Warner Brothers Studio took the beloved 70s television show, Starsky and Hutch, and transformed it into a hilarious movie about two unusual cops who join up to fight crime in Bay City.
Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson star as the destructive duo, Starsky and Hutch, determined to solve the case and catch the bad guys.

Ben Stiller assumes the role of the uptight, overly dedicated cop, David Starsky. In an attempt to live up to his mother’s reputation as a legendary cop, Starsky cruises around Bay City in his Gran Torino never halting his journey to stop crime. Owen Wilson plays the laid-back Ken "Hutch" Hutchinson who is always trying to make a quick buck rather than take the time to stop criminals. Supporting cast members include Carmen Electra and Amy Smart as two Bay City cheerleaders eager to do anything to assist Starsky and Hutch in their investigation and Vince Vaughn as the over-tempered drug lord Reese Feldman. Snoop Dog also stars as the street-savy informant, Huggy Bear, and does an excellent job portraying the original character.

The plot of the 70s show usually consisted of Starsky and Hutch getting a radio call about a group of criminals who had broken the law. They would then get in their Gran Torino and Starsky would chase them down, while Hutch shot at the criminals’ car. Because this would not serve as an adequate plot for a movie, the writer and director of the film, Todd Phillips (Road Trip, Old School) created a new and very entertaining story about how the two cops first were assigned as partners and solved their first case. The movie starts by introducing the two completely opposite cops to the audience and by explaining that they are not able hold a partner so they are assigned to each other to solve a "floater" case. The two soon discover that there is much more to the case than just a murder, and that a drug lord is planning one of the biggest sales in Bay City history.

Although this detective tale about murder and drugs seems serious, Phillips transforms it a series of humorous acts and the audience has little time to catch its breath. Some of these scenes include Hutch (Wilson) singing a love song for the two Bay City cheerleaders played by Electra and Smart. While Hutch sings the song he shares an emotional moment with an intoxicated Starsky who sees animated birds flying around Hutch’s head. In addition, when Starsky and Hutch travel to the county prison they question a homosexual, dragon-loving suspect beautifully portrayed by Will Ferrell. In order to get him to talk the pair is forced to act out some very disturbing yet amusing dragon mating rituals. Finally the scene that takes the show is when Starsky and Hutch first try to bust Feldman and Starsky foolishly shoots into his garage and kills Feldman’s Bar Mitzvah present for his daughter.

Although the movie seems to please the audience, it begins to lack at certain moments. As the plot unfolds it becomes clear that the movie lacks a strong story line, and that it is made up of small comedic scenes that although funny, but do not form a strong plot.

Despite the lack of a great plot, the comedy is enough to make this spoof a pleasant two hours. With many memorable catch phrases, great performances by Wilson, Snoop Dog, and Ferrell, and an awkward and funny meeting between Wilson and Stiller and the original duo (David Soul and Paul Michael,) Starsky and Hutch is a crowd-pleaser that is sure be remembered.

Running time 1 hr. 40 mins.