Movie Review - The Naked Gun

Director: Akiva Schaffer
Genre: Comedy/ Action
Runtime: 85 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Danny Huston, Paul Walter Hauser, CCH Pounder, Kevin Durand,
 
Description: Only one man (Liam Neeson) has the particular set of skills – to lead Police Squad and save the world.
 
Review: “The Naked Gun” is a new film, not so much a remake of the 1988 version, but more a continuation. Because Liam Neeson plays Frank Drebin Jr., the son of the late Sr. (Leslie Nielsen). Together with his partner he is investigating a seemingly innocent accident involving a self-driving car. The victim’s sister, Beth Davenport (Pamela Anderson), approaches Drebin with suspicions that this is not what it seems. She turns out to be right, and Drebin starts his investigation.

That this new version takes over the same humor from the original series is immediately clear from the opening scene, in which a little schoolgirl walks into a bank during a robbery and turns out to be Liam Neeson ins disguise. You know it’s silly, but you laugh anyway.

As it should be, this film is crammed with jokes from start to finish. Not all of them are brilliant, but because they keep coming, you can’t help but laugh. The plot, present but paper-thin, is purely a hook for adding as much nonsense as possible. There is even room for a parody of Wham’s “Last Christmas” music video, which takes a very bizarre turn.

For some reason, Liam Neeson is the perfect man for the job. Known for mainly serious roles, and in the last years action films, it’s somehow a breath of fresh air to see him in such a ridiculous role. And Neeson delivering silly lines with a straight face somehow works perfectly.  

Pamela Anderson is also surprisingly funny. Her singing the fictional jazz song “Sassafras Chicken” is super weird, but kind of funny too. She is on par with Priscilla Presley (who appears in the movie for a quick second) from the original series.

The running gag in this film is the coffee joke, where Frank is always being handed a cup of coffee, no matter what situation he is in. It works best when the joke hasn’t been used for a while and then suddenly reappears in an unexpected situation. They do miss the mark a bit when the are lowering themselves to the easy poop and sex jokes, which hardly ever works for me. But fortunately they are limited.  

If you’re a fan of the original films and you like silly humor, you will not be disappointed. When the film was first announced, I never expected it to work as well as it did.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 15

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.

Action: Bumblebee (2018)
On the run in the year 1987, Bublee finds refuge in a junkyard in a small California beach town. On the cusp of turning 18 and trying to find her place in the world, Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) discovers Bumblebee, battle-scarred and broken.

Drama: The Squid and the Whale (2005)
We follow two young boys (Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline) dealing with their parents divorce (Laura Linney, Jeff Daniels) in Brooklyn in the 1980s.

Comedy: The Naked Gun (1988)
Incompetent polive Detective Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) must foil an attempt to assassinate Queen Elizabeth II.

Animation: When Marnie Was There (2014)
Due to 12-year-old Anna’s (Hailee Steinfeld) asthma, she’s sent to stay with relatives of her guardian in the Japanese countryside. She likes to be along, sketching. She befriends Marnie, but who is this mysterious girl?

Romance: Stardust (2007)
In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man (Charlie Cox) makes a promise to his beloved (Claire Danes) that he’ll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm.

Horror: Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) is sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people, with the culprit being the legendary apparition, The Headless Horseman.

Science Fiction: Interstellar (2014)
A team of explorers travel through a wormhole in space in an attempt to ensure humanity’s survival.

Crime: American History X (1998)
A former neo-nazi skinhead (Edward Norton) tries to prevent his younger brother (Edward Furlong) from going the same wrong path that he did.

Thriller: Basic Instinct (1992)
A violent police detective (Michael Douglas) investigates a brutal murder that might involve a manipulative and seductive novelist (Sharon Stone).

Documentary: Down to Earth with Zac Efron (2020)
Actor Zac Efron journeys around the world with wellness expert Darin Olien in search of healthy, sustainable ways to live.

Family: The Lego Movie (2014)
An ordinary LEGO construction worker (Chris Pratt), thought to be the prophesied as ‘special’, is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil tyrant from gluing the LEGO universe into eternal stasis.