Remember those days when we all cherished spoof/ slapstick movies? They were a blast to watch, and they’ve left an indelible mark on my life, whether it was the classic Airplane! (a top 3 favorite comedy of all-time), the often overlooked Top Secret, or any of the unforgettable Mel Brooks movies (Young Frankenstein, Spaceballs, etc.). But then, as we entered the 21st century, the comedy subgenre took a turn for the worse, churning out parodies that were far from funny, leaving us all disappointed and questioning the direction of the genre. So, just hearing that Paramount and executive producer Seth MacFarlane were going to make a new Naked Gun, I had some reservations about it. The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! is one of the funniest movies I’ve seen, proving positively that the late, great Leslie Nielsen’s career change into comedy was here to stay. Its two sequels, 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear and 33 1/3: The Final Insult, don’t hold a candle to the first, but they are watchable. But we’re in an age where we’re not seeing tons of studio comedies getting the theatrical attention, and not enough people are willing to seek them out. As for me, just when I thought it was going to be enjoyable based on The Lonely Island’s Akiva Schaffer’s talents behind the camera, I walked out of The Naked Gun thinking it might be the funniest movie I’ve seen since probably 21 Jump Street.
What’s the Story: Like his father before him, Lt. Frank Drebin Jr. (Liam Neeson) is part of the police squad division of the Los Angeles Police Department. However, his latest antics land him in trouble when he tries to live up to his father’s expectations. While investigating the death of a computer engineer, Frank becomes involved in a case involving the suspect’s sister, Beth Davenport (Pamela Anderson), who believes evil tech genius Richard Cane (Danny Huston) is behind his death.
When it comes to parody movies, it usually takes a few elements to make it entertaining. What we’ve noticed lately is that they often come across as lazy and desperate to include a reference, even if it’s outdated. We can all blame Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer for all their poor attempts. Nothing’s new with the overall story, which is at the back of your mind the entire time, where you have the cliché detective story and a ridiculous plot to make everyone worldwide go crazy. The Naked Gun is a movie where, if a pretentious college graduate is questioning the logic of why a very obvious dummy is seen in the opening action scene, it’s not about winning Oscars; it’s about the intentional humor that’s there to entertain and amuse, making people believe in good humor as a distraction from the dark side of today’s world. Not that I doubt Schaffer because if you’re like me and appreciate Hot Rod or Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, everything else he’s done before has satisfied my comedy taste buds, and he was the right man to bring this series back to life and trust his audience with what’s being shown.
These are the types of comedies that don’t take themselves seriously, and all of the actors are playing it straight while the audience observes the pure stupidity at its finest. They knew what they signed up for and understood the assignment without hesitation. It’s been six years since I saw Liam Neeson in a movie, mainly because he put out these bad, unforgettable action movies that had me questioning what happened to the action star who saw a resurgence in the late ’00s. Props to whoever thought of him playing the son of Nielsen (the joke of how their names are similar is spot-on), as he’s able to play Frank with a deadpan attitude to his work but be an idiot sometimes. He dabbled in comedy a few times, but here is where he’s committed like never before.
Pamela Anderson surprised me, as well as others, with a performance as the femme fatale that showed she can also be funny when given the right material, and she shares great chemistry with Neeson, reminiscent of the romance between Nielsen and Priscilla Presley. And I’m usually not a fan of her acting, but this is a performance that didn’t require her to take it seriously. Just remember a love montage that takes an unexpected turn, and you know why. Even getting Danny Huston to play the film’s villain didn’t seem too far of a stretch, considering he always plays the bad guy, but this is one of the few times in his career where he gets to be a memorable villain for once. Also, got to shout out Paul Walter Hauser as Captain Ed Hocken Jr., son of George Kennedy’s character, and CCH Pounder as police Chief Davis.
But the ultimate test of whether The Naked Gun is worth watching depended on how much I laughed, since sometimes it’s hard to get me to laugh at comedies when the writing’s good. I laughed in the first minute alone; that should say something. The script from Dan Gregor, Doug Mand, and Schaffer flies by in capturing the tone of the original trilogy. This movie had me in stitches with its joke-a-minute, fast-paced method that I couldn’t believe got everyone else in my theater feeling the same way. While some of the cleverness near the end may have waned, and perhaps one gag overstayed its welcome, these are minor quibbles. I found myself laughing uproariously, a rare occurrence when watching a comedy that relies heavily on gags akin to those in a Naked Gun movie. The film’s timing, which made about 96% of the predictable jokes work for me, was a standout. The visual gags, such as the sparkling water bit, were nothing short of genius and kept me thoroughly entertained. So many of the jokes landed that I almost choked on my Minute Maid and tried to clear my throat before I could hear the following line of dialogue. I’m wondering if I missed anything and can catch them again after a rewatch.
When I thought it wasn’t needed, I was happy to see it get the theater treatment. And it’s reasonable for fans to be skeptical about another film, especially since it’s been in development for years with Ed Helms attached to star. Anyone who comes out of The Naked Gun saying it’s stupid missed the point. It embraces its own stupidity on purpose, a nod to those who have seen the classic spoof movies of yesterday. This film, more successful than the two recent sequels that came out in July, is a testament to its quality. Unlike I Know What You Did Last Summer, this was a requel that worked for me on all fronts, and unlike Happy Gilmore 2, it’s a sequel that doesn’t rely on cameos and older gags for nostalgia stake. Rarely do I recommend recent comedies this great, but I dare say I couldn’t get enough of it.
Overall, The Naked Gun is undoubtedly one of the biggest surprises we’ve seen from a studio comedy in a while. You’ve got yourself a goofy, fun movie that knows what it is and delivers tons of laughs throughout, with a memorable Neeson performance that boosts the film without overstaying its welcome. It’s hard to know what other comedy the rest of the year has to offer, but I doubt they’ll even come close to greatness here.
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