nudity, but one wise crack about apartment looking like a gay porno star’s; alcohol depiction at a bar; smoking and drug depiction with deals and busts gone bad; and, lying, stealing and gun-running.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
The two officers begin by judging one another. What helps them move toward friendship and loyalty?
Proverbs 17:17 · Philippians 2:3–4The movie turns police work into entertainment. What good things can become idols when they receive too much of our attention?
Exodus 20:3–5 · Matthew 6:21Sellars wants fame, while Preston wants to be left alone. What does a faithful approach to work look like when ambition and recognition compete with responsibility?
Colossians 3:23–24 · 1 Thessalonians 4:11–12The film uses humor that disparages certain groups. How can we recognize the difference between harmless humor and words that fail to honor others?
Ephesians 4:29 · James 3:9–10The Final Word
SHOWTIME is a brisk, well-cast comedy with plenty of laughs and exaggerated action. Its strong language and other content make it a choice for discerning adults, not children or young teens. For that audience, it is WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY. For a family movie night, choose something else.
