Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

Forty years ago this December saw the release of the most popular AND influential action comedies of all time.  This was star Eddie Murphy's immediate follow-up to his two breakout hits the previous years, 48 Hrs. in '82 and then Trading Places in '83, only THIS time he was the sole star above the title for the first time.  And Eddie did not disappoint with this fish-out-of-water comedy about a Detroit cop named Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) who travels across the country to Beverly Hills to investigate the murder of his best friend.  Even though that might not SOUND like the set-up for an comedic film, Murphy's gift for improvisation and a game supporting cast (John Ashton, Judge Reinhold playing two local cops whom he teams up with in Beverly Hills) bring a lot of humor to the proceedings regardless, along with a clever Oscar-nominated script from Daniel Petrie Jr and top-flight helming from director Martin Brest whose follow-up would be the even better Midnight Run four years later.  What results are memorable characters, quotable lines, and of course a kicking soundtrack including an iconic synth score from Harold Faultemeyer.  The Heat IS On!

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon

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Transcript

BEVERLY HILLS COP – 1984

Directed by Martin Brest

Starring Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Lisa Eilbacher, Ronny Cox, Steven Berkoff, Paul Reiser, James Russo, Jonathan Banks, Stephen Elliott, Gilbert R. Hill, Art Kimbro, Joel Bailey, and Bronson Pinchot 

Genre: Action Comedy

This might very well be one of THE ultimate comfort food movies for me. Because simply put ON PAPER, it's about as basic an action comedy as you're ever gonna find....even from this particular era which was loaded with them. It's pretty much a standard fish-out-of-water/revenge mystery plot which never colors outside of the lines when it comes to the overall story with JUST enough depth given to a few key characters to keep it engaging. And yet when rewatching it late at night for the first time in maybe ten years - at the end of a very long day - I was literally smiling ear-to-ear from the synth beat opening the credits in Detroit ALL the way the final freeze frame of Eddie turning back from his car with that devilish grin. :)

And why? Well for three main reasons.....the biggest and most obvious one is of course EDDIE. Young, boisterous Eddie no less at the age of 23 (!) convincingly playing a seasoned Detroit detective often clashing with actors double his age at the time! He's confident, high energy, and very importantly can build instant chemistry on-screen with just about any one his character encounters whether that be his underwritten sorta-love interest (but not really) Jenny (Lisa Eilbacher) or the strangely accented Serge played by Bronson Pinchot. He's bringing the funny even when the jokes don't completely land AND he's helping others around him seem wittier or more entertaining than they would by themselves! (Regarding Pinchot, you might disagree if you watched "Perfect Strangers" at the time) 

Eddie's Axel Foley was a singular creation for the 1980's: a wise-ass cop who always pokes fun at the police and defies them, but always exemplifies their best AND worst behaviors....mainly to delightful comic effect! ;) Yes Stallone was originally supposed to play some version of this particular character...and would kinda, sorta in Cobra two years later. But that movie (despite its charms) took this character trope WAY more seriously....and when you remove the comic timing, you're just left with awkward moments along the lines of a rogue cop tearing the shirt off of a loitering civilian in public for no particular reason. 🫣

Thanks to grounded direction by Martin Brest, this movie at the very least feels somewhat realistically street-level for most of its runtime....but thanks to Eddie's tireless rat-a-tat energy AND his uncanny ability to underplay a bit and go more droll at just the right moments (just watch his first interactions with Taggart and Bogolmill early on), this story never ceases to be FUN. :) Axel's uprorious rant to the front desk clerk at the Beverly Palms hotel early on is actually kind of mean-spirited and unnecessary on the surface.....but he just nails it with it aplomb so you can't help but laugh regardless! Though he STILL does have some help from two other key players....

