Whether it revolves around disgruntled cops, spies, thugs, drugs, corruption, or all of the above, it’s hard not to love a good buddy action flick.
Here are a few to pop on your Netflix list next time you’re stuck for something to watch.
The movie: The Nice Guys (2016)
The twosome: Jackson and Holland
Cheerfully brutal and unexpectedly funny, this comedy from director Shane Black (who wrote Lethal Weapon) is set in the 70s and stars a truly mismatched duo: aggressive thug-for-hire Jackson and bumbling detective Holland. Not at ALL what you’d expect from Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, but a downright hoot all the same.
The movie: The Heat (2013)
The twosome: Ashburn and Mullins
The movie: The Other Guys (2010)
The twosome: Allen Gamble and Terry Hoitz
Throw an earnest desk jockey together with an angry disgraced detective and what do you get? Total mayhem that keeps you giggling from whoa to go. Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg take the buddy-cop schtick to hilarious new heights in this comedy about two cops taking down a corrupt developer.
The movie: Starsky and Hutch (2004)
The twosome: David Starsky and Ken Hutcherson
When you’ve got on-screen chemistry as good as Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, you milk it. And they’ve milked it big-time in the likes of Zoolander, Meet the Parents… and of course, this buddy-cop gem.
Source: YouTube
The movie: The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
The twosome: Samantha and Mitch
She’s the amnesia victim and stay-at-home mother who realises, when her life is threatened, that she’s a former assassin; he’s the private detective dragged along for the ride. Shane Black again turns his skills to the script and Geena Davis and Samuel L Jackson serve up a funny one-liner or two alongside the non-stop action.
The movie: Tequila Sunrise (1988)
The twosome: Mac and Nick
The 80s was ALL about Mel Gibson and Kurt Russell. And this super sexy blast from the past is all about the complicated mateship between Mac and Nick – one’s a drug dealer trying to get out of the game, and the other is the cop tasked with bringing his buddy to justice. Michelle Pfieffer plays the woman who gets in the middle. Great soundtrack, too.
The movie: Beverly Hills Cop (1987)
The threesome: Rosewood, Taggart… and Axel
Source: Paramount Pictures
Rosewood and Taggart are two Beverly Hills cops who do everything by the book. For visiting Detroit cop Axel Foley, pretty much anything goes in his quest to take down a drugs baron. This duo’s escapades in the glitzy world of the rich and its seedy underbelly set the benchmark for buddy cop comedy – and serve up one-liners fans are still quoting today at opportune moments.
The movie: Lethal Weapon (1987)
The twosome: Murtaugh and Riggs
Some of the best buddy movies involve cops forced to work together against their will. The Lethal Weapon franchise nailed this by matching up a by-the-book veteran, Murtaugh (Danny Glover), with the younger, disobedient and slightly suicidal Riggs (Mel Gibson). It worked, and spawned a franchise buddy movies are still borrowing from decades later!
Source: YouTube
The movie: The Nice Guys (2016)
The twosome: Jackson and Holland
Cheerfully brutal and unexpectedly funny, this comedy from director Shane Black (who wrote Lethal Weapon) is set in the 70s and stars a truly mismatched duo: aggressive thug-for-hire Jackson and bumbling detective Holland. Not at ALL what you’d expect from Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, but a downright hoot all the same.
The movie: The Heat (2013)
The twosome: Ashburn and Mullins
Source: Twentieth Century Fox
Ashburn’s the poker-up-her-butt FBI agent who does everything by the book; Mullins is the potty-mouthed cop forced to help her out on a case to catch a drug lord. Reviews were mixed, but many critics agreed that the pairing of Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy was a genius move – and we kinda agree.The movie: The Other Guys (2010)
The twosome: Allen Gamble and Terry Hoitz
Throw an earnest desk jockey together with an angry disgraced detective and what do you get? Total mayhem that keeps you giggling from whoa to go. Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg take the buddy-cop schtick to hilarious new heights in this comedy about two cops taking down a corrupt developer.
The movie: Starsky and Hutch (2004)
The twosome: David Starsky and Ken Hutcherson
When you’ve got on-screen chemistry as good as Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, you milk it. And they’ve milked it big-time in the likes of Zoolander, Meet the Parents… and of course, this buddy-cop gem.
Source: YouTube
The movie: The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
The twosome: Samantha and Mitch
She’s the amnesia victim and stay-at-home mother who realises, when her life is threatened, that she’s a former assassin; he’s the private detective dragged along for the ride. Shane Black again turns his skills to the script and Geena Davis and Samuel L Jackson serve up a funny one-liner or two alongside the non-stop action.
The movie: Tequila Sunrise (1988)
The twosome: Mac and Nick
The 80s was ALL about Mel Gibson and Kurt Russell. And this super sexy blast from the past is all about the complicated mateship between Mac and Nick – one’s a drug dealer trying to get out of the game, and the other is the cop tasked with bringing his buddy to justice. Michelle Pfieffer plays the woman who gets in the middle. Great soundtrack, too.
The movie: Beverly Hills Cop (1987)
The threesome: Rosewood, Taggart… and Axel
Source: Paramount Pictures
Rosewood and Taggart are two Beverly Hills cops who do everything by the book. For visiting Detroit cop Axel Foley, pretty much anything goes in his quest to take down a drugs baron. This duo’s escapades in the glitzy world of the rich and its seedy underbelly set the benchmark for buddy cop comedy – and serve up one-liners fans are still quoting today at opportune moments.
The movie: Lethal Weapon (1987)
The twosome: Murtaugh and Riggs
Some of the best buddy movies involve cops forced to work together against their will. The Lethal Weapon franchise nailed this by matching up a by-the-book veteran, Murtaugh (Danny Glover), with the younger, disobedient and slightly suicidal Riggs (Mel Gibson). It worked, and spawned a franchise buddy movies are still borrowing from decades later!
Source: YouTube
