Movie Review
Liam Neeson spoofs his tough guy image in Naked Gun movie reboot
Liam Neeson in The Naked Gun.
The Naked Gun series holds a place in the hearts of certain comedy fans, as the three films — made in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s — continued a tradition started by Airplane and This is Spinal Tap of spoofing more serious types of movies. It also inspired a new generation of comedy filmmakers, which is why it’s being revived over 30 years later by writer/director Akiva Schaffer, one-third of the comedy group The Lonely Island.
This version of The Naked Gun stars Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin, Jr., the son of Leslie Nielsen’s character from the original trilogy and Police Squad!, the short-lived sitcom upon which the series is based. Like his father, Frank has a combination of skills that make him look both impressive and inept in equal measures. Early on, he seems to thwart a bank robbery, only to learn that billionaire Richard Cane (Danny Huston) has gotten away with something called the P.L.O.T. Device.
As if it’s not clear by the name of the mystery item, the bare-bones plot is merely an excuse to have Frank bumble his way around Los Angeles. Along the way he discovers a murder; acquires a love interest in Beth Davenport (Pamela Anderson), the dead man’s sister; continually raises the ire of Police Chief Davis (CCH Pounder); and generally causes chaos wherever he goes.
Co-written by Doug Gregor and Doug Mand (Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers), the film gets off to a solid start, not least because it’s front-loaded with a lot of the jokes shown in the trailer. As fans of the series will expect, it’s packed with multiple sight gags, plays on words, and other stupid-but-comical bits. The goal is to pack as many funny things as possible into each minute, hoping the resulting laughs will overshadow any faults.
Which is why it’s surprising that, after the opening barrage, the filmmakers dramatically slow things down. Even at a brisk 85 minutes, the film starts to drag as some sequences go on far longer than they should. Schaffer and his team can’t seem to settle on the balance between too much and not enough; they let a joke about Frank’s bad experiences with chili dogs go on and on while not letting other, better ideas breathe a bit longer.
The romantic subplot between Frank and Beth yields some solid results, like a sexually-suggestive sequence misinterpreted by an onlooker and another weird one involving a snowman who comes to life. But humor is harder to come by as Frank pursues Cane, with even the obvious jokes missing the mark. Frank, Jr. is even more oblivious than his father, a trait that should lead to great comedy but somehow fails to land for much of the last half of the movie.
Neeson works in fits and starts in the lead role. Spoofing his own screen image, it’s fun to see him stay dead serious while doing ridiculous things, but the illusion doesn’t last. Anderson and Huston play characters in the same vein, as does Paul Walter Hauser as Frank’s partner Ed Hocken, Jr., who could have used more screentime. What the film needed was a character like O.J. Simpson's Nordberg in the original trilogy, who could be brutalized for laughs and little else.
The makers of the new film have the comedy chops to reinvigorate a property like The Naked Gun, but they ultimately can’t maintain the rhythm that a movie like this needs. Even stupid comedy can be difficult to pull off correctly, and even though this film is full of inanity, there are not enough memorable moments to make it worth recommending.
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The Naked Gun opens in theaters on August 1.
