Cop and a Half

{{Infobox film

| name = Cop and a Half

| image = Cop and a Half (1993 film) poster.jpg

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Henry Winkler

| producer = Paul Maslansky

| writer = Arne Olsen

| starring = {{plainlist|

}}

| cinematography = Bill Butler

| editing = {{plainlist|

}}

| music = Alan Silvestri

| studio = Imagine Entertainment

| distributor = Universal Pictures

| released = {{film date|1993|4|2}}

| runtime = 93 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget = $14 million{{cite news|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Film/59496-COP--12|title=Cop & 1/2|work=American Film Institute|access-date=2023-01-03}}

| gross = $40.7 million{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=copandahalf.htm|title=Cop and a Half|work=Box Office Mojo|access-date=2015-12-09}}

}}

Cop and a Half is a 1993 American family buddy cop-comedy film directed by Henry Winkler, and stars Burt Reynolds, Norman D. Golden II and Ray Sharkey (in his final role). Reynolds plays a veteran cop who reluctantly takes an eight-year-old boy (Golden) as his partner to solve a murder investigation.

Cop and a Half opened at #1 in the U.S. and grossed $40.7 million worldwide against a $14 million budget. The film was followed by a lower budgeted, direct-to-DVD sequel, Cop and a Half: New Recruit (2017).

Plot

Devon Butler is an eight-year old boy who lives in Tampa Bay, Florida with his grandmother Rachel in a small apartment. Devon dreams of being a cop. He watches police TV shows, knows police procedures, and plays cops and robbers with his friend Raymond Sanchez. One day, while snooping around in a warehouse, he witnesses a murder. He goes to the police station to report the crime where he meets Captain Rubio and Detective Nick McKenna, who dislikes children. The police try and get information out of Devon, but he refuses to give the information unless they make him a cop. They place him in protective custody with Detective McKenna, and the two team up in a comic series of events to find the killer. They eventually take down the drug kingpin who ordered the hit and Devon becomes a real life hero and Detective McKenna changes his mind about disliking children. Life eventually returns back to normal and Devon and Detective McKenna become friends.

Cast

{{castlist|

Burt Reynolds as Detective Nick McKenna{{cite news|title= Florida Son Burt Reynolds Comes Of Age|publisher= Orlando Sentinel|url= https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1992/06/29/florida-son-burt-reynolds-comes-of-age/|access-date=2011-01-11}}
Norman D. Golden II as Devon Butler
Ray Sharkey as Vinnie Fountain
Ruby Dee as Rachel Baldwin
Holland Taylor as Captain Rubio
Frank Sivero as "Chu"
Marc Macaulay as Waldo
Tom McCleister as Rudy
Ralph Wilcox as Detective Matt McPhail
Rocky Giordani as Quintero
Sammy Hernandez as Ray Sanchez
Sean O'Neal as McNally
Tom Kouchalakos as Detective Jenkins

}}

Production

Macaulay Culkin was approached to play the child.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1991/film/features/imagine-inks-winkler-to-helm-cop-wooing-culkin-99126143/|title=Imagine Inks Winkler To helm 'Cop'; Wooing Culkin|author=|work=Variety|date=1991-03-03|access-date=2016-10-24}} Culkin dropped out, along with Kurt Russell, who was attached to play Det. McKenna, when the film was delayed for script rewrites. The child co-star was re-written to be female, but was returned to male when Golden was cast.{{cite web|url=http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=59496|title=Cop & 1/2|work=American Film Institute|access-date=2016-10-24}} An entire B roll was shot using Peter Weller as the titular cop. It was scrapped when Weller was found to be taking the film too seriously. Filming took place in Tampa, Florida, between April and June 1992.{{cite news|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1992/05/07/reynolds-resumes-filming-cop-and-a-half-in-tampa/|title=Reynolds Resumes Filming 'Cop And A Half' In Tampa|author=|work=Orlando Sentinel|date=1992-05-07|access-date=2016-10-24}}

Reynolds reportedly argued with director Winkler through the shoot, and would become convinced that producer Brian Grazer refused to work with him again as a result.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/06/16/magazine/deliverance.html |title=Deliverance |first=Lynn |last=Hirschberg |work=The New York Times Magazine |date=1996-06-16 |access-date=2018-08-28}}

Despite several crew members alleging that Reynolds was difficult to work with, he behaved with incredible courtesy toward Golden. In a 2024 interview, Golden stated that he remembered that Reynolds as a "class act" who took issue with the disingenuous people who were "only around him for who he was". Golden recalls Reynolds as being responsive to the more genuine individuals around him.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDTnRC7GrIA/ Interview with "Cop and a Half" Actor Norman D. Golden II]. (May. 27, 2024).

The film's original score was composed by Alan Silvestri.

Soundtrack

Joey Lawrence's "Nothin' My Love Can't Fix" is used as the end title song.

