“I Want It That Way” might just be one of the most famous – and famously recreated – songs of all time.
The Backstreet Boys’ classic is something that most of us know the words to, and has even been made into the popular parody, Weird Al Yankovic’s “Ebay Parody Song“.
It’s one of those songs that’s just perfect for a bit of light-hearted micky-taking, hence why it’s a karaoke favorite.
The Police Department in Saskatoon, Canada, decided they’d do their own take on the tune, and it’s comedy gold.
They didn’t cut corners with the production of their performance, either. Their lipsync was filmed to a professional standard, with its own hilarious choreography and questionable acting.
When the video begins, we’re introduced to a lineup of police officers, while two other officers attempt to identify them.
One officer asks the other if he recognizes anyone in the lineup. He replies that he doesn’t – but he does remember them singing Backstreet Boys’ “I want it that way”.
And then the fun begins, when the officer asks number 1 in the lineup to sing the opening verse of the song.
The members of the lineup take it in turns to sing a verse from the song each, before the questioning officer can’t seem to help himself, breaking into the chorus – “Tell me why?”
His faithful fellow officers follow up with the lyrics, and then the chorus finishes… and things get even better.
We’re transported to the grounds of the police department, where four men and one woman passionately lipsync along to each line of the next verse, while a police plane randomly sits in the background.
For the next chorus, there’s a different set of police officers in a different location – standing on a long wooden bridge.
They walk forward past the camera, taking it in turns to cheesy-grin and channel their inner Backstreet Boy with their lipsync.
We’re treated to different shots in different areas throughout the song, and all of the officers fully commit to their roles – there are no embarrassed officers trying to hide from the camera here.
At one point, the two “questioning” police officers from the beginning of the shoot stand alone in a dark room, with blue and red lights flashing in the background. It’s a typical music video scene, and you can’t help but laugh at how seriously the officers are taking their performance.
If you thought police officers were all boring because of the nature of their job, you’d be wrong.
This video is all the evidence you’d ever need that, despite their role in ensuring we all follow the law, most cops are a good laugh to hang out with.
It’s easy to prejudice the police based on one or two peoples’ actions, but these cops are here to remind you that they’re a good bunch.
There’s clearly been a lot of money spent on this production, especially following the song’s key change.
All sorts of random stuff starts to happen: an ice cream van shows up, mascots for the Saskatoon Blades ice hockey and Saskatoon Rush lacrosse teams appear behind the officers, and everyone has a big party.
Whoever outlined the concept of this video must have a whole lot of imagination, that’s for sure! You won’t see anything else like it out there.
If you need a good laugh today, this video is for you. Scroll down and click “play” to give it a watch.
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