Warning: contains spoilers.
For the first time since “Psych: The Musical” James Roday and Dulé Hill return as Shawn Spencer, “psychic” detective and Burton Guster also known as Gus and Shawn’s best friend in “Psych: The Movie.” This time they have to rush against the clock to save Juliet O’Hara a detective and Shawn’s fiance from a mystery assailant.
The movie picks up sometime in the future with Shawn and his friends now living in San Francisco. Shawn occupies his free time by looking for his grandmother’s ring. He claims that without it he can’t marry Juliet, but Gus and others feel suspicious about Shawn’s real reasons for avoiding marriage.
But after Juliet’s partner is shot Shawn and Gus travel to an abandoned mental hospital where they stumble upon a much bigger plot to attack Juliet. They have to move fast to find out who the attacker is before any action can be taken against Juliet.
In between Shawn’s and Gus’ search for clues, Gus finds himself the target of a young woman’s affection from the planetarium who claims to be Gus’ ideal match and has the tendency to insert herself into his everyday life. Meanwhile Juliet struggles with the idea that she might be responsible for her partner’s condition.
The movie aired originally on Dec. 7 on USA Network. It featured the entire main cast, even though some were just brief cameos with characters offering helpful advice. The movie was 88 minutes long and was packed full of action and comedy. John Cena even joined the party playing Juliet’s brother on the run from a group of shadowy bad guys.
Each scene is a fantastic demonstration of “Psych’s” comedy style. From arguments over Pluto’s planet status and treating it like a relationship status, to “pyschphrancisco,” Shawn’s new psychic private investigation service, purposeful spelled in all lowercase letters and as one word. The movie is filled with scenes of Shawn using dry humor to talking his way out of dangerous situations, like using his need to start Christmas shopping earlier in the year to avoid suspicion from a gangster and his crew.
Unfortunately Timothy Omundson the actor who plays Detective Carlton “Lassie” Lassiter, Juliet’s mentor, suffered from a stroke before the filming for the movie began forcing him to take a smaller part in the movie than what was planned originally and parts of the movie had to be rewritten as Detective Lassiter was originally planned to have a bigger role in the movie.
Regardless, “Psych: The Movie” is a fantastic film that is a fitting addition to the “Psych” TV series. Littered with inside jokes, all sorts of allusions, hiding in plain sight gags and Easter eggs that longtime “Psych” fans will love while newcomers will have a great movie to start their journey into the world of “Psych.”
9/10
Mitchell Miller // Co-Copy Editor
