Reconsidering "Kindergarten Cop" (1990)

I recently came across Ivan Reitman's classic comedy about an undercover police officer posing as a kindergarten teacher. I haven't seen it in about ten years or so, and to my surprise, it really has withstood the test of time. It's actually not that bad of a movie at all.

At a little under 2 hours, the movie is not rushed and Reitman took the time to develop the characters and the story. I am amazed at how long it was into the movie before we even see the school children because usually in a movie like this, the director will bow to the gimmick and try to force those kids in there in a minute or two after the opening credits. But this movie resists that temptation and spends time doing the gruntwork.

And again, after Arnold meets the children, there is a huge uninterrupted section of comedy that I can appreciate. There are some plot turns--where Arnold thinks he has found the right child but its a false alarm--and no matter what, the movie seems to maintain its own internal clock.

Granted the evil ex-husband and mother-in-law characters are absolutely terrible, this movie still gets the most mileage from its concept and cast.