"Hollywood Homicide" is a very confused movie. This action-comedy struggles to find a balance, and the first half suffers because of it. On paper "Hollywood Homicide" seems like a great idea, casting one of cinema's legendary male leads with a talented newcomer and putting them both in a buddy-cop film.

Unlike other buddy-cop mov-ies, each has an interesting side job. Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) is also a struggling real-estate broker trying to land a deal while K.C. Calden (Josh Hartnett) doubles as a yoga teacher who has a hard time keeping a platonic relationship with his students, and is also an aspiring actor trying to find his inner Brando.

The movie's plot centers on solving the quadruple murders of a rap group and is infused with music of some of industry's finest. The song selection often picks up the sagging storyline. In fact, Gladys Knight and Smoky Robinson even have supporting roles. Master P had "mo' problems" acting as he struggled to play Joe Gavilan's real-estate client. The main villains are two shady cops, both of whom have harmed our heroes earlier in life, and a record executive who kills uncooperative acts.

Two of the movie's problems are its arbitrary subplots and shallow characters, which ultimately detract from the humor and quick wit of the protagonists, one of the only saving graces of the movie.

The movie does have its bright moments. With Harrison Ford, the film has some quirks that we have grown to love in other characters such as Han Solo and Indiana Jones. He also has a steamy romance with Ruby (Lena Olin from "Alias"). This age-appropriate couple is funny and very refreshing in a movie with so much violence. The action sequences are very good toward the end, even though they feature the cliché rooftop and car chases.

"Hollywood Homicide" isn't hard to swallow as a whole, but it is painful to see what could have been a great movie turn out only mediocre. Lovers of the buddy-cop genre should see this movie, but if you're a wary moviegoer looking for a good movie, see "Nemo" again.