The Naked Gun and all the images you see in this review are owned by Paramount Pictures
Directed by Akiva Schaffer
What, another reboot of a classic comedy from the eighties? I don’t know about you, but the Gen-X nostalgia for Ghostbusters alone has me wary of any revivals from the Reagan years, but people were surprisingly optimistic about this one, and the trailers at least put a solid case for itself to be taken seriously as a genuine successor to the original. It would certainly have to find a new angle given how different cops in both media and real life fit into popular culture, but it has some interesting talent behind it, and Neeson certainly seems game to fill Nielsen’s iconic shoes. Could this be the rare reboot that finds a way to be both faithful to what came before while also forging an identity of its own? Let’s find out!!
Detective Frank Drebin Jr (Liam Neeson) is a hard-nosed and sharp witted cop; right on the edge and peering over the side into the darkness below. This intuitive insight into the depths of man’s inhumanity to itself, along with the pleas of Beth (Pamela Anderson), the grieving sister of a man who died under suspicious circumstances, puts our intrepid hero from the venerable Police Squad on the trail of billionaire tech genius Richard Cane (Danny Huston) who’s all smiles and charm in front of the camera but is hiding something sinister behind closed doors. What is this fiendish villain planning, and does Frank Jr have the wherewithal to overcome whatever silly challenges get in the way of cracking this case? Where does Beth fit into all of this, and will she prove to be a strong ally to Frank or the sexy cause of his sexy downfall? With a man like this leading the charge, what could possibly go wrong?
This is a movie that knew the only way to get through this was to be as utterly brazen as possible with as little self-reflection as it can get away with; much like the venerable Frank Drebin himself. If anyone had stopped for a moment to think about what they were doing or if any of the producers felt the jokes weren’t hitting enough target demos, this would have fallen apart. Instead, it’s a rare dinosaur of a film; very old and a little confrontational about it, but magnificent to see in all its glory. It’s no secret that comedies without a gimmick have become few and far between at the multiplex, with studios instead opting to add a comedic tone to their blockbusters. This is one of the strongest cases in years that comedy can still work as the main selling point of a movie, and that the talent is out there and more than willing to create the new classics of the genre. The plot, while liberally borrowing from various sources, gets the job done and provides more than enough comedic set-pieces for Neeson to bumble in and out of. His take on the character is certainly distinct form Nielsen’s, replacing the dry professionalism of his era with a much more troubled and gritted persona to reflect the direction cop shows have been gone in, but he understands the importance of being both shameless and sincere; going along with any absurd premise they throw at him without trying to spare his dignity by winking at the camera. The real revelation, however, is Pamela Anderson who seems to have missed her calling as a comedy superstar as she turns in a brilliant performance, and the two have genuinely goofy chemistry with one another that holds the entire film together. It’s all the more infuriating that the Baywatch movie could only think to throw her in as a last minute cameo when she was clearly capable of so much more, and I hope that her ongoing comeback gets a huge shot in the arm after everyone sees her in this.
On the flip side, however, as fun as this movie is as a relic of the past, and as much as the marketing is lamenting comedy’s downfall in recent years, it also can’t measure up to the best comedy of the modern era. I’d even argue that it falls short of the comedies it most resembles; namely the first Naked Gun, which I saw for the first time only about a week ago and thought it was the superior film. The movie always seems to brush right up to the level of true greatness before baking off or cutting short; never quite reaching the crescendos of humor that it’s constantly chasing. A little more absurdity, maybe a little bit of horror, and a few jokes at Neeson’s expense would have added some worthwhile punctuation to this movie, but even if it’s only hitting close to the mark, it still manages to be funnier than a lot of movies that have tried to recapture the old-school slapstick magic. Still, the fact that it falls a little short hurts the case it’s making for returning to the old way of doing things, and in a small way feels a little retrograde because of it. It’s an old pro confidently asserting their superiority over the newer generation while being unaware of everyone who has lapped their records in the years since.
The proverbial Monkey’s Paw of the movie is that it is exactly like the Naked Gun movies you remember from your childhood. An abundance of over-the-top sight gags, a script stuffed with puns and word play, and a lead actor who does a great job of pretending he’s not in on the joke. In some respects it is a breath of fresh air and I think it’s important to remember that movies and art aren’t always a linear progression of quality over time; that films before the advent of HD cameras and post-production digital effects can still offer something for modern audiences. Having said that, the hill on which it stakes its claim is also a glass ceiling, as there’s only so much you can do to stand out in your own right when you’re borrowing from your forbearers and celebrating their accomplishments. If you’re old enough to remember watching comedies from the seventies and eighties on VHS or DVD, then this is an easy recommendation that will surely delight you like few comedies have. For those who didn’t even grow up with physical media and the movies that were its staples, well, I can see this being a harder sell, but humor’s a thing that can transcend generational divides and perhaps the Tik-Tok generation will find something in this to enjoy.
The Reviewers Unite 