This is one of those simple movies that is so deceptively good, you don't realize how good it is. I have probably unintentionally seen this movie 30 times. Every single time it is on TV, I end up stopping whatever it is I was doing and end up watching it to the end, even though I know who the bad guys are and how it ends.Murphy is Axel Foley, a Detroit police detective. His boss, Inspector Todd, is portrayed by real life Gilbert Hill, a semi-famous police detective in his own right. "Mad About You" creator and star Paul Riser has a small role as Foley's fellow detective. Todd is always threatening Foley with termination due to his costly methods of crime busting.
When his friend Mikey Tandino (James Russo) arrives from Beverly Hills to Detroit to visit with his childhood friend, Foley, Mikey gets murdered. Foley is hit on the head during the hit on his friend, but is otherwise unscathed.
Because of his relationship with Mikey, a guy with a lengthy record of minor petty thefts, Todd assigns another detective to the murder and orders Foley to stay away. Lacking confidence in the skills of the assigned detective, and determined to get justice for his friend, Foley takes a "vacation" and goes to Beverly Hills to see if there is a connection.
The plot is more than just some laughs and gun fire you truly feel like you are part of Team Foley, investigating the case. Does the murder involve the German Bearer Bonds that Tandino had on him when he was murdered? Is it about U.S. Customs? Is it about cocaine? Is it about expensive art? There are so many different aspects interwoven, a first time viewer is really taken for a ride.
From the get-go, you know who the bad guys are but will they be caught, and why did they kill Mikey? This film, released in 1984, seemed to recognize the unique nature of the 80s and rather than some dated film with neon socks and big hair, it seems to make itself into a time capsule. Foley's hair and clothing are timeless for any decade from the 70s to today, so it's almost like he's a time traveller, laughing at some of the styles, cars, & habits of the rich & famous in the 1980s in California.
The music is also excellent and fits the mood for each scene. The main theme, "Axel F," a techno-type of instrumental, was on Billboard's top 10 for weeks on end and is often heard as a polyphonic ring tone on today's phones. One of Murphy's all-time best second only to his role as "Donkey" in the "Shrek" franchise.
Although Eddie is the star of the show and does a good turn he is unforgettably upstaged in two memorable scenes. The first is with "the banana man" at the hotel, Damon Wayans in a brief but comedic cameo. Thank God he went on to better things. The second is with Bronson Pinchots character Serge, the gallery assistant. For the life of me I couldnt fathom his accent or his gender, but it will never be forgotten. He had so much potential. Oh well. It is also where Judge Rheinhold makes his big supporting actor debut. I always found it amazing how two straight actors like Stephen Elliot & John Ashton managed to keep such straight faces working with such characters as Murphy & Rheinhold. Lisa Eilbacher also gives us a solid performance as does Steven Berkoff as the arch villain. A role he seems to have been typecast in to. The upbeat pumping soundtrack also deserves honourable mention. I never bothered to view the sequels because I knew they would be disappointing, and they were if one believes the reviews. Eddie Murphy may never top the success of BHC but even if he does I will still always remember him for this film. Not a bad first time effort for a 23 year old black comedian.
Buy Beverly Hills Cop (1984) Now
Detroit cop Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) is in Beverly Hills for a few days to investigate the murder of an old acquaintance. Axel assumes the suspect is a local tycoon, but no one seems to believe him including the police force, being semi-run by Ronny Cox (in one of his rare good-guy roles).Axel comes into trouble with the law his first day on the job after getting thrown through a glass window by some thugs. He is arrested, and when released finds himself hounded by a pair of inept police officers around the town for a few days. After outsmarting them (in one of cinema's most delightful moments ever) Axel gets hooked up with an old friend and manages to roam the streets looking for clues which, of course, he finds very easily.
Before this film Eddie Murphy had starred in one film that had launched his name into Hollywood: "48 HRS." But by all reasonable comparisons this is a much, much better film, and it's also much, much funnier, too. What's most refreshing is that it doesn't fall back upon the stereotypes of African-Americans inherent in so many mainstream motion pictures the role of Axel Foley was originally written for Sylvester Stallone (who was actually attached to star early on in pre-production before dropping out of the project) and it's quite clear that Foley was intended as a white character. Although massive rewrites were employed only two weeks before shooting, script flaws can still be spotted the heroine of the story is a white businesswoman, for example, and we expect some sort of sexual tension between them but there is none. We begin to question the very presence of the female lead because in essence it leads nowhere. We can imagine how it might have developed into a love story, but Murphy works against the flow, awkwardly treating her as nothing more than a friend.
