Movie Review: Keanu

The unique zaniness that Keegan Michael-Key and Jordan Peele brought to the small screen for five seasons with their brilliant Comedy Central sketch comedy show Key & Peele has successfully transferred to the big screen. Keanu, the cult-favorite comedy duo's first foray into the world of cinema, essentially just takes the pair's infectious chemistry and relentlessly clever humor that made their show such a success and brings onto a larger scale.

At its core, Keanu is a film about the astonishing lengths a man (Peele) will go to get his beloved cat back. This story of a unique, special bond between a human being and their pet just happens to be told in the format of a flat-out insane, over-the-top action comedy. Director Pete Atencio-who was the go-to director on Key & Peele-does a phenomenal job of establishing a loose tone and blistering pace that's reminiscent of 90's buddy action comedies such as Bad Boys and Rush Hour. Like the aforementioned films, Keanu also does an excellent job of balancing manic, clever humor with a handful of impressive, huge action scenes. Given how well-choreographed and shot the film's shootouts and car chases are, Atencio proves here that his talents as a director stretch far out of the comedy realm. The absurdity of the premise (two nerdy cousins posing as hardened drug dealers to get the titular cat back from the gang that kidnapped him) and occasionally pitch-black humor will alienate some mainstream comedy audiences, but for those who aren't turned off by either of those things, Keanu is a consistently hilarious and wildly entertaining ride that proves Key and Peele should be able to sustain long, successful careers in Hollywood.

4/5 Stars