videorama-759-859391 I've got to love Mark Lester. There's no movie of here's I hate. Here, away from the norm of usual of action dramas, etc, out pops a comedy with some dramatic moments. Here, he succeeds again. AAD is funny, let me tell ya. Candy who's set up by bad guy cops, in a t.v heist, teams up with American Pie's Levy (one of the worst lawyers you'll ever meet) who's forced to resign. Their new careers have em' working as security guards for an Armaguard company, but soon smell something besides mounds of garbage (check out that scene) where corrupt union figures, and some other bad guys are robbing genuine employers off their doe. Candy and Levy make a great team and get up to some real shenanigans, while also getting to the core of this operation. Steve Railsback, is unforgettable as a wild out there oil tanker driver, the most accepting, when his rig goes up in flames. Too, this is the first flick I saw Ms Ryan in, who plays the daughter of the cranky boss running the business, forced into working with the bad guys. This film also has a lot to offer like shark catching, and is a teaching tool to cops who climb trees to rescue cats from them, although how Candy got up there is a big visual fault upon the director, while not showing him clinging onto any others on the start up. Too, what the hell's wrong with always angry Tiny Lister Junior, as the big pointy bald guy/security honcho Bruno. See him in 8 Million Ways To Die and work that out too. Although running for only a week in Adelaide cinemas, here's one comedy flick I really liked and still do up until this day. Judy 'Boobs' Landers as one of Candy's girls is another comedy asset. One of the better comedies of this ilk.

david-sarkies John Candy is not one of the all time great actors, but he is memorable in his own way. His characters tend to be cute, cuddly, and sometimes simply clumsy. His characters were enjoyable and his movies entertaining. Unfortunately, now that he is dead, others try to imitate his style of acting and just don't seem to come close. Everybody is an original and that goes just as true for John Candy as it does for everybody else. Armed and Dangerous is about a police officer, Dooley (John Candy) who catches a couple of crooked cops stealing television sets, but is framed instead. Another character, a hopeless lawyer, is encouraged by a judge to quit law and find another career, so they both become private security guards. As guards they are forced to join a union and discover that this union is conducting some very illicit business, including staging robberies when the security guards are off duty. Dooley and the ex-lawyer are caught by this scam and decide to expose the crooks. This movie is an anti-union movie. In every part of the movie, the union is portrayed in a very bad light. The union bosses are all crooks and the cast is made up of very thuggish looking characters. The boss is corrupt and the union is more concerned with making money for themselves than for looking after the workers. When confronted with a lawyer who asks too many questions, they ban the lawyer from the meetings so that they might continue with their crooked schemes. The purpose of this movie seems to reinforce in our minds that unions are evil and that they should be disbanded. Americans have always hated unions because they are too left and infringe on the right of the individual to make money. The movie ignores that facet of the union that protects the worker though. Instead we are constantly forced to see the evil side of the union and not the good side. It is an entertaining movie with its share of comedy. Armed and Dangerous is a movie that John Candy fans will appreciate, and though I do not consider myself a devout fan, I do not mind him. In another way this movie seems to be like Police Academy, except it does not focus on the training but rather the work.

Amy Adler Frank (John Candy) is a good policeman but he is framed for theft when he catches other officers pilfering electronics. He is kicked off the force in short order. Meanwhile, Norman (Eugene Levy) is an inept lawyer who messes up big time when he assigned to defend a Charles Manson type offender. The judge in the case orders Norman to find alternative work. With few options, Frank and Norman both enroll in a security guard officers training school, where they become fast friends and partners. This is, in part, because so many of their classmates are complete idiots, like the man who wonders if he should put his own name on the application line that says "name"! Frank and Norman's first assignment is to stand watch inside a factory but they soon realize that their company, Guard Dog Security, may have some criminals on the staff, ones that are stealing from the companies they are supposed to be guarding. Can Frank and Norman, with the help of the firm-owner's daughter, Maggie (Meg Ryan), expose the bad elements in the company, without getting fired or killed? This is a very funny film with abundant laughs. Yes, it may be considered a more "low-brow" vehicle, but it is still very mirthful and will cause any viewer to laugh themselves silly. Just watching the less-than-intelligent guards on the staff of the security firm makes for a fun, fun evening. Candy, Levy, and Ryan are terrific but, then, so are the relative unknowns who round out the rest of the cast. Sets, costumes, and production values are great, too. If you want to see a classic Candy film, this is a great choice, for it displays his marvelous and abundant talent, no doubt. But, anyone truly wishing to transport themselves to a world of laughter will find this one a very good choice.

phillafella ARMED AND DANGEROUS is not one of the greats of John Candy. This film about a fired cop who ends up working for a small security system run by the mob is very weak and not very much a comedy. There are some moments that I did enjoy, like looking at Candy in a pilot suit, but it doesn't seem to matter much. ARMED AND DANGEROUS is still a dangerously disappointing dud brought to us by the director of the equally dumb actioner COMMANDO. What a sad excuse for a comedy!1 out of 5