'Central Intelligence' Is About More Than Laughs

Anyone who knows me knows that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is my number one celebrity crush, always and forever. I have loved him since I could smell what The Rock was cooking, and I will love him until my dying breath. Anyone who knows me also knows that I have a weird obsession with spies. So when I found out that Johnson was starring in a new movie with Kevin Hart called Central Intelligence, I had a bit of a freak out. Two things I love in one? What could be better? Well, if I learned that Central Intelligence is a true story, based on actual facts and reality.

Over the past few years, movies like Argo and Bridge of Spies have taken real-life espionage events and turned them into silver screen entertainment, so it might not be such a big leap, then, for Central Intelligence to also have basis in reality. Yet the new movie is not, unfortunately, based on a true story. It does look like it'll be hugely entertaining, though. Co-written by The Mindy Project's Ike Barinholtz and Dave Stassen Central Intelligence is about a former high-school superstar, Calvin (Hart), who is recruited by former nerd Bob (Johnson) at their 20th high school reunion to help him crack a case and essentially, save the world. On paper it seems like your typical cliched "odd couple" buddy comedy. But in reality, Central Intelligence speaks to a larger issue: bullying.

Johnson's character, Bob, was once a nerdy, overweight kid who was continuously bullied by the "cool kids" in high school. As an adult, Bob is a giant, muscular, Hercules of a man (swoon) who has joined the CIA because, as he says in the trailer, he "doesn't like bullies." Talk about turning lemons into lemonade. In an interview with USA Today, Johnson and Hart said that they were drawn to the movie's pronounced "anti-bullying" theme, as the lead characters learn to embrace their adult lives without insecurities. It seems that the film will focus on the action and the comedy as much as it's going to get the message out there: bullying is never OK, but if you focus on staying true to yourself and persevere even in the toughest and most brutal of circumstances, you can come out on top.

Central Intelligence may not be based on a true story, but it sends a powerful message: if you believe in yourself and don't let others dictate who you are, you'll succeed. Like the trailer says, sometimes it takes a little Hart and a big Johnson to get the message out there and to save the world.

Images: Giphy; Warner Bros.