Keanu

Score:  ***1/2 out of ***** (B)

Directed by Peter Atencio
Starring Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele
Running time:  98 minutes
Rated R

Long Story Short:  The popular comedy duo Key and Peele have released their first feature film, following on the success of their hit sketch TV show.  Keanu is essentially an extended Key and Peele sketch, built around a conventional normal guys thrown in with a bad crowd story (and a key role for a cute kitten for good measure).  Key and Peele are very talented and funny, and even if you haven't seen them before - actually, especially if you haven't seen them before - I recommend this film.


Cousins Rell (Peele) and Clarence (Key) are good friends but lead opposite lives: laid back Rell mourns the end of his marriage, while Clarence has a happy family yet suppresses his full personality.  One day Rell gets a surprise new companion when he finds a kitten at his door.  Little does he know that the kitten has recently escaped the scene of a bloody gang fight.  When Clarence's wife and children leave for a weekend trip, he and Rell go to a Liam Neeson film to return and find Rell's house ransacked - and his kitten, Keanu, missing.  Rell's next door neighbor (Forte) suggests that the dreaded 17th St. Blips, a local gang, may have been the culprits.  Desperate to find Keanu, Rell drags Clarence along on a mission to infiltrate the gang.

Newly renamed Tectonic and Shark Tank, Rell and Clarence are forced to prove their allegiance by joining the gang in distributing its new drug, Holy Shit.  Danger lurks around every corner as the cousins try to blend in and survive.  Even if they can make it in the 17th St. Blips, they aren't the only ones looking for little Keanu...

Keanu's cast is good, led by co-star comedians Key and Peele.  Possibly the two most talented comedians working today (and among the funniest), the duo is obviously the main attraction in this film.  Fans (like me) of their recently-ended sketch show Key and Peele will recognize the same kind of humor from them here.  One of the great things about the pair is that they have distinct personalities which complement each other and fit into the same style perfectly.  Their roles here - Key as the ostensibly "straight man" who breaks out of his shell, and Peele as the relaxed semi-troublemaker who shows a nicer side - are their bread-and-butter (though they're certainly talented enough to swap those roles or do entirely different ones).  Excellent work, as expected.  Most of the supporting work here is fine if unremarkable; one to note is Will Forte playing Rell's neighbor in just a few scenes, but he's very funny as usual.

Keanu is a pretty typical genre comedy film overall, with Key and Peele themselves as the main focus; it's solid in most ways, but also has few true fireworks.  Again, those familiar with Key and Peele will recognize not only the actors' humor and style, but also the overall set up:  it feels like an extended sketch, one that is similar to certain film conventions (no accident here, since many of their sketches were designed that way).  Keanu is even directed by the same guy who did their show.  This familiarity is not at all a bad thing, though the film does lean heavily on the force of Key and Peele's talent and personalities to carry it.  If you aren't familiar with their show, you'll still get the basic story structure with no trouble; you might simply miss a handful of references to their show ("Liam Neesons", etc.) but the vast majority of the humor is broad enough for any audience.  You can also expect humor that ranges from common slapstick to more subtle, clever societal commentary.  While the story is conventional with a few quirks - namely the title kitten - the film does its best to keep from bogging down with too much "keep the story moving" content.  Oh, and the kitten?  Yes, it's very cute.

***

Keanu is a solid comedy and if anything, my familiarity with and expectations coming from the Key and Peele sketch show leads me to a lower grade than others might give it.  I am a huge fan of these two comedians, no question; but I was left a bit disappointed by, more than anything else, how relatively safe and conventional they keep their first feature film.  While I found this movie funny, it is confining, almost like they were wearing straitjackets around their comedic potential.  They are so talented, they can break just about any movie "rule" that they want and not just be effective but better than just about anything else out there.  Since they can play so many characters, I'd love to see them play all or most of the characters in a movie, for example.  I know that's not new, but they could do it so much better than other attempts that it would seem like a new idea.  This is good, quality comedy filmmaking - it is funny and even the conventional structure works alright (esp. with the kitten) - so I'd recommend it for most people.  Do keep in mind, this is rated R, despite the kitten and Key and Peele's tendency to come off as "gentler" comedians to the uninitiated.  With that in mind, if you're looking for some laughs, this is a good choice!



By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49182158