Saturday 1 December 2012

Beverly Hills Cop Review

Judge me all you want.  I really like Eddie Murphy and think his acting ability is very underrated.  It's a shame that the talent is often overshadowed by his reputation for vulgarity and his personal "antics."  He's at his best when he can let his mouth run wild and really get into a fast-talking character.  And he does that to perfection in Beverly Hills Cop.  Right from the start, you know that this is going to be a movie that is all about Murphy and his mouth and very little else.  The story is very thin and the rest of the acting is almost non-existent.  Everyone exists to fuel the Murphy fire.  But they do it very well by being the butt of every joke and letting Murphy shine.

More than in a lot of other Murphy movies, he really does shine in this one.  It has to do with the character of Axel Foley not being too deep.  He's a basic cop with a checkered past and a mile-a-minute mouth.  They don't dwell too much on the character or try to make Murphy do anything weird like be a high-powered Marketing executive or an African prince.  They just let him turn Axel Foley into Eddie Murphy and the result is 1.75 hours of fast-paced, funny dialogue.

But like I said, there is little else.  There really is no story, plot or character development to really write home about.  So, if you're looking for classic movie making, this is not the film for you.  But if you want to watch one of the greatest comedians of all time in his heyday, see it.

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