These sorts of things sometimes bring out the occasional odd touches in the film ironically they unintentionally set the film apart from other such movies of the genre because it's not typical in any sense. Sure, it has the routine shoot-outs but there is no romance subplot, no pointless racial comparisons (more of which would be seen in the two sequels), etc. The movie greatly benefits from this because it seems so fresh, and far more believable after all, rarely are romances developed in two days. The action genre always seems to end with the hero sending off the crooks to jail, and finally getting a long-awaited kiss from the leading lady. "Beverly Hills Cop," to its credit, manages to avoid this and the result is a far more enjoyable film, even if most of its sequences are far from being 100% realistic.
The film's director, Martin Brest, has a clear handle on the buddy genre and would go on to direct the immensely successful Robert De Niro / Charles Grodin road-buddies-comedy "Midnight Run," one of the most popular (and best) of the genre. Beverly Hills Cop works just as well it's funny when it needs to be, thrilling when it wants to be, and features a stellar lead performance by Murphy in his most unusual role.
Murphy is the driving force behind the film, presenting us with a truly likable character the most likable character he's ever played, as a matter of fact. Axel is unorthodox but a generally good guy Murphy is sometimes typecast into playing roles similar to that of which he played in "48 HRS." (being the loud, obnoxious racist who's got it all together), but here he plays someone we actually want to root for. At one point in the film he manages to get a couple of police officers in trouble with their superior but he takes all the blame, and actually fabricates a lie wherein they were heroes doing their job, despite the fact that they were all actually hanging out at a strip club. Axel is tough, cool, quick-witted, nice, sarcastic, and likable one of cinema's most enduring characters, and proof that African-American cinema heroes don't always have to be loudmouths in order to succeed as characters (pay attention, Chris Rock and Chris Tucker).
The now-famous soundtrack (including 'Axel F' by Harold Faltermeyer) is a great blend of techno-pop and electronic rock the movie's theme is bouncy, rambunctious and fun: a good parallel to Axel himself.
Overall "Beverly Hills Cop" exceeds exceptionally well, even if a great deal of the film's success itself derives from pure accident and chance. I don't think anyone can say that those involved in the production knew exactly what they were doing at the time (DVD supplements include anecdotes about hectic filming and the project almost falling through at one point) -but as luck would have it everything turned out fine. "Beverly Hills Cop" is an immensely enjoyable film, and one of the best examples of the cop-comedy genre executed properly.
Read Best Reviews of Beverly Hills Cop (1984) Here
Starring in arguably his most memorable role, Eddie Murphy lights up the big screen with his 1980's blockbuster hit Beverly Hills Cop. Showcasing the unique comic talents of a young career on the rise, the former Saturday Night Live cast member's smiling humor and charismatic onscreen presence take an adequate screenplay and turn it into a smash film. Appearances by Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot (as the trendy 'Serge') combine with Murphy's antics to make Beverly Hills Cop a hilarious and highly entertaining movie...Eddie Murphy plays the role of Axel Foley, a freewheeling Detroit police officer who witnesses the murder of a close friend on the force during a botched drug bust. Linking the murders back to Beverly Hills, Foley takes an extended vacation from his job in Detroit. But rather than relax, he makes his way to Beverly Hills where he plans on conducting his own investigation.
In pursuit of the murderers, Foley uncovers a massive drug smuggling operation run by one of the elite socialites of Beverly Hills. Digging for the truth, the Detroit cop is forced to butt heads with the Beverly Hills police department and confront the drug ring's various henchmen. Despite direct orders from their superior, Beverly Hills cops Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and John Taggart (John Ashton) eventually change from adversaries of Foley (attempting to halt his illegal investigations) to willing participants in his uncovering of the illegal drug ring. In the end, Foley finds the murderer, but will he get his revenge? Will the Beverly Hills police arrest him before he does? You'll have lots of fun finding out...
