The Happytime Murders

I had a better time than expected. Interestingly, though, it wasn't so much a credit to the obnoxious verbal shootouts (though even they were sort of irresistibly good), but to the great world in which the film is set. I had no problem believing that humans and stuffed animals live together naturally in it, just like the humans and cartoons in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, and I enjoyed seeing what was different in that world, how things worked... In that respect, the filmmakers came up with a lot of ideas that were plain and simply great. That with such amazing backdrops, there's a pretty much classic film noir story about a former cop who makes his living as a private eye and, after a visit from a pretty damn seductive client with a secret, gets involved in something he couldn't even imagine... ? Some may take that as a minus, I take it as a joke on the other. Plus, Melissa McCarthy wasn't awkward here, and my favorite comedienne, Maya Rudolph, was more than a bonus in a charming secretary role. (11/06/2019)