Pierre David’s sole foray into family fare gets the once over from Dave. Featuring a few words with scripter Michael Barmish!

From Royal Oaks churning out the likes of Invisible Mom (1996) and Invisible Dad (1998), to Full Moon’s family subdivision, Moonbeam – in the ’90s, every independent production house had a go at making kiddie fodder. Some less than others, of course – and one such (near) absentee was Canadian mogul Pierre David who, throughout the entirety of the decade, only put his name to one G-rated picture, KID COP (1996).

As luck would have it, Kid Cop is one of the best slices of wholesome video store goodness that emerged from the era. And like most things, there was a degree of fortuitousness about its creation, especially for scripter Michael Barmish.

“I was originally hired by another production company to write a sci-fi script,” recalls the Philadelphia-born author. “However, Meyer Shwarzstein, who developed the concept, left midway to start his own company to focus more on family films. For this reason, that project came to an end, but he liked my writing and asked me if I were interested in developing and writing a movie for his new company.”

A former Executive VP at David’s Image Organization, Shwarzstein had been in the home entertainment business since year dot, working as a territory manager for Record Shack in the late ‘70s where he sold the first pre-recorded VHS to the initial wave of video retailers that were opening across America. By summer 1995, angling for a little more control in what was a bustling industry, he founded Brainstorm Media, utilising the services of good friend David to give him a leg-up with this first production.

Following the tragic death of his policeman father, young Peter (Jer Adrianne Lelliott) is determined to follow in his footsteps and spends much of his free time tuned in to the police radio in his bedroom. When the Mayor’s office is robbed, he enlists a pint-sized partner in Lisa (Bethany Richards) to try and find the culprits, but soon becomes entangled in a heist that will test his detective skills to the very limit.

The feature directorial debut of Robert Malenfant, who’d been a part of the Shwarzstein-David axis thanks to his second unit work on Scanner Cop (1994) and its sequel, Kid Cop excels in no small part due to its impeccably cast troupe. The steady hand of Edward Albert as a patient chief; John Rubinstein’s pork-pie hat wearing crook – the film is anchored with a finely crafted assortment of characters that peak with Tim Thomerson’s politically charged mechanic (“It’s about the Man coming down on the little people!”).

Having said that, special mention must go to Lelliott who, in an age of bratty and impudent child actors, has a likability and warmth that sees you rooting for her from the off. As well as bolstering her acting career, Lelliott went on to form Coeurage Ensemble: an ambitious theatre company with the mission to “lift up artistic voices from the global majority”. She’s also an important LGBTQ+ activist and teacher in her home city of Los Angeles.

Landing on American VHS at the back end of 1998 through Paramount Home Video, Kid Cop bypassed DVD in both the U.S. and U.K. – though it does occasionally appear on streaming platforms. For Barmish, the film remains a pleasant memory, even if a lack of cash meant that elements of his cop show savvy script had to be downsized:

“There were more cop references, but they had to be cut, sadly. A lot of fun lines were – and I had actors come to me telling me they were disappointed at some of them. But, low-budget productions: what can you do? For me, Kid Cop was a great learning experience, as I had to grasp how to write for small scale films under strict time constraints. Everyone, from the development team to the actors and crew, were very professional and dedicated, and I was happy to have the opportunity.”