Psycho's Movie Reviews #93: K-9 (1989)

K-9 is a 1989 American buddy cop action-comedy film starring Jim Belushi and Mel Harris. It was directed by Rod Daniel, written by Steven Siegel and Scott Myers, produced by Lawrence Gordon and Charles Gordon, and released by Universal Pictures.

Belushi plays bad-tempered San Diego police detective Michael Dooley, who has been tagged for execution by a major international drug dealer named Ken Lyman (played by Kevin Tighe). To help, K-9 Sergeant Brannigan (played by Ed O'Neill) gives Dooley an unorthodox drug-sniffing police dog called "Jerry Lee" (named after rock-and-roll singer Jerry Lee Lewis). The duo attempt to put Lyman behind bars but Dooley quickly learns Jerry Lee is a mischievous smart aleck who works only when and how he wants to. Many of the film's gags revolve around Jerry Lee's playfully destructive episodes.

The film was followed by a K-9 film series, including two direct-to-video sequels, K-911 (1999) and K-9: P.I. (2002); as well as a television spin-off film titled K-9000, that was intended to be the pilot episode to a TV series that was not ordered.

Plot:

San Diego Police Detective Michael Dooley leaves his unmarked police car to contact his girlfriend, Tracy, when a helicopter suddenly appears and opens fire on his car, which ignites. Presuming him dead, the assassins leave the scene. At the police station, Dooley argues with his lieutenant, refusing to take a partner; instead, he decides to get a police dog. At home, he finds Tracy with another man and spends the night in his personal car, a classic 1966 Ford Mustang convertible (he refers to it as a "'65"). The next day, Dooley coerces Freddie, an informant, into revealing that the drug lord Ken Lyman is responsible for the attack who Dooley is after for two years. Dooley is assigned a German Shepherd named Jerry Lee,[3] whom he dislikes.

Dooley and Jerry Lee head to a warehouse assumed to be filled with drugs. When Jerry Lee ignores Dooley's orders, the workers laugh at him. Dooley is forced to leave after Jerry Lee finds only a marijuana joint when commanded to find drugs. The duo drive to a pub where Dooley stakes out Benny the Mule in an attempt to charge Lyman. When his cover is blown, Jerry Lee saves Dooley from a beating; with the dog's help, Dooley subdues Benny and learns the location of Lyman's next shipment. Meanwhile, Lyman kills Freddie and demands that his henchman Dillon kill Dooley before the shipment arrives.

At Dooley's apartment, Jerry Lee steals the spotlight after Tracy accepts Dooley's story that he rescued the dog from the streets. The next day, Dooley and Jerry Lee bond when they eat together and spy on Lyman. The two are nearly killed when someone shoots at them, and the two chase the assailant to an empty building. Jerry Lee leads Dooley to the man, who falls to his death after a fistfight with Dooley. In the man's car, Dooley finds a clue that leads him to an auto-dealer shop. There, Jerry Lee identifies a red Mercedes owned by Lyman, and Dooley learns from Halstead, the owner of the dealership, that he works for Lyman. Later, Jerry Lee falls in love with a poodle to the disapproval of its owner.

When Dooley returns home, he discovers Lyman has kidnapped Tracy. Infuriated, Dooley crashes a party at Lyman's mansion and demands her return. Lyman pretends to know nothing, and Dooley is arrested by an officer from his own department and put in a squad car. Angry, Dooley's lieutenant calls him crazy. When Jerry Lee's flatulence annoys the other officers, Dooley uses it to his advantage and escapes with the dog. As Dooley tells Jerry Lee how he met Tracy, he spots a truck driven by Halstead that is pulling a trailer with Lyman's Mercedes. Dooley purses the truck, and Halstead blows a tire. After Halstead shoots at Dooley, Jerry Lee stopped Halstead and arrested.

