(645-word review) A shorter film was on my radar as a bit of a "break" from the longer-ish ones. I was more concerned with the shortness, which contributed to choosing this one. Initially, I was going to watch _How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days_, but I changed my mind. So, I used MovieLens and looked at similar ones/recommendations to _Weekend at Bernie's_, a film I enjoy immensely (nostalgia plays a significant part). This was among the recommendations, reminding me that I've come across it in the past.

But I was still expecting it to be mediocre, and its 1984 release probably had to do with it. _The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!_ and _Airplane!_ were at the back of my head because I didn't find those that funny, especially the latter. On the plus side, the former was entertaining, which went a long way.

And shockingly beyond measure, mediocre it was. It was massively unfunny in typical 1980s/1990s comedy/humor fashion to the point of confusion: wondering how its comedy could be perceived as funny, even back then. It barely managed to reach the threshold of being entertaining, either, as the first _Naked Gun_ film had on its side at the very least.

It wasn't abhorrently terrible, though. G.W. Bailey (whose enunciation seemed so similar to Laurence Fishburne) and George Gaynes (who looked slightly comparable to Lloyd Bridges but more so reminded me of him, particularly in _Hot Shots!_) gave good performances: enough for them to stand out.

George R. Robertson (Chief Hurst) also stood out (and looked/talked similarly to Jonathan Pryce) as the best part of the entire film, more or less, with only one major scene: with George Gaynes and G.W. Bailey. It says a lot when the peak is at the beginning somewhere, and there's a gradual decline further along; the final act was the worst – dare I say, abysmal.

Other decent enough parts were: this line ("Princess? Looks more like a prince to me.), the Blue Oyster bar running gag (the abrupt cut after their screams the second time was good), the stifling of laughter by the cadets after the horse incident (Michael Winslow's stifled-laughter face was sublime).

But other than that, most of the intended humor fell flat. Most notably: Michael Winslow, whose character's only purpose was doing sound effects. Hats off to him; it's a good talent, but it wasn't funny; he reminded me of Stephen Stucker (Johnny in _Airplane!_) in the sense of coming across as forced and incredibly unfunny, but apparently, nonsense like that was considered the peak of comedy in the 1980s-1990s.

Speaking of that film, which I've mentioned twice already, and while I'm on the subject of similarities, Carey Mahoney even reminded me of Ted Striker: but more significantly, he reminded me of Yossarian from _Catch-22_; in my case, the miniseries. Steve Guttenberg played the character in a way that seemed a mixture of both those characters/how Robert Hays and Christopher Abbott played them.

However, my main takeaway was the writing. Mahoney was trying to get kicked out of the academy, but some convenience was in-place, preventing that; Yossarian kept trying to get discharged (and avoid missions) but kept getting deterred by the bureaucracy and Army regulations, the Catch-22 of it all.

That makes me wonder how much better this film would've been if it was focused on Mahoney doing ridiculous and obvious things to try and get kicked out, slowly getting more fed up when nothing works. A perfect formula for good comedy, no? Especially if it ventures a little into the territory of a dark comedy. Instead, that aspect seemed irrelevant/short-lived: and a missed opportunity.

While it could've been worse, most of the humor is universally-enjoyed class but incredibly outdated, so it mostly fails to land. It's a fitting example of 1980s/1990s comedic mediocrity.

**A comedy landmark.**

I have no doubt that this film inaugurates what was one of the comic franchises that most marked the 80s and 90s. I remember that, until the dawn of the new century, films from this franchise were a regular presence on TV channels, and they still make routine appearances on movie or comedy channels. Unlike many other film works from this era, I feel they are aging well and haven't fallen by the wayside.

The script helped a lot, because it was very well written, considering that it is a light film and does not lack great depth: after a municipal decision to open police training courses to all those who wanted to, regardless of physical, mental and psychological requirements, the Police Academy was swamped by the most inept aspirants. Now, there will be a declared effort to get them to give up, and one of them is prevented from doing so, no matter how much he wants to.

If I'm told that the film's script is quite simple and that it's not exactly good, I would surely agree. However, it served perfectly for the intended effect and held up well to the film and the successive jokes that were happening. Many of them are predictable, many are overly sexual, but many of the jokes work reasonably well. There is some female nudity here, but it's nothing that current cinema hasn't shown in much more abusive ways in other films. Still, parents be warned!

There are several actors of great quality here who do an excellent job. Despite being many years old, it is the great film in the career of Steve Guttenberg, who shone in the franchise in the role of the irreverent Mahoney. The actor made the best use of the opportunity and reaped the rewards of that commitment. G.W. Bailey also deserves a round of applause for an inspired, funny and beautifully executed work. Despite speaking very little, Bubba Smith also stands out, using his physical grandeur and serious air. The actor was excellent. Even more impressively, David Graf is really funny and steals attention whenever he appears. As with Graf, Marion Ramsey also had the culmination of her career in these films, and made the best of it with an extraordinarily good performance. Michael Winslow and George Gaynes also did an excellent job. Kim Catrall is beautiful, but she is very little used in the movie, as are other actors because the cast is just huge!

The film was made in an old psychiatric sanatorium and the buildings have a beautiful, somewhat institutional appearance, which lends credibility to the atmosphere of the academy. The cinematography is regular and doesn't bring us anything new or original, but it works well, and the soundtrack has one of the most recognizable main themes in comedy films. The film has a very good pace and is not tiring.