Stop! or my Mom will Shoot is a whacky cop comedy starring Sylvester Stallone as a Detective, Joe Bomowski, who is very happy with his life even though parts of it are falling apart. However the worst thing in the world is about to happen to him – he is about to be visited by his mother, Tutti (played by Golden girl, Estelle Getty). She really is the worst mother anyone’s ever had – of course, she sort of turns out to be the best.

Even though this movie comes in for a lot of stick critically and won no less than 3 Razzies (the opposite of the Oscars), I found it kind of enjoyable in a silly way (unlike the only other reviewer of this film on Epinions!! – and usually Marie and I have a pretty similar taste in movies…). I actually quite like Stallone as a comic actor, he just manages to project a complete gormlessnes that suits the characters he plays in comedies down to the ground. Estelle Getty as his mother fusses around, interferes with his life, and endlessly tries to reunite her little boy with Gwen (played by JoBeth Williams), his former lover who also just happens to be the Lieutenant at work. She also has a very annoying habit of showing all his baby pictures to everyone and anyone that she meets, and has a complete lack of understanding about what’s going on – for instance, when buying illegal firearms (or cleaning them with soap suds and a pipe cleaner!!)

The storyline is a pretty typical comedy detective stuff, with a generally predictable plot about an insurance scam, cheesy stupid bad guys and ridiculous near-deaths that mother and son somehow manage to avoid. All the normal elements are there – the rivalry between detectives, the double-cross, the heroic ending. Still, if you’re in the right mood, it’s pretty entertaining and funny. Getty’s character is so annoying (and in sometimes familiar ways!) that you really do feel sorry for Stallone’s character. Williams as the love interest isn’t too bad and the supporting cast… well, they’re not all that terrible really.

The production values are relatively high, and the music score (Alan Silvestri) is good. The film never makes the mistake of taking itself too seriously (or at all seriously!), and I think that if someone watching it tries to take it seriously even for a second, it will completely ruin the film for them. Perhaps that explains why so many otherpeople hated it but I didn’t.

If you’re looking for intelligence, innovation, and hilarity, look elsewhere. If you want an undemanding film that’s very silly but quite fun at the same time, I will go against the masses and say it’s worth giving this one a shot. I really don’t think it’s all that bad, but then I wasn’t expecting anything other than a ludicrous movie considering the film’s title!!

Other Information

Director: Roger Spottiswoode (Turner and Hooch, Shoot to Kill (or Deadly Pursuit [UK title]), Tomorrow Never Dies)
Year of Release: 1992
Runtime:
Rating: PG (UK) PG-13 (USA)

The Razzies it won:

Worst Actor: Sylvester Stallone

Worst Screenplay: Blake Snyder, William Osborne & William Davies

Worst Supporting Actress: Estelle Getty


Sylvester Stallone considers this the worst film he's ever done. – oh well, I haven’t really seen many of his films so I don’t know if I’d agree or not!


Related Links

Sylvester Stallone was also in: Cliffhanger, Spy Kids 3D
Estelle Getty was also in: Mannequin

See also: Top Ten Comedies


Recommended: Yes