Super Troopers is a movie that has taken a life of its own since its release in 2001. Word of mouth has done wonders for this little comedy about the lives of state troopers on the Canadian border.

The first thing to be said about this movie is that the very first scene is one of the funniest scenes I have seen in a while. It is so bizarre and hilarious that you don't know if it's supposed to be a drug-induced hallucination of one of the characters, or whether it's actually happening in the story. In either case, what makes it so fresh and enjoyable is the fact that you can envision it happening to you. Especially along the Canadian border! It is a brilliant practical joke, and we all know there are people crazy enough to do it.

Unfortunately, the movie takes a deep nosedive after that initial scene, and is left with a hackneyed love story, one of the most unbearably annoying characters in all of cinema (Farva), and an infinitely predictable outcome. Of course, we shouldn't lose ourselves in the details: This is, after all, a comedy. But even if we just focus on the comedic aspects of the film, we find that there are very few instances of comic genius in the rest of the movie. Other instances that attempt to channel the first scene turn out to be rather uninspired (like how many times one of the troopers can say "meow" during the issuance of a speeding ticket).

The rest of the movie drags on like a bad Police Academy movie, full of insipid shenanigans and churlish bickering. It's good for a few laughs, especially at first, but it ultimately leaves you pondering how a movie with such potential could turn into such a mediocre flick so quickly.

I'd give Jay Chandrasekhar's Super Troopers a C.

[Visit this author's blog at Unfashionable Observations.]