If you’re not familiar with the wildly popular comedy duo of Key & Peele (Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele), chances are the new film KEANU will be a little lost on you. Their widely-circulated shorts are like something across between a Saturday Night Live skit and an old Vaudeville routine, jacked up with very high adrenaline. One of their most popular recurring bits has them playing two valet attendants recounting popular action movies and film stars while making amusing slang out of the names involved… it’s funny stuff if you’re the right audience. KEANU takes some of their show’s sensibilities and applies them to a parody (or rather loving tribute) to action films of the past few decades, particularly 1990s blockbuster fare. It’s also quite similar to the Keanu Reeves high octane revenge flick JOHN WICK, only mixed with familiar fish out of water cop stories. In many ways it’s like a more American version of HOT FUZZ, only without the cop angle. The end result is pretty fun, and at times very over the top.

Clarence (Keegan-Michael Key) is a family man who lives life cautiously and not-so-secretly loves George Michael music. His cousin Rell (Jordan Peele) is reeling from a recent break-up, and wallowing in self-pity, that is until an adorable little kitten shows up at his door. Unbeknownst to both men, this friendly feline (which Rell names “Keanu”) has run away from a bloody massacre with some drug dealers and assassins, the latter of which want it back. When Clarence and Rell go out for a night at the movies, they return to find Rell’s house broken into, and Keanu gone with only his collar left behind. Rell questions his drug dealer friend next door (played amusingly by Will Forte), and is told the robbery could be the work of a local gang called the 17th Street Blips. So against their better judgement, the two cousins track down The Blips in hopes of getting their cat back. But to avoid being mowed down as unwanted outsiders, they pretend to be hardened gang bangers, and unwittingly find themselves dragged into the gang’s nefarious activities… because it’s the only way they’ll have any chance of getting Keanu back.

Most of KEANU plays out pretty much the way you’d expect it to, with us watching two somewhat nerdy black men try to pretend they’re just as hard and dangerous as the gang they’re trying to fool. We’ve seen this type of comedy before, and the results aren’t drastically different. That said, there are moments throughout the production that are laugh out loud hilarious and shocking, and Key & Peele fans will likely get what they’re looking for in the short 98-minute running time. But unlike their popular show, this movie attempt exhibits that their true strength lies in being able to make the most of a short skit rather than a full film. There never seems to be a moment where the film makes you think it’s going to be a classic or a definite re-watch, rather just a fun if somewhat forgettable diversion.

Some of the most impressive aspects of the comedy come from the supporting cast, which is peppered with a few familiar comedic geniuses, and some less-than-familiar inspired choices. Tiffany Haddish is quite good as the gang’s female lead, and potential love interest for Rell. She’s essentially playing the straight character around the two idiots, and she’s so good you almost wonder how much better it would have been to just watch her in a serious film. Jason Mitchell (STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON) turns in a surprising and small performance as one of the lead gang members, who can play the tough banger type and then flip it into something silly and fun when you least expect it. Method Man does a great job playing the gang leader, making the most of his screen time by chewing the scenery with a convincing sneer. And Will Forte is also quite hilarious as a sort of parody of Gary Oldman’s drug dealer role from TRUE ROMANCE. Even Nia Long, who briefly plays Clarence’s wife, finds some great comedic beats in unexpected moments. But as good as everyone else is, Key and Peele just never seem to elevate the material the way you’d hope. Is it funny? Absolutely, at times very much so, but it’s never what you’d call brilliant. Then again this is their first attempt at a full movie after rising to immense popularity with their sketch comedy. Perhaps this is just laying the groundwork for more inspired and more effective efforts down the line. If you love the comedic duo, chances are you’ll enjoy this, but you’ll also surely recognize their shorter works are far superior and more impressive.

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