Le Cop 2

A few droll set pieces, but on the whole this disappointing sequel is wretchedly put together. Lhermitte, as painfully couth as before, wants to go straight. To prove that Paris is universally crooked, his seasoned cop partner Noiret picks up a citizen at random, and within half-an-hour, a respectable banker (Brialy) has confessed to a long-forgotten misdemeanour. Regrettably, Zidi betrays this anarchic element for a contrived corruption and conspiracy scenario. For a black comedy, the film is unconscionably sentimental about prostitutes, horses and the countryside. Worst of all, it is maudlin towards its heroes. Noiret, a sharp fixer in the first film, looks ready to be put out to pasture, while Lhermitte proves unpersonable when asked to go beyond his straight man act.