Complimented by a hit soundtrack which features four smash hits (Glenn Frey's "The Heat Is On," The Pointer Sisters' "Neutron Dance," Patti LaBelle's "New Attitude," and Harold Faltermeyer's breakthrough hit "Axel F"), the film's action and suspense sequences play out to the backdrop of adrenaline pumping beats and synthetic keyboard sounds. The music itself provides a small glimpse in the musical experimentation of an age that witnessed the convergence of high technology and sound. In a way, Beverly Hills Cop typifies the decade of the 1980s, but it does so without being so overly engrossed in the cultural fads of the day as to be outdated and ridiculous in the eyes of a modern audience. This is one of the core strengths of the film and one of the reasons millions of fans enjoy watching reruns of the movie on cable.
One of the more unique films of the 1980s, Beverly Hills Cop created a new sub-genre of film by splicing the serious action/suspense genre with the comedic personality/comedy genre. As a rare talent, Eddie Murphy is uniquely positioned to pull off the coup, carrying the film on the back of his personal likeability and hilarious brand of comedy. Performances by Judge Reinhold and John Ashton serve to compliment Murphy, and together, the three form a relatable, "average guy" click that audiences feel inclined to root for. As a result, the viewer is never bored, whether being entertained by mere suspense or hilarious comedy. Without a doubt, Beverly Hills Cop is one of the top ten comedies of its decade, and that's why it's a definite must-see movie...
The DVD Report
Want Beverly Hills Cop (1984) Discount?
"That the film turned out to be coherent is a miracle. That it is successful proves there is a God." -Martin Brest on his own movie.It's easy to understand his feelings when you consider the endless changes made to Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr's script. They got an Academy Award nomination, but the final product is a million miles away from what they originally conceived.
Axel Foley was originally written for Mickey Rourke, then it was geared around Sylvester Stallone, who significantly rewrote the script further before abandoning the project a couple of weeks before shooting was scheduled to begin. Eddie Murphy was brought on board at the last minute, and the script was re-written yet again to form the movie we know today. Bizarrely, all of the work Stallone did on the script was recycled into his reprehensible 1986 action movie Cobra, which, on top of being nothing at all like Beverly Hills Cop, called itself an adaptation of a novel called Fair Game by Paula Gosling (which it also bore little-to-no resemblance to). Nine years later, that novel was once again made into a movie of the same name starring William Baldwin and Cindy Crawford, which bore no resemblance to Cobra. When I say that Beverly Hills Cop had the biggest hodgepodge of a shooting script ever, you better believe it.
The story could not get any simpler. Young renegade Detroit cop Axel Foley, forever tormenting his no-nonsense boss with his reckless antics, meets up with a childhood pal only for him to be murdered that very night. Axel follows the trail and travels to Beverly Hills in his crappy, banged-up sky-blue Chevy Nova. It's a world away from the streets of Detroit. Even the patrol cops look like soap opera actors. Axel's fast and loose work ethic, barely on the good side of the law, doesn't sit well with the Beverly Hills police department. Detectives Taggart and Rosewood (John Ashton and Judge Reinhold doing a Laurel and Hardy routine) are assigned to keep an eye on Axel as he very quickly discovers the bad guy.
No twists, no surprises, and barely a couple layers deep, it's amazing that a story so superficial is able get 105 minutes of mileage. The film works thanks to Murphy's cheerful, upbeat performance and Martin Brest's ability to keep it light. Beverly Hills Cop would not have worked as a dark thriller. Harold Faltermeyer's iconic score and world-famous Axel F theme tune certainly help the happy-go-lucky nature.
There are certainly shortcomings. Steven Berkoff, as Victor Maitland, is completely unconvincing as the villain. In fact, with the exception of Bennett from Commando, he's probably the least threatening/most campiest villain I've ever seen in a movie. And, as I have mentioned, the story is very straightforward. Taggart and Rosewood do virtually no police work and are just bystanders watching and reacting to Axel's hustles. Apart from one cruise along Rodeo Drive, we never really see or feel the glamor of Beverly Hills to juxtapose it next to the grime of Detroit. There are just too many interior scenes.
But it never fails to entertain and is truly the highlight of Murphy's career. Once, long before he sold out to family audiences, his R-rated movies were huge business, and Beverly Hills Cop showcases his leading man ability at its very best.
The Blu Ray sports a fine 1.78:1 1080p picture with DTS HD-MA sound and a slight amount of old, recycled extras. Unfortunately, it also comes in a cheap, flimsy, easily broken eco-case.
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