Lethal Weapon 4
Director: Richard Donner
Screenplay: Jonathan Lemkin, Channing Gibson, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Shane Black
Starring: Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Rene Russo, Chris Rock, Joe Pesci, Jet Li
John's Review
Here we go again, only this time, it's not a bad film, not a bad film at all. If all sequels could be done in the same detail that the Lethal Weapon series does, I would be impressed. In this series we see Riggs (Gibson) go from crazy, suicidal, gun toting, ass kicking cop to a middle age, family oriented, caring police Captain. Unlike the 3rd installment of this series, which wasn't bad, this film doesn't try to assault your senses with visuals and non-stop action. Don't get me wrong this film has plenty of action, but it isn't the only plot device.
Much like the previous two films, this one starts with an action scene to wet your appetite. Later on the two heroes are on a fishing trip when they almost get run over by a small chinese freighter. A gun fight ensues, Riggs gets his butt kicked and the ship runs aground. Come to find out they were importing chinese laborers illegally. Murtaugh (Glover) stumbles across a couple of imigrants that were skipped over and decides to take them home.
The story from here is basically the dynamic duo (plus Rock and Pesci) trying to figure out what is going on with this whole Chinese immigrant thing. There is plenty of action, comdey and things blowing up. And amazingly enough, everyone and I mean everyone from Murtaugh's children and wife to the Captain to the police psychologist returns.
One of the many things I enjoyed about this film is, like I mentioned before, the growth of the characters. Riggs is no longer the bad ass he used to be (eleven years ago when the first film came out). As a matter of fact The real scene stealer is Jet Li, who has starred in many Hong Kong films. His martial arts abilities are very impressive and he is definately fun to watch.
The ending is, of course, obvious and actually makes sense. Overall I have enjoyed all of the Lethal Weapon series, with 1 being my favorite then 2, 4 is a very close tird and 3 although still goo in my book is the weakest of the group. If you are looking for a good action film with a plot (for a change) then I definately recommend this film. If you are a fan of the previous 3 movies, then I also highly recommend this picture as well.
Grade: B