Reception

The film received mostly negative reviews from film critics, and holds a 13% approval rating on the film review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 3.3/10.{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cop_and_12 |title=Cop and a Half |work=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango Media |access-date=January 11, 2023}} Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "B+" on scale of A+ to F.{{cite web |url= https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |title= Cinemascore |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date= 2018-12-20 }}

Jay Boyar of the Orlando Sentinel wrote, "Just about the only really enjoyable thing about Cop and a Half is Norman D. Golden II, who is genuinely cute and a pretty good little actor besides."{{cite web|last=Boyar |first=Jay |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1993/04/02/cop-and-a-half-isnt-a-whole-lot-of-fun/ |title='Cop And A Half' Isn't A Whole Lot Of Fun - Orlando Sentinel |work=Orlando Sentinel |date=April 2, 1993 |access-date=March 9, 2015}}

Film critic and historian Leonard Maltin seemed to agree. "A hemorrhoid-and-a-half to anyone who sits all the way through this...abjectly painful comedy, which does about as much for Reynolds' career as Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot did for Sylvester Stallone's. That it was Ray Sharkey's last movie adds insult to injury."{{cite book|title=Leonard Maltin's 2009 Movie Guide|last=Maltin|first=Leonard|publisher=Penguin Group|year=2008|isbn=9780452289789|page=281|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6EgPDierNGUC&pg=PA281}}

Critic Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune also excoriated the film, seeing it as indicative of "artistic bankruptcy" on Burt Reynolds's part, and singled out Norman D. Golden II's performance as "awkward". Siskel later called it the worst movie of 1993. Siskel speculated that NBC thought little of the film when they aired it in its broadcast-network debut, pointing out that they scheduled it opposite the 1997 Super Bowl.Gene Siskel. "The Joy of Watching 'The Joy Luck Club'" TV Guide; January 25, 1997; Page 18

However, Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave it 3 stars out of a possible 4, saying, "There isn't much that's original in Cop and a Half, but there's a lot that's entertaining, and there's a winning performance by a young man with a big name, Norman D. Golden II, who plays little Devon Butler, a kid who dreams of someday wearing the shield."{{cite news|url=http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/cop-and-a-half-1993|title=Cop and a Half|last=Ebert|first=Roger|work=RogerEbert.com |publisher=Ebert Digital LLC|date=April 2, 1993|access-date=December 9, 2015}}

=Box office=

The film debuted at number 1.{{cite news|title= Weekend Box Office : 4 Oscars Give 'Unforgiven' a Boost|work=Los Angeles Times|date=April 6, 1993|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-04-06-ca-19747-story.html|last=Fox|first=David J.|access-date=January 11, 2011}} In its second week it dropped to number 3.{{cite news|title= Weekend Box Office : Filmgoers Accepting 'Proposal'|work=Los Angeles Times|date=April 13, 1993|last=Fox|first=David J.|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-04-13-ca-22210-story.html|access-date=January 11, 2011}} Industry analysts expected it to open with $4 million, but it grossed $6 million.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/kidpower-propels-nat-l-b-o-105684/|title=Kidpower propels nat'l B.O.|last=Klady|first=Leonard|work=Variety|publisher=Penske Business Media|date=April 6, 1993|access-date=October 24, 2016}} Variety attributed the film's opening to its poster, which they said is reminiscent of Kindergarten Cop.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/art-imitating-art-in-one-sheets-106502/|title=Art imitating art in one-sheets|last=Marx|first=Andy|work=Variety|publisher=Penske Business Media|date=May 4, 1993|access-date=October 24, 2016}} It grossed a total of $31.9 million in the U.S., and another $8.8 in other territories, for worldwide total of $40.7 million, making the film a considerable success against its modest $14 million budget.

Awards

class="wikitable"
Awards ! Category ! Subject ! Result
rowspan=3\|Stinkers Bad Movie Awards{{cite web\|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1993/1993st.htm\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017173203/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1993/1993st.htm\|archive-date=2006-10-17\|title=1993 16th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards\|access-date=April 2, 2013\|work=Los Angeles Times}} \|Worst Picture \| \|{{nom}}
Worst Actor \|Burt Reynolds \|{{nom}}
Worst Actor \|Norman D. Golden II \|{{nom}}
rowspan=2\|Golden Raspberry Award \|Worst Actor \|Burt Reynolds \|{{won}}{{cite book\|title=The Official Razzie Movie Guide\|last=Wilson\|first=John\|publisher=Grand Central Publishing\|year=2007\|isbn=9780446510080\|chapter=Fourteenth Annual Razzies (1993)\|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bLpJHjGFNk8C&pg=PT256}}
Worst New Star \|rowspan=2\|Norman D. Golden II \|{{nom}}
Young Artist Award \|Best Actor Under Ten in a Motion Picture \|{{nom}}{{cite web\|url=http://www.youngartistawards.org/pastnoms15.htm\|title=Fifteenth Annual Youth in Film Awards\|work=Young Artist Association\|access-date=2016-10-24}}

class="wikitable"

Awards

! Category

! Subject

! Result

rowspan=3|Stinkers Bad Movie Awards{{cite web|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1993/1993st.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017173203/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1993/1993st.htm|archive-date=2006-10-17|title=1993 16th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards|access-date=April 2, 2013|work=Los Angeles Times}}

|Worst Picture

|{{nom}}

Worst Actor

|Burt Reynolds

|{{nom}}

Worst Actor

|Norman D. Golden II

|{{nom}}

rowspan=2|Golden Raspberry Award

|Worst Actor

|Burt Reynolds

|{{won}}{{cite book|title=The Official Razzie Movie Guide|last=Wilson|first=John|publisher=Grand Central Publishing|year=2007|isbn=9780446510080|chapter=Fourteenth Annual Razzies (1993)|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bLpJHjGFNk8C&pg=PT256}}

Worst New Star

|rowspan=2|Norman D. Golden II

|{{nom}}

Young Artist Award

|Best Actor Under Ten in a Motion Picture

|{{nom}}{{cite web|url=http://www.youngartistawards.org/pastnoms15.htm|title=Fifteenth Annual Youth in Film Awards|work=Young Artist Association|access-date=2016-10-24}}

Sequel

A straight-to-DVD sequel, titled Cop and a Half: New Recruit, was released on August 10, 2017, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, Lulu Wilson, Janet Kidder, Michael Coleman, Giles Panton, Jordyn Ashley Olson, and Wallace Shawn.