Meanwhile, in a stranded desert in San Diego, Lyman holds Tracy hostage in his limo and becomes suspicious when Halstead is late. Dooley arrives with the truck and trailer, which is revealed to be the next shipment of drugs. Not worrying about the case anymore, Dooley orders Lyman to surrender his girlfriend to him, or he will blow up the truck. Lyman calls Dooley's bluff, and a shootout ensues. Dooley kills Lyman's henchmen Dillon and Jerry Lee chases Lyman as he runs for his helicopter. Unable to outrun the dog, Lyman shoots Jerry Lee; enraged, Dooley shoots at Lyman but misses. Lyman is, instead, shot and killed by his associates who were waiting in the helicopter. Dooley and Tracy rush Jerry Lee to a hospital, where the reluctant surgeon operates. In the recovery room, Dooley delivers a eulogy to Jerry Lee, not knowing that he is alive. When the surgeon tells him he is going to be fine, Dooley responds in anger, thinking he was speaking to a dead dog. Jerry Lee licks Dooley's face out of love, making him give in.

To take a break from police work, Dooley, Tracy, Jerry Lee, and a poodle spend a vacation together in Las Vegas.

Production

Filming:

K-9 was filmed in and around San Diego, California from August to October 1988. Locations included the Hotel del Coronado in Coronado, and the Golden Hills Cafe in the Golden Hills neighbourhood.

Release/Reception/Box Office:

K-9 was released to home video in early 1990, followed by a DVD release 16 years later, on October 24, 2006. It was re-released along with its sequels in a collection as "K-9: The Patrol Pack" on January 17, 2010.

It was initially released on Blu-ray disc in the U.K. in 2017 by Fabulous Films and then in the United States on May 15, 2018.

On Rotten Tomatoes, which aggregates both contemporary and modern reviews, the film has an approval rating of 22% based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 4.1/10. On Metacritic it has a score of 44% based on reviews from 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A- on scale of A to F.

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times praised the actors but not the routine plot. Thomas wrote, "It's enjoyable, thanks not only to its charismatic duo, but also to the skilled comedy direction of Rod Daniel." Stephen Holden of The New York Times stated it has "no shred of credibility", yet contains "cutesy, sure-fire dog tricks" and a "breezy pacing". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film "2 stars". Rita Kempley of The Washington Post complimented Jerry Lee's performance.

Box Office Total: $78.2 million

My Review:

Given its low rating, it's hard to know what sort of film the critics and general movie watching public were expecting with this one. Since a buddy buddy cop movie staring James Belushi and a German Shepherd Dog doesn't say anything other than the film we actually get. By the time of K-9s release it was evident what sort of film would Belushi's staple money earner, the kind that called for him to play the cocky quipper with a glint in his eye. Belushi would try to abandon his buffoonery roles post Curly Sue {who could blame him after that mess really?}, and attempt to be a more dramatic, action type actor. It wouldn't work, his excellent performances in Oliver Stone's Salvador and The Principal {the latter also criminally undervalued} were long behind him. So you hear the name James Belushi in relation to films and you by and large think larking about action comedy. Coming a year after Red Heat {it looks like Belushi is wearing the same suit from that film in this one!}, K-9 delivers exactly what it screamed out it would from the off.

Technically the film has very few things to recommend, but as a family friendly action comedy it has much to laud. The interplay between man and dog is great fun, they are both members of the animal kingdom, they both got needs and they are both great cops. Yes we are never in any doubt that after a troubled start, this pairing are going to become firm friends, and that ultimately, by hook, crook and paw, they will get the job done. Belushi has a nice line in facial comedy and he also never comes up short in delivering quips with panache, and a confidence that often belies the trouble his characters are often in. The dog too is hilarious {hats of to animal handler Robert Zides}. Courtesy of writers Steven Siegel & Scott Myers, this is a dog that eats chili and wants to vie with Dooley for Tracy's affections {Mel Harris as Dooley's frustrated girlfriend}. It makes for a number of funny set-ups that both man and beast revel at being involved in. Kevin Tighe as villain Lyman is a touch under written, and the obligatory emotional heart tugger moment now looks like over egging the formula pudding. But this is harmless witty fun that gets in and does its job without proclaiming to be anything other than what it is. 7/10