It's Saturday, November 6. 9:21 a.m. I've just watched "Dragnet."

A lot of old television shows have been made into movies. Most of them, frankly, have been disappointments. I have to say that the movie version of "Dragnet" is one of the better ones. Based on the cast, it should be. I'm not sure you could do any better than casting Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks in the lead roles, respectively, of Sgt. Joe Friday (supposedly the great-nephew of the Joe Friday from the series) and Tom Hanks as his new partner Pep Streebek. Both played their roles perfectly. Aykroyd was a great satirical take on Jack Webb's character, and Hanks was the perfect balance. The supporting cast - with names like Christopher Plummer and Dabney Coleman and Harry Morgan (reprising his character of Gannon from a 1969 "Dragnet" movie, who's now the police captain) - also made this worth watching.

The story has Friday and Streebek investigating some type of pagan cult that's been causing havoc on the streets of the city. Their undercover encounter with the cult at one of its gatherings was hilarious. Overall, mind you, this isn't an outrageously funny movie. It's more humorous than anything, with appeal mostly to those who've seen the original series. If you've never seen the original series a lot of the subtle humour (which revolves around Aykroyd's parody of Webb's character) will be lost. However, for those who do know the original series, it's a fun nostalgia trip with a good cast.

Satire is a wonderful, but small genre, of movies. The most difficult to make truly funny is satire of movies or of TV programs. That's because they are hard to come up with originality. When the audience knows the original source so well, the writers have to create comedy that we can't see coming. It's the surprise that's needed to put the dialog across as humorous.

Unfortunately, "Dragnet" missed on this big time. It was so predictable throughout, that it's almost devoid of any original humor. That means no laughs. Then, with its combination of crude and crud, this film comes off as a big turd. It's too bad Tom Hanks picked this and a couple other stinker films as his career was taking off. And, Dan Aykroyd is capable of great comedy, not dumb, humorless garbage like this.

Friday (Dan Ackroyd) is the son of a famous detective and, now, he continues detecting in the family tradition. He has the same monotone, just the facts mantra, and conservative dress as his dad. His longtime partner moves away so he is paired with a new one, Streebek (Tom Hanks) who shows up with long hair and a flashy outfit. No, no, no, that's not gonna work. Before long, Streebek is looking VERY similar to Friday. But, his mode of operation is not the same and won't ever be. In the City of Angels at this time, a group calling itself PAGAN is stealing vehicles, setting fires, and leaving calling cards. Meanwhile, a stuffy minister Wurley (Christopher Plummer) and a playboy type (Dabney Coleman) are at odds over the place each has in society. Also, police commissioner (Elizabeth Ashley) has a "close" relationship with Wurley, who has big secrets unknown to her. As Friday and Streebek hunt down PAGAN, rescue ladies, encounter strippers, tangle with anacondas, and drive like maniacs, will they get the job done? Let me first say, I love Ackroyd and Hanks and they are not the problem here, for they try hard. Plummer does great, as he is totally unlikeable as written, and the rest of the cast are okay, too. Its the script, stupid, that's really kind of a drag, for the adventures of these two detectives are, many times, offensive. As the movie sets out to really spoof the original Dragnet television show, it might have been better to come closer to the Jack Webb version. If you like the two stars, and most viewers do, take a chance if you wish. But don't expect to be entertained in grand fashion.