MOVIE REVIEW : NO PLEA BARGAINING: AN F-GRADE FOR ‘POLICE 2’

Not since “The Heretic” tried to follow up “The Exorcist” has there been so dismal a sequel as “Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment” (Citywide).

“Police Academy” was such a good belly laugh that it’s painful to watch Steve Guttenberg and its other talented graduates shot down by the sheer wretchedness of “Their First Assignment,” which finds them sent to a Skid Row precinct to help rid the area of gang warfare.

Equally defeated are such funny people as Howard Hesseman as the precinct’s beleaguered captain, Art Metrano as his treacherous lieutenant and Colleen Camp as a cop who’s as gung ho as she is pretty. “Their First Assignment” (a mild PG-13) gets an F.

‘POLICE ACADEMY 2: THEIR FIRST ASSIGNMENT’ A Warners release of a Ladd Co. production. Exec. producer John Goldwyn. Producer Paul Maslansky. Co-producer Leonard Kroll. Director Jerry Paris. Screenplay Barry Blaustein, David Sheffield; based on characters created by Neal Israel & Pat Proft. Camera James Crabe. Music Robert Folk. Production designer Trevor Williams. Costumes Bernie Pollack. Stunt coordinator Joe Dunne. Film editor Bob Wyman. With Steve Guttenberg, Bubba Smith, David Graf, Michael Winslow, Bruce Mahler, Marion Ramsey, Colleen Camp, Howard Hesseman, Art Metrano, George Gaynes, Bob Goldthwait, Julie Brown, Peter Van Norden, Tim Kazurinsky.

Running time: 1 hour, 27 minutes.

MPAA-rated: PG-13.