Naked Gun [VHS]
by David Zucker
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VHS Tape Cover Information
Actor: George Kennedy, Leslie Nielsen, O.J. Simpson, Priscilla Presley, Ricardo MontalbanDirector: David Zucker
Edition: VHS Tape
Format: NTSC
Release Date: 1993-06-24
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Publisher: Etd
Studio: Etd
VHS Movie Reviews of Naked Gun [VHS]
Movie Review: Great movie - questionable edition
Summary: 4 Stars
The Naked Gun and Airplane series have earned their places in the annals of comedy fame. Slapstick comedy, outrageous dialogue and hilarious situations elevate normal everyday stories to films of such comedic heights that they're remembered fondly by everyone. I don't think I'm crossing a line when I say that Leslie Nielsen deserves a fair share of the credit. "Don't call me Shirley" still gets used in offices around the world and there's point denying that Leslie Nielsen (until about 10 years ago) was the ultimate clueless slapsticker of his day.
Case in point: The Naked Gun.
Sidelining all the other comedic talents to be found in Airplane, The Naked Gun places all the pressure squarely on the shoulders of Nielsen as Police Officer Frank Drebin. Right from the credits The Naked Gun sets the tone for a cop story gone zany. As an aberrant cop car starts off with siren blaring, it quickly becomes apparent that its route isn't what you'd think; a perfect analogy for the movie itself. Playing on all the tough-guy, film noir personalities of the decades of filmmaking that came before, the Frank Drebin character oozes stoic masculinity while simultaneously being in way over his head - like a man who won't stop and ask for directions.
After the unfortunate, though ridiculously non-fatal shooting of Detective Nordberg (O.J. Simpson), Frank Drebin sets out to investigate the circumstances behind it all only to catch on to a scheme so nefarious that the only reasonable setting for the climactic ending is a baseball stadium. Clues left by Nordberg lead Drebin to business tycoon Vincent Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban) and his sexy secretary Jane Spencer (Priscilla Presley). Is Ludwig up to something? Is Jane only interested in Drebin as a spy?
Drebin has to get to the bottom of things fast lest the Queen of England fall prey to an assassination attempt that could be perpetrated by anyone!
With that said - it's not the plot that matters here. The plot is window dressing for an endless stream of visual gags and funny dialogue. While I don't think The Naked Gun achieves the same jokes per minute ratio as Airplane - there's still so much going on in the foreground and background that to really catch everything requires multiple viewings. As comedic cinema experiences go, The Naked Gun is quite rich.
Leslie Nielsen, god bless him, really plays the same character no matter what he's in. He has three total expressions: shock, skepticism and sexy. Or whatever passes for sexy with Leslie Nielsen. What he lacks in variety he makes up in sheer deadpan excellence. There's never a Jimmy Fallon moment of approval-seeking to the camera. He makes dry joke after dry joke and never stops to see if the audience has caught it all - that's your job, not his. Again, this rapid-fire pace of one-liners and double-entendres makes for terrific viewing and re-viewing experiences.
O.J. Simpson. What do you say about this guy? On one hand we can applaud him when he had a bright future in both football and comedy. As Nordberg, Simpson gets slammed, rocked, jarred and thrown out windows all for the cheaper laugh. What makes it all funny is Simpson's ability to keep the look of pure dismay plastered across his face. Superb.
DVD Extra Features:
As with all the DVDs in the "I Love the 80s" Edition pool, this DVD version of The Naked Gun features very little in terms of DVD extras. However, I'm happy to note that with The Naked Gun you get a rather funny commentary track featuring David Zucker (Director, Writer), Robert Weiss (Producer) and hosted by Peter Tilden. Not as funny as the movie itself obviously, but interesting to hear about onset anecdotes about Nielsen, Simpson and the rest.
Summary of Naked Gun [VHS]
David Zucker--of the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker creative troika behind Airplane! and television's Police Squad!--directed this 1988 feature film based on the latter show. Leslie Nielsen returns to his old TV role of Lt. Frank Drebin, the deadpan idiot with a detective's badge. The reinvention of the failed series as a theatrical feature seems to have inspired everyone involved to make a pretty funny movie, and the jokes gather a momentum that lasts until the final act. Ricardo Montalban is a perfect foil as a villain whose aquarium is being invaded by Drebin during routine questioning, and George Kennedy is delightful in a self-parodying part as an earnest but obtuse lawman. There's a hilarious bit when Drebin--wearing a live police wire while going to the bathroom--can be overheard over the loudspeakers at a speech given by a flustered mayor (Nancy Marchand). Yes, that's O.J. Simpson as a detective who ends up on the wrong side of numerous Drebin blunders. --Tom KeoghComedy VHS Video
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