When a popular television show goes on hiatus mid-season, a network often finds some way to placate viewers. Usually it produces a behind-the-scenes special or a series of webisodes. In the case of Reno 911!, fans were given a full-length feature film. Just like you would expect, Reno 911!: Miami is essentially one long episode of the television show, only with more swearing, nudity and explosions.
The team at the Reno Sheriff's Department has been invited to the American Police Convention in Miami. (This year they invited everyone.) Lt. Jim Dangle (Thomas Lennon) and deputies Travis Junior (Robert Ben Garant), Trudy Wiegal (Kerri Kenney-Silver), Raineesha Williams (Niecy Nash), James Garcia (Carlos Alazraqui), Cherisha Kimball (Mary Birdsong), Clementine Johnson (Wendi McLendon-Covey) and S. Jones (Cedric Yarbrough) hop a bus to the Sunshine State. When they arrive, however, they're laughed out of the building. They return a day later only to find that a terrorist has unleashed a biological weapon in the convention center. Most of the policemen in the country are quarantined inside the building, and the cops from Reno are suddenly the only law enforcement officers in Miami. The Reno cops rush to find the antidote in time to save the lives of thousands of police officers -- if they can stop blowing up beached whales long enough to do some real police work.
There are as many cameos in Reno 911!: Miami as there are uses of the phrase "My bad." The Rock, Danny DeVito, Paul Reubens and the comedy troupe Stella (Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter and David Wain) all make appearances. David Koechner (Anchorman) and comedians Nick Swardson, Patton Oswalt and Paul Rudd (doing a ridiculous Tony Montana) also play minor roles. The parade of comedians is funny instead of distracting. Aside from Rudd and Oswalt, they are only on screen for brief periods of time and form an important part of the strange and amusing cast of characters.
Garant, who also directed episodes of the television show, directs the film. While the series is largely based on improvisation, Garant, Lennon and Kenney-Silver wrote the film. The improvisation coupled with the COPS format is the reason the series has been so successful. While the series and the film are equally outrageous, Reno 911!: Miami feels planned out, and as a result, some of the spark is lost. The scenes in which the Reno officers work the 911 phone lines are some of the best of the film because they are so close to the antics of the television show. When the cops attempt to deal with the terrorist plot, the film suffers. If the bio-weapon story had been crammed into a single Reno episode it may have worked better. It's not that the film isn't funny -- it just feels a little forced.
There's a lot to like about Reno 911!: Miami. The situations are hilarious, and the actors are all perfect for their roles. There's some impressive camera-work reminiscent of Touch of Evil at the cops' hotel that pulls back to reveal, well, something I shouldn't mention. Reno 911: Miami is an enjoyable film, if you don't mind a little gross-out humor. Fans of the series will be more than satisfied.
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