Amazon.com: Police Academy 5 [VHS]: Rene Auberjonois, G.W. Bailey, Dan Barrows, Leslie Easterbrook, George Gaynes, David Graf, Archie Hahn, James Hampton, Richard Jasen, Janet Jones, Lance Kinsey, Jerry Lazarus, Dana Mark, Matt McCoy, Marion Ramsey, George R. Robertson, Bubba Smith, Tab Thacker, Michael Winslow: Video

"Police Academy 5" is a disappointment. Sure, it is a Police Academy movie, so we know it is light slapstick humor, but this one is not nearly as good as any of the previous Police Academy movies. This fifth film is subtitled "Assignment Miami Beach" and this means that some of our favorite officers will be returning and heading south to Florida.

I'll try to sum this up as succinctly as possible, as the plot to this movie isn't terribly important (or well done, for that matter). Plot point 1: Captain Harris (G.W. Bailey) is after the job of Commandant Lassard (George Gaynes). Lassard has reached the mandatory retirement age, and Harris is going to make sure that Lassard retires. Meanwhile, Lassard is headed down to Florida to receive the award of "Police Officer of the Decade", and he wants his favorite recruits (now officers) to come with him. This brings Hightower (Bubba Smith), Tackleberry (David Graf), Jones (Michael Winslow), Callahan (Leslie Easterbrook) and the soft-voiced Hooks (Marion Ramsey) to Florida. Meanwhile, there is a robbery of a stash of diamonds from a museum (it seems), and due to a mix up at the airport, Lassard unknowingly switches bags with the thief. The thief will stop at nothing to get the diamonds back. Hilarity is supposed to ensue.

Unfortunately, hilarity does not ensue. For a fan of the Police Academy movies, the fifth installment is somewhat cute and friendly and easy going (perfect for kids, really), but it is lacking some of the heart and humor of the earlier films in the series. This one only has a PG rating, compared to the R of the first film, so it is plain that this has turned into a family friendly series. Part of the problem with this movie is the lack of Officer Carey Mahoney (Steve Guttenberg), who left the series after the fourth movie. While these have always been ensemble movies, Mahoney has been something of the heart and the closest thing to a "main character" that the Police Academy movies had. He is replaced by Lassard's nephew, Nick Lassard (Matt McCoy). Nick Lassard is a police officer in Miami and, like Mahoney, is a friendly, smart-aleck, womanizer. He just isn't as likeable as Mahoney was (as hard as McCoy tries), and feels like a poor replacement for Mahoney (who isn't even mentioned in the movie). Nick has a love interest, also a cop, in Kate (Janet Jones, better known as Wayne Gretzky's wife).

Overall, "Police Academy 5" feels flat, and much less funny than the earlier (though still silly) Police Academy movies. It may be cheap entertainment, but it's just not well made cheap entertainment.

-Joe Sherry

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It;s Okay But It's Just Not The Same Without Steve Guttenberg!, October 15, 2005

A Kid's Review

I liked the Police Academy movies and I agree with the reviewers who wrote that they though the first four Police Academy movies are the best. This movie was okay and had some amusing scenes but suffered from the loss of Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney.

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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars the first "direct to video" sequel in the series, March 29, 2003

By	Movie Dude (Georgia) - See all my reviews

Some say the first Police Academy was the best in the series. Some say the first two Police Academy movies were the best in the series. However, most people I know have said that Police Academy 5 was the first flop in the series and here are some reasons why. First of all, any sequel in a series of films that is direct to video is most likely not as good as it's previous sequels. Second, Carrey Mahoney (Steve Guttenburg) is very much missed in this movie. Third, G.W. Bailey does not do as good of a job playing Captain Harris in this film as he did in Police Academy 1 & 4. Fourth, I realize that the plots in the Police Academy moives are not supposed to be taken seriously. However, the plot for Police Academy 5 was just not interesting in the least. Sure, it was a good idea to have Police Academy 5 take place in Miami Beach but everything else pretty much fails for the movie. Skip this one if you haven't already seen it and watch Police Academy 6.