Shadows on the Wall | Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F

dir Mark Molloy
scr Will Beall, Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten
prd Jerry Bruckheimer, Eddie Murphy, Chad Oman
with Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, Kevin Bacon, Bronson Pinchot, Luis Guzman, Nasim Pedrad, Mark Pellegrino, Kyle S More
release US/UK 3.Jul.24
24/US Netflix 1h55

Is it streaming?

murphy, paige, gordon-levitt and pinchot

With each wacky chase, this action comedy strains to recreate the vibe of this 40-year-old franchise. The story charges briskly enough keep the audience distracted from the filmmakers' refusal to find anything remotely fresh. Even the grittiest action sequences are underwhelmingly retro. But if nostalgia and car crashes are your thing, this might do the trick when looking for something that requires absolutely no thought for two hours.

After yet another destructive chase across Detroit, detective Axel (Murphy) is reminded by Captain Jeffrey (Reiser) that the world has changed. Then Axel rushes back to Los Angeles when his estranged public defender daughter Jane (Paige) is attacked by thugs who want her to drop a police corruption case. He's promptly arrested by detective Bobby (Gordon-Levitt), who's also working Jane's case. And the slick Captain Grant (Bacon) is clearly up to his neck in all of this. For help, Axel turns to old friends detective Billy (Reinhold), Chief John (Ashton) and the colourful Serge (Pinchot).

As they reluctantly work together, the strain between this father and daughter creates a series of awkward conversations and messy interactions that Axel can't surmount with another flurry of banter. But that's as deep as the script gets. Amusing moments and nutty throwaway lines help liven up the by-the-books mystery, which plays out in a series of heightened set-pieces and conversations, all of which we have seen before. This includes Axel's predilection for commandeering any vehicle nearby.

The role offers Murphy a chance to riff wildly as a guy whose main skill is bluffing his way into any situation imaginable. The role isn't much of a challenge for him, but it's always fun to watch Murphy do his thing. The cast around him try to liven things up as much as possible, but never get much to do. The legacy actors essentially are only asked to revisit their memorable schtick without pushing it further.

It's a bit shocking that this movie boils down to a damsel in distress, something incriminating on an SD card and yet another chase that leaves hundreds of smashed cars in its wake. Even the 1980s hits on the soundtrack feel stale. Surely the producers had a chance to push this franchise in a fresh direction, even if just to bring it into the 21st century, but they clearly didn't want to shake up the formula in any way.

themes, language, violence 3.Jul.24

R E A D E R R E V I E W S

Still waiting for your comments ... don't be shy.