Bullet Points: The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence

I have never been in the camp of just because a movie is a sequel it is bad. I have enjoyed many a sequel and this is especially true when it comes to action movies. All one needs to do is take a look at action-packed series like American Ninja, Kickboxer, or Iron Eagle. Not every one of the sequels is good (Iron Eagle IV: On the Attack is a prime example) but some might be better than the original (American Ninja 2: The Confrontation is a prime example.) It is very serendipitous that you brought up Iron Eagle and American Ninja 2 because Chappy Sinclair himself, Louis Gossett Jr., just happens to be in another movie series with a superior sequel, The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence. While The Inspectors (1998) is an enjoyable movie (and how can a movie about the United States Postal Inspection Service be bad) I find the 2000 sequel to be a notch above. Luckily for you, I have some Bullet Points for The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence that are ready to be delivered… no postage required!

• Return To Sender – United States Postal Inspectors Frank Hughes (Louis Gossett Jr., Iron Eagle) and Alex Urbina (Jonathan Silverman) have returned to help solve another fascinating crime involving the United States Postal Service (USPS.) Right off the bat, I have to let you know that camaraderie between the two inspectors that was in the first film has returned in the sequel. Gossett and Silverman make for an unlikely pairing, but they play off of each other so well that they look like old friends. The small jokes and lighthearted moments (things that a comedic actor like Silverman excels in, natch) that are peppered in the movie combined with the surprisingly tense plot make for a fun movie. There is just enough action to keep your blood pumping, albeit the best action set piece was at the very beginning of the movie and features one of the most unexpected car crashes.

• Address Unknown – You are probably dying to know what Hughes and Urbina are busy inspecting in The Inspectors 2. Identity theft is the main crime and even though The Inspectors 2 came out in 2000, the crime is just as relevant today. Of course most of it probably has to do with the Internet and not mail as featured in The Inspectors 2. Joe, or maybe it is Francis, (Michael Madsen, Beyond the Law) is one of the partners in an identity theft crime ring. His true name is never revealed because he keeps stealing so many identities nobody knows the truth. Please don’t follow this technique, but Joe successfully steals credit card applications from mail boxes and opens the cards in other people’s names for his use. He and his partner use the cards, mainly for small purchases or cash advances, always careful to pay the minimum balance so the credit card companies aren’t alerted. When Joe’s partner dies (remember that awesome car crash I mentioned?) the identity theft is revealed and with all the stolen mail in the car, the US Postal Inspector Service is on the case.

• No Such Number – Hughes and Urbina are hunting a ghost. The only clues the inspectors have to start is a P.O. Box where all the credit card statements are mailed and the corpse of someone they only know as John Doe. Some serious sleuthing is summarily started. When Hughes and Urbina find some oddities with bank teller Betty Marsh that had an unusually large number of the cash advance transactions the deduction is that she must be working with Joe. Betty tells Joe that the inspectors are on to her (his initial response being to laugh at the thought of the Postal Inspectors) and that was her first mistake. Her second mistake was during coitus she says the magic words of “I love you so much.” Enter coitus interruptus. I’d like to ask Betty how that pillow tasted but she is unable to answer… ever. Joe is basically cleaning up his loose ends and plans on making a run for it. Hughes and Urbina are able to stop Joe from killing another teller at a different bank that he was using, but Joe managed to slip away once again.

• No Such Zone – Joe makes one major mistake, and that is using one credit card for much of his day to day purchases which leads the inspectors to a safe deposit box in bank with easily over one million in cash. Since this is Joe’s money, Hughes has a hunch that he will be trying to get as soon as possible. You better believe that we get to see a tense stakeout and an action packed hostage situation. I don’t want to spoil too much but I will let you know that Hughes is one cool cat. Also, there hasn’t been The Inspectors 3 so is that a hint as to the outcome of The Inspectors 2? Even though it is a sequel, The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence does a great job of giving us the all the characters we remember and love (besides Gossett and Silverman be on the lookout for fan favorites Greg Thirloway and Samantha Farris returning in their same roles from The Inspectors) but also delivering a new and exciting story. One thing you can always count on from me is some new and exciting Bonus Bullet Points.

• Free Advertising? – The Inspectors series at times come across like an ad for the USPS.
• You Don’t Mess With the USPS – The United States Postal Inspection Service is the oldest federal law enforcement agency in the country. Any crime that involves the use of the U.S. mail system falls under its jurisdiction and the Inspection Service has a conviction rate of over 98%. At least that is what the movie told me.
• If You Ever Wanted To See… someone puke on Louis Gossett Jr. and Jonathan Silverman’s shoulders than The Inspectors 2 is for you.
• Bird’s the Word – You black-whiskered vireo fans will get a kick out of Inspector Hughes’ wife.
• Canada Post Inspectors? – While the movie is set in Baltimore, MD, the filming was done in British Columbia, Canada. This makes for some interesting scenes with USPS mail boxes on the same streets with the Canadian flag and speed limit signs in km/h in the background.