Two Guns - 3 smiles

“Two Guns,” starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg, is loud, fun, quick moving and features some nice acting by its stars. But don’t look at the story line too closely. The movie is about a pair of undercover agents, neither of whom is aware of his partner’s real identity. Bobby Trench (Washington) is DEA and Stig (Wahlberg) is Navy Intelligence, but each thinks he’s paired up with a legitimate crook. Their mutual goal is to take down cartel lord Papi Greco (Edward James Olmos). Their plan to do this, which is never really clear, involves robbing a bank where Papi’s money is supposedly stashed in safe deposit boxes. After the robbery, however, they find out that the stolen money belongs to the CIA and their enforcer (Bill Paxton), who wants it back. Additional complications occur when Bobby discovers his ex-girlfriend, Deb (Paula Patton) is involved and Stig’s commanding officer, Quince (James Marsden), decides the money should be his.

The relationship between Bobby and Stig, which falls into the tired category of mismatched buddies, is saved by the back-and-forth banter of Blake Masters’ script. The villains are all suitably cartoonish and none exudes much menace although Paxton’s sadistic CIA man comes close. Director Baltasar Kormakur keeps things moving and the action is over-the-top with its chases, shoot-outs and explosions. The fun to be had is watching how Bobby and Stig survive a variety of seemingly inescapable situations. “Two Guns” is an enjoyable way to spend a summer afternoon at the movies. 8/4/13