[ WP ] Leonardo DiCaprio in a fit of rage begins to torpedo his own career by deliberately acting poorly and taking on bad films . He finally wins an oscar for starring in Paul Blart : Mall Cop 3 .

*Blart 3D Gets Lost in the Food Court* | July 4, 2019 
 
 For those unfamiliar with the existing Paul Blart mythos, let me summarize. A dopey mall security guard with delusions of grandeur haphazardly pratfalls his way though whatever blandly obvious sit-com setup he finds himself in. It'd be okay if it ever managed to be funny. 
 
 The third film in the series opens today, and while *Paul Blart 3D* falls even flatter than the previous film it does have a few isolated bright spots. The film's thin storyline follows Blart to the 73rd annual Mall and Imporium Security Services convention ( It's a MISS, of course. They misspelled a word for that. ). There he competes for the title of security enforcer of the year with his old nemesis from the security academy, the suave and controlled owner of a national security firm, Richard `` Dixon'' Johnson ( Leonardo DiCaprio, who's really slumming it lately ). 
 
 Of course, hijinks are afoot in the form of a mall-cop-gone-bad ( The Walking Dead's Norman Reedus ) who wants to steal the prize money that goes along with the title. Blart stumbles across the plot and sets out to stop him. 
 
 You'll be forgiven if you forget what's actually going on sometimes. Blart wanders from one goofy-joke-setup to another with only the loosest of plot reasons connecting them. Gags ranging from stumbling head first into a prototype security toilet, to Blart trying to fit seven pool balls in his mouth, to Blart making a brash toast to heroic shrinkage-prevention officers at what turns out to be Johnson's father's wake. The latter is a cringe inducing moment that falls flat, but at least it helps create some heated conflict later on in an otherwise tepid pool. 
 
 I mentioned there are some bright spots, and there are. Blart's daughter Maya is again present ( charmingly played by Raini Rodriguez ) and is both funnier than the main character and more endearing. The film wakes up from its lazy coma when she's on screen, or at least rolls over and moves a little. 
 
 Amidst those brief bright moments, however, is one white-hot flare. Blart's last-second apprehension of the would-be thief makes such an impression on the convention crowd that Johnson's all-but-locked prize is given to Blart instead, with a deus ex machina last minute vote as both contestants stand on stage. Johnson's reaction starts slow but builds to a spectacular deconstruction of everything wrong with Paul Blart, his methods, and to a lesser extent Kevin James himself. DiCaprio delivers a startlingly authentic three-minute uncut speech full of furious, eloquent, terrifying venom that will raise the hairs on the back of your neck and make you root for everyone our hero has inadvertently put down. It's by far the best moment in the film, a jaw-dropping performance made all the more attention-getting by the weakness of the surrounding material, and will stay in your head long after you leave the theater. 
 
 I'm not sure that justifies the film ( Honestly, it almost does! ) but it's the one thing *Paul Blart 3D* brings to the table that audiences will still be discussing six months from now.
