With the The Naked Gun, Liam Neeson nosedives into comedy and, more specifically, slapstick, spoof comedy; a subgenre that has been largely forgotten or just lazily executed since the heyday of Airplane (1980 ) and the original Naked Gun series starring Leslie Nielsen.
Of course Neeson has travelled all over the Hollywood landscape in his lengthy career, whether it be appearing front and centre in weighty, award-contending biopics such as Schindler’s List (1993 ) and Michael Collins (1996 ), contributing to auteur-driven projects such as Martin Scorsese’s Silence (2016 ), unexpectedly becoming the pre-eminent action star in Taken (2008 ), and dipping into the blockbuster and comic-book movie waters with films such as Darkman (1990 ), Star Wars – Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999 ) and Batman Begins (2005 ).
In The Naked Gun, Seth McFarlane, creator of Family Guy, has led the effort to bring the bumbling Lieutenant back, in the form of Frank Drebin Jr, son of Leslie Nielsen’s iconic character. The prolific comedy producer campaigned for Neeson for the role, which is no surprise given Neeson’s hilarious cameo in the McFarlane-directed Ted 2 (2015 ).
After an outrageously over-the-top bank heist fight sequence, (which prepares you perfectly for the rest of the film ) Lt Frank Drebin becomes immersed in a grand conspiracy involving a stolen plot device (literally ), a mysterious car crash accident, and a tech company CEO who may have a nefarious plan bubbling behind the scenes. Drebin, along with his Police Squad partner Ed, (Paul Walter Hauser ) and Beth (Pamela Anderson ) – whose brother’s death is part of this conspiracy – follow leads, go undercover and search for the truth (all in the most entertainingly reckless way possible ).
Over the last 10 years or so, modern comedy has become focused on using comedy as a mere accompaniment to more straightforward, traditional narratives. Perhaps comedy on its own simply isn’t trusted to make a film entertaining or commercially viable? Or is just deemed too low-brow to be taken seriously. It needs to be matched with Romance, Coming of Age, Horror etc, all with elaborate, dramatic narratives designed to keep you emotionally engaged with the characters and their arcs. The Naked Gun is not interested in any of that. It sincerely just wants to make you laugh, and it succeeds.
There are no grand intentions with the characters or plot and no desire to be taken seriously at all. I am glad to say that I had a smile on my face for most of the runtime.
The jokes flow one after another with very little let-up. The consistency with which the jokes hit is honestly impressive. A mixture of puns, visual jokes, stereotypes, excruciatingly long but nevertheless hilarious sequences are really well written, and edited. It’s all well and good littering funny jokes all over a film, but you need a talented director to get the maximum desired effect out of them.
Director Akiva Schaffer certainly delivers. He never lets the zany energy deflate, whether it be a cold storage room in the background which, naturally, is where cold case files are kept, or the running gag of a fresh cup of coffee always being readily available for the two detectives every couple of minutes. There is always something in the frame that puts a smile on your face.
Liam Neeson is the perfect fit for this role as well. Like Nielsen, he has that solemn, grave tone of voice and weathered features which are an effective counterbalance to the broadness of the comedy happening around him. The cast all perform their roles well, and are all on the same comedic wave length.
Not only is this just a laugh-a-minute comedy, there is also something here for the film historians who have a knowledge of the medium’s evolution.
Presenting the story as a neo-noir, knowingly inserting all the trappings of 40s and 50s noir films, such as the Venetian blinds, Pamela Anderson’s femme fatale, dour narration, jazzy score and the labyrinthine plot, makes the film more fun because of its self-awareness. Even casting Danny Huston, son of the great actor-director John Huston, as the villain was – I presume – an intentional choice considering the fact that John Huston played one of the most infamous neo-noir villains in Chinatown (1974 ). I appreciated the intent to integrate film history with what is ultimately a frivolous, slapstick comedy.
I never thought I would say it, but I would gladly watch more films in this universe. If they can continue to strike comedy gold, then I have the utmost faith that with the same team, it would be impossible not to have a good time.
3/5
In cinemas now.
