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Miss and Mrs. Cops (2019) Movie Review: An offshoot of the friendship film genre, the Buddy Cop movie has long been a staple of cinema in various forms. It’s a type of narrative that has worked across multiple genres and multiple countries; at times, it works against the description of a cop film using soldiers, spies, and even criminals as the lead protagonists. Much like the buddy film, the buddy cop film uses dual protagonists with different personalities to add extra spice to the central plot. In contrast to films about friendship, the buddy cop picture rarely begins with these two characters on the same page. In fact, their conflicting dynamic yet race towards the same goal makes the film’s conflict much more significant. The two individuals are forced to confront their differences and put them aside so as to complete their high-stakes mission.
Despite its rich history and the long list of Buddy films, the sub-genre lacks great female representation, with only a handful of movies to its name. Oddly, that representation isn’t just confined to Hollywood but world cinema as well. The few that exist showcase it as a goldmine of a genre to be explored from the female perspective.
After all, when one thinks of female cop movies, one thinks of “Silence of the Lambs” and Clarice Starling. As the opening of that film explores, Clarice faces an uphill struggle to prove her worth and find her place amidst the FBI. The conflict between bureaucracy and power structures in an environment like law enforcement is rife with tension and even comedic situations. Set such a plot in rigid and patriarchal South Korea, and then it explodes onto the screen.
This is where writer-director Jung Da-Won’s film comes in. “Miss & Mrs. Cops” is the tale of two female cops. As with the buddy cop genre, the two women are in constant conflict until a case requires their special expertise. Mi-yeong (Ra Mi-ran) was a once renegade Police Officer of an all-female squad who was now relegated to a measly Public Service Centre job after marriage. Ji-hye (Lee Sung-kyung) is her sister-in-law, a rookie officer with a temperament that gets in her own way as she climbs the ranks of the force. They’re equally frustrated with each other as they are with their lazy, jobless husband/brother.
A spate of suicides by young women continues to plague the city. The police are too busy chasing records and bigger cases to care for until a young woman asks the two protagonists for help. A new synthetic drug applied as a perfume is being used by criminals led by Ji-chul (Yoon Sang-hyun) on unsuspecting women. The perfume immobilizes the women, allowing the criminals to assault them and film them to spread around the internet. These videos and the access to their viewers provide the gang with a distribution network for their drug business.
When one young woman, fearing for her image, approaches the two protagonists, she leaves them the trail to solve the case before attempting to kill herself. The sensitive issue at hand spurs the heroes into action despite the resistance of their superiors from their departments. Naturally, the subject matter is dense, with deep-rooted socio-political commentary on consent, assault, and the patriarchal system in place. That dramatic tension is something Jung Da-won is well aware of, with the screenplay tackling these issues from the voices of its central characters.
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Mi-yeong is lost trying to reclaim her past glory, desiring to protect the women surrounding her from their unjustified guilt. Ji-hye, as a young woman, confronts the horrors of her world head-on, determined to be the kind of officer her sister-in-law was at one point in time. Their contradictory methods and conflicts dissipate quickly and naturally as they each realize they have the same approach but only differ in age. However, since this is a buddy cop film, the situations towards solving the case are bound to be filled with comedy. Seeing as the women in trouble are from Ji’s generation, Jung places her at the center of dramatic conflict. In return, this allows him to explore the bits of furious action and comedy through Mi-Yeong’s arc of self-discovery.
There’s the act of a bumbling fool who snaps into action, which Ra Mi-ran captures perfectly. The chemistry between her and Lee, as well as their hacker friend Jang-mi (Choi Soo-young), adds the perfect amount of levity as the drama ramps up. Yet, on a screenplay level, that is where the film also unravels. Despite the danger of their investigation and the situations that arise, mainly when the villains catch Ji-hye, the shift between comedy and thriller isn’t organic. The two tones of the buddy cop film are always in conflict with one another. The subject matter is too complex at times for scenes to shift from tension to humor without skipping a beat.
It devalues the risks to the women surrounding the narrative, especially as that humorous tone overwhelms Yoon Sang-hyun’s menacing performance as the central villain. This jarring effect in the writing is enhanced by the most haphazard editing one could see in an action film of this nature. Many scenes of conversation or action that require a great impact are undercut by furious cutting. It becomes harder to engage with the film when the filmmaker disregards the imaginary line between actors and ruins the shot composition.
Speaking of the cinematography, while being pleasant in general, it is also bland, especially during the chase and fight sequences. It isn’t surprising to learn that the film is being adapted into a K-Drama with its bright, flat lighting scheme. Despite this, the themes and central characters converge beautifully, as in the buddy cop genre. Mi-yeong regains her self-worth as a once revered officer, while Ji-hye inspires her unit to take action. Mi-yeong also understands that the tension between her and Ji-hye stems from the fact that she once looked up to her as a no-nonsense cop. The two women unite to take down Ji-chul and protect the women who have been suppressed by his horrible crimes.
The resulting end neatly ties the themes of empowerment and heroism without being overtly underlined. While the writing is a bit messy, the added touch of melodrama and feel-good vibes help stick the landing.