Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
Just like 48 Hrs and Lethal Weapon to name a few, Beverly Hills Cop is one of those movies that revolutionized the buddy cop genre in the 1980’s. Even to this day, this film remains incredibly popular thanks to Eddie Murphy’s fast-paced, magnificent performance. Also, what stands out here is the soundtrack. Hate talk 80’s music all you want, but there is no beating this soundtrack. In addition to the famous “Axel F’ theme song, there are songs from Patti LaBelle and the Pointer Sisters that you couldn’t imagine anywhere else. Watching Murphy drive down Beverly Hills while LaBelle is rocking out “Stir It Up” allows you to embrace the film.
The megastar producing duo of Jerry Bruckheimer/Don Simpson came up with the film’s idea in the late 1970’s, but Paramount decided not to move forward with the film until the early 80’s. It is hard to believe after watching the film, but the original screenplay was a more serious drama that had Sylvester Stallone attached to it. Stallone ultimately left the project when he was told his version was too expensive for the studio. Daniel Petrie Jr. was hired to recreate the script into the version we all know and love. The movie is your trademark Bruckheimer film; loud, intense action sequences, funny one-liners and garbs, and a paper-thin plot that you do not care about because you love it anyway.
This movie, directed by Martin Brest, is about a Detroit cop named Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy). Axel is a fast-talking cop where trouble always seem to find him. One night, he receives a visit from one of his good friends Mikey Tandino (James Russo), but he was killed right in front of Axel by a goon named Zach (Jonathan Banks). Axel goes to Beverly Hills to investigate the murder. Lt. Bogomil (Ronny Cox) assigns Detective Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Sgt. Taggart (John Ashton) to make sure he stays away from the case. They barely succeed if you can call it that. Axel meets up with his friend, Jenny (Lisa Eilbacher) who works at an art gallery. The art gallery happened to be owned by Victor Maitland (Steven Berkoff), one of Beverly Hill’s mobsters. Maitland also may be behind the death of Axel’s friend, which may result in some craziness!
Eddie Murphy did a very good job carrying the film, which gave the comedian superstardom. That is wild considering Murphy was not hired until two weeks until shooting was to begin. I loved his wit and how he used comedy to blend with the action. If you can suspend disbelief, my favorite scene is when he introduced himself at one of the hotels of Beverly Hills. Yeah, he brought out the race card, but I was laughing nonstop here. I also love his hijinks with Rosewood and Taggart, which is where the buddy comedy comes in. The three gets on each other’s nerves to no end and its funny when Murphy pranks these cops as he grows deeper and deeper into the case. All three actors have awesome chemistry. This is another one of those films that uses Judge Reinhold at his best. Steven Berkoff, as Victor Maitland, does a good job. His villain may be typical of the 80’s/90’s, but he is undeniably evil and a force to be reckoned with.
Martin Brest did a good job directing the action. The film starts with a crazy action scene that introduced us to Axel Foley. The ending sequence is reminiscent of Scarface’s ending with hundreds and hundreds of bullets whizzing around, but this time with the three cops. The setup and the actual sequence is very good and it might be my favorite action sequence of any 80’s film.
Beverly Hills Cop is a classic film that is meant to entertain. Yeah, the story/villain can be cheesy, but honestly that is the point of these films. This movie, thanks to Eddie Murphy, just happens to do it the best. The movie spawned two sequels, but nothing can compare to the original. The film does not take itself too seriously because it has a great sense of humor. Outdated special effects may be around, but enjoy the action and comedy because it is a good time watching to happen. At least you will hum “Axel F” the next week.
My Grade: A-
Just like 48 Hrs and Lethal Weapon to name a few, Beverly Hills Cop is one of those movies that revolutionized the buddy cop genre in the 1980’s. Even to this day, this film remains incredibly popular thanks to Eddie Murphy’s fast-paced, magnificent performance. Also, what stands out here is the soundtrack. Hate talk 80’s music all you want, but there is no beating this soundtrack. In addition to the famous “Axel F’ theme song, there are songs from Patti LaBelle and the Pointer Sisters that you couldn’t imagine anywhere else. Watching Murphy drive down Beverly Hills while LaBelle is rocking out “Stir It Up” allows you to embrace the film.
The megastar producing duo of Jerry Bruckheimer/Don Simpson came up with the film’s idea in the late 1970’s, but Paramount decided not to move forward with the film until the early 80’s. It is hard to believe after watching the film, but the original screenplay was a more serious drama that had Sylvester Stallone attached to it. Stallone ultimately left the project when he was told his version was too expensive for the studio. Daniel Petrie Jr. was hired to recreate the script into the version we all know and love. The movie is your trademark Bruckheimer film; loud, intense action sequences, funny one-liners and garbs, and a paper-thin plot that you do not care about because you love it anyway.
This movie, directed by Martin Brest, is about a Detroit cop named Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy). Axel is a fast-talking cop where trouble always seem to find him. One night, he receives a visit from one of his good friends Mikey Tandino (James Russo), but he was killed right in front of Axel by a goon named Zach (Jonathan Banks). Axel goes to Beverly Hills to investigate the murder. Lt. Bogomil (Ronny Cox) assigns Detective Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Sgt. Taggart (John Ashton) to make sure he stays away from the case. They barely succeed if you can call it that. Axel meets up with his friend, Jenny (Lisa Eilbacher) who works at an art gallery. The art gallery happened to be owned by Victor Maitland (Steven Berkoff), one of Beverly Hill’s mobsters. Maitland also may be behind the death of Axel’s friend, which may result in some craziness!
Eddie Murphy did a very good job carrying the film, which gave the comedian superstardom. That is wild considering Murphy was not hired until two weeks until shooting was to begin. I loved his wit and how he used comedy to blend with the action. If you can suspend disbelief, my favorite scene is when he introduced himself at one of the hotels of Beverly Hills. Yeah, he brought out the race card, but I was laughing nonstop here. I also love his hijinks with Rosewood and Taggart, which is where the buddy comedy comes in. The three gets on each other’s nerves to no end and its funny when Murphy pranks these cops as he grows deeper and deeper into the case. All three actors have awesome chemistry. This is another one of those films that uses Judge Reinhold at his best. Steven Berkoff, as Victor Maitland, does a good job. His villain may be typical of the 80’s/90’s, but he is undeniably evil and a force to be reckoned with.
Martin Brest did a good job directing the action. The film starts with a crazy action scene that introduced us to Axel Foley. The ending sequence is reminiscent of Scarface’s ending with hundreds and hundreds of bullets whizzing around, but this time with the three cops. The setup and the actual sequence is very good and it might be my favorite action sequence of any 80’s film.
Beverly Hills Cop is a classic film that is meant to entertain. Yeah, the story/villain can be cheesy, but honestly that is the point of these films. This movie, thanks to Eddie Murphy, just happens to do it the best. The movie spawned two sequels, but nothing can compare to the original. The film does not take itself too seriously because it has a great sense of humor. Outdated special effects may be around, but enjoy the action and comedy because it is a good time watching to happen. At least you will hum “Axel F” the next week.
My Grade: A-
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