It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas..."Lethal Weapon"

I'm too old for this...

The Story:

Veteran cop Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) is nearing retirement.  He finds himself saddled with a new partner, a burn-out, possibly suicidal maniac, Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson).  The two are pulled into a suicide which leads them back to an old Army buddy of Roger's.  The question then becomes, who is going to kill the cops first, the bad guys, or each other?

Come on, how much of a plot synopsis do you want me to give to Lethal Weapon?

It's over 25 years old and is a classic in its own rights.

If the film didn't define it, it at the very least redefined the entire Buddy Cop action flick.

Want to take film-making 101 for making that kind of movie, look no further.

First, get two polar opposites that bicker and squabble with each other, but come to depend and work well with each other by the end of the film.

Literally put them on death's door or as much of a physical wringer as you can muster, and you'll see what they are made of on the inside as well as how tough they are on the outside.

This was Shane Black's first feature movie that he wrote, and he knocked it out of the park on his first try.  He's kept the Christmas feeling over the rest of the movies he's worked on, most recently with Iron Man 3.

Aside from pairing Glover and Gibson together, they also put them opposite Gary Busey who is simply unleashed on the screen as possibly the most psychotic villain to plague 80s cops.  If Die Hard had the suave Hans Gruber to counteract the everyman John McClane, Lethal Weapon offered up Mr. Joshua as the psychopath who could channel Riggs inner rage, and give in to it.

You have to believe that the villains can beat the hero, and literally our heroes limp across the finish line when it's all over.

Tying this all together is Richard Donner.  If push comes to shove, I will say that he is, for overall body of work, my favorite director of all time.  His movies are nearly always entertaining and in a way, timeless.  While this movie is made in the 80s, it could just as easily be now, or earlier.  That's just how Donner works, and his movies age really well.

Plus, much like Die Hard, it's got a Christmas theme, so it's a way to get some adrenaline during the holidays pumped into your system.  Normally I try and squeeze these into holiday viewing when I'm wrapping gifts for the kids.  Now that they've figured out how great Die Hard is, I wonder when they'll come waiting to see this one?!

Final Grade: A+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I love 'em, I own 'em!

Do You Understand the Review That Is Coming Out of My Mouth? "Rush Hour"

It ain't 'you all', it's y'all!

The Story:

Detective Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) comes to America to help find the kidnapped daughter of his old boss.  He is handed over to LAPD Detective James Carter (Chris Tucker) by the FBI who want those two as far away from the case as possible.  Can the two figure out a way to work together long enough to save a little girl's life?

Well, duh!

: )

15 years ago, Rush Hour burst onto the scene.


It was a Lethal Weapon for a whole new generation.

Though this action flick was not nearly as gritty as before, there was much more emphasis put on the comedic tone of the movie than Lethal Weapon had employed.

Which also explains why the kids have seen this franchise, and not thrilled to the exploits of Riggs and Murtaugh...

Yet!

But they followed the formula of oil and water...night and day... with two cops that are polar opposites, but both are really good at what they do, and when they finally work together, magic happens.

Helmed by Brett Ratner, one of the more disliked directors in Hollywood.  However whenever I see a Brett Ratner movie, I've always enjoyed it.  Heck, I own most of his library!

:)

Jackie Chan of course, was the big draw to this film for me.  I've always loved his action films and stunt work.

The big surprise was Chris Tucker, who did not annoy me to death when I watched the film.  The more I've watched the franchise, the more fun I've had watching these films.  He has the best lines, and delivers them with style.

Finally, whenever the song "Fantasy" by Mariah Carey plays on the radio, I can't help but think of this movie.

Final Grade: A

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I'd say it gets watched roughly once a year, and yes, I happily own it.

Twas the Weekend Before Halloween... "The Revenant"

There are apparently worse things than dying...

The Story:

Bart Gregory (David Anders) is a soldier in the military who gets killed.  However, he winds up coming back to life, and with the help of his best friend Joey (Chris Wylde), he decides that it wouldn't be so bad if he killed bad people and used their blood to keep him alive.  Theoretically, he's doing the rest of the world a service.

Ah, the best laid plans of the undead...

I'm torn.

I'd been on such a great streak with all of the Zom-Coms this year, this one seemed to be heading down similar territory.

Instead of going for full-on vampire or zombie, they used the old myths of the Revenants, corpses that came back from the dead and needed to feast on blood to stay alive.

However, the movie then changes the tone by having the best friend get turned also.

Okay, now we have buddy revenants out for a good time...

But then they come back to the original love story from the beginning...

And the movie seems to lose direction...



Then boredom began to set in.

: /

And don't get me started on the meandering,  "totally lost their way" 3rd act.

It's like a movie that had no idea how it wanted to end, or find a way to execute it.

The final decisions aren't bad, and partly clever.  The beat-around-the-bush way of getting there though downgraded a movie that started off with a fairly strong premise.

Ah well.

Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Have to say no to both.

But tomorrow, the scary weekend is redeemed!