The Naked Gun Review (Opens August 13)
Here’s my The Naked Gun Review which is now playing in cinemas starring Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Danny Huston and more.
The film is based off the classic “The Naked Gun” films which originally started Leslie Nielsen and in this film, we get to see Frank Drebin Jr played by the stone-faced and usually stoic Liam Neeson. There are also a number of classic characters from the original movie that gets to have a “legacy characters” such Paul Walter Hauser who takes over the role of Ed from the Nielsen era movies.
There are only a few films that I think are OK when it comes to following a formula and this genre is one of them. Like in this movie, it follows the same tropes, approach and gimmicks like the original movies. And since that’s the case, it also adheres to the structure of those 80s cop films. That includes a beautiful woman that’s connected to a crime, a crime that lands on the lap of our protagonist cop that has deeper roots, an antagonist that we already know is the antagonist and a lot of action sequences.
Neeson really worked well here as the new Frank Drebin. Not only does he work well as this serious police detective who keeps on bumbling around, he also works well when it comes to comedic timing. There’s one scene that I fondly remember where Pamela Anderson gets the drop on him as he’s unlocking the door to his apartment and his face of shock and surprise was pure gold. It also reminded me of how Nielsen would act too in the original trilogy which makes it more endearing.
The cast are pretty good too especially Pamela Anderson‘s Beth Davenport. They actually complement well together and there’s actually screen chemistry here with Neeson. There’s even one montage that gives off this vibe that they are really vibing really well on and off-screen.
The Naked Gun returns too with classic stuff like having gags in the background i.e. the scene where he tried to go into a restricted room. There are weird signages adorning the background that will also make you want to watch it again. Then there are those dialogues that are just so silly you cant help but chuckle.
I’m really hoping that we get a sequel with a new case and more hilarity. For now though, my only gripe with the film is how short it is. There were also a few jokes that might fly past some of you because of how relatively recent they are but those are really few and far between.
10/10
Dont be shy laughing out loud during this film. I highly encourage you to laugh because this film is highly entertaining and also a nice nostalgia bomb for people who grew up watching the original (dare I say event the original TV series). Neeson and Anderson took this and made it their own and now I want more.
Special thanks to Paramount Pictures and Sony Pictures