The second key reason for this film's breezy success is Reinhold....JUDGE Reinhold. ;) He is very much this movie's secret weapon and this was amidst a run of sterling comedic turns big and small from the actor throughout the '80's: Stripes, Fast Times at Ridgmont High, Gremlins, Ruthless People, Vice Versa, and of course his delightful turn here as Billy Rosewood who becomes Axel's most valued partner from the BVPD. In most of these roles, he wasn't called upon to lead them or even be the biggest comedic player....but give him a few scenes, a few notes, a few reactions and he ALWAYS gets on base as a key utility player. I LOVE his interactions with both Axel and John Ashton's perpetually annoyed Taggart throughout - he's always offering unsolicited advice even it IS sensible advice. And he's trying OH so hard to be a stand-up by-the-book policeman but he also just cannot contain his enthusiasm at getting roped into his FIRST big case. In lesser hands, that little aside he has late in the movie referencing the climax of Butch Cassidy would come off as MCU-level cringey and distracting from the action. In this context, it just makes him more endearing.  And I’ll get to Number Three in just a bit….

 Needle drop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime): 

And the THIRD big driver of this movie's tone and overall bounce is of course the now-iconic score from Harold Faultemeyer. Even beyond creating one of the more hummable hero themes ("Axel F") of this era, Faultemeyer's synth notes throughout play a huge part in giving this film a propulsive, brisk pace. The music rarely slows down even when our lead character has to take a breath and think....and if we're being honest, it does SO much of the tonal heavy lifting for this movie. 🤫 Yeah just as the third act climax seems about to kick off, it's some slow-building melodies within the score which signal - more than any key piece of dialogue - that Bogolmill (a very winning Ronny Cox) and Taggart are now on board the Maitlin Train and that the cavalry is NOW on its way to back up Axel and Billy. 😃 (Audio clip) 

And no joke, I could recall at least a half dozen moments when I caught myself laughing or smiling mainly in response to cues from the score....just picture watching Billy and Taggart repeatedly struggle to climb up that fence at the mansion WITHOUT the synth beats playing overhead and it's not nearly as fun! (Audio clip)

Oh yeah….and this movie also has a BANGER soundtrack, one  of the best of  the ‘80s from a TRUE pop music murderer’s  row including The Pointer Sisters, Pattie Labelle, Shalamar and my personal favorite….the lively, fast-paced number which OPENS the movie with credits playing over various landmarks around Old Detroit….and from Detroit’s OWN Glenn Frey….yup I’m talking about “The Heat Is ON! It’s SO on…..(Audio clip)

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

Yup during this time period and for a long while afterwards, the buddy action comedy was a very male-dominated genre….leaving only one real prominent female role which would be Axel’s old childhood friend, Jenny Summers who runs a local art gallery in Beverly Hills.  And as played by Lisa Eilbacher, she’s pleasant enough….boisterous, and certainly a valuable ally for our protagonist.  Eilbacher has a couple of lively moments, especially when she is making fun of Eddie’s/Axel’s laugh.  But by the time we’re in the third act, she has pretty much been overshadowed by just about every other supporting player INCLUDING her own assistant SEEARGE played by Bronson Pinchot.  Glad she’s here but it’s pretty much a thankless girlfriend part. (Audio clip) 

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

Simply put, it’s ONE truly memorable moment about 45 minutes in….plus some hysterical fallout from this incident which occurs over the next few scenes.  I’ve got four words:

BANANA IN THE TAILPIPE

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

At the end of the day, this was STILL Eddie's movie, only technically his THIRD movie and his third starring vehicle.  It's the textbook definition of a 100% successful movie star turn helped in no small part by his ability to improv. But consider me eternally grateful that he didn't do it all by himself. True rewatchable gems like this one are always built on teamwork.  Still for delivering one of THE most memorable comedic star turns of this or any era, Eddie Murphy is the MVP. (Audio clip)

Final Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Even though this wasn’t technically the first buddy cop OR fish-out-of-water action comedy, there is the DNA of this film carrying over in SO many films for decades to come from Rush Hour to Ride Along to Big Trouble in Little China to The Heat to….yeah…..Deadpool & Wolverine.  Happy 40th Anniversary to what I believe REMAINS the most successful comedy of all time……at least adjusted for inflation!  

Streaming on Paramount Plus and fubo

And that ends another NEW ATTITUDE review!