Review of Keanu (2016) by Junelkean — 07 Jan 2018

The trailer is selling this movie as a gangstah-buddy comedy starring Key and Peele, and after their three-season show in “Comedy Central”, “Keanu” tests the success of their chemistry, this time on the big screen. It follows the story of two geeky cousins, who have to channel their inner gangstah in taking their kitten away from the hands of a crime lord. The duo is indeed the shine in the movie and their relationship are easy to sell. It also features seven of the cutest kittens who deserve a spotlight for more careers ahead.

The story is not necessarily great due to a paper-thin premise, but it decently combines the crime and comedy elements to tell a compelling narrative. However, the jokes do not consistently deliver and give any giant belly laughs to some of the audience members.

The plot becomes unfocused and uneven for quite a while and gets formulaic and familiar to other buddy-com flicks like "Ride Along" and "Central Intelligence", but in the end, Keanu completes a circle of events, supported with the comedic yet refreshing chemistry between the two leads.

VERDICT: Keanu’s two main protagonists and their effective big-screen chemistry save the movie from its paper-thin yet absurd premise.