Lethal Weapon 2

Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

Runtime: 119 minutes

Directed by: Richard Donner

Starring: Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Joss Ackland, Patsy Kensit

From: Warner Bros.

I wasn't planning on seeing a movie this late afternoon and posting another review tonight but that's how it turned out. This movie is pretty great, still. My Letterboxd review is below: 

I was not planning on watching this movie late this afternoon into this early evening but that's how it turned out, and I am glad I saw it again as the last viewing was many years ago and this was the first time I had seen the Director's Cut, although that only has three random scenes that don't amount to much.

I presume everyone is familiar with the plot and how Riggs and Murtaugh are now buddies (Riggs does his laundry at the Murtaugh residence, after all) and they deal not only with a case of a corrupt South African diplomat and his buddies (as Apartheid hadn't quite ended yet, of course it is brought up) but also the State's witness known as Leo Getz-a little of him truly goes a long way-and the two are connected... so I'll move onto the details.

I won't compare this to the original as I think both are great in their own ways. I mean, detriments that can be mentioned here is how the motormouthed Leo can get to be quite annoying, and there's also a plot twist involving the late wife of Riggs; people have argued if it was really necessary and I say that's not a bad point to argue. Even with all that, I can still rate this very highly and there are a few reasons why.

It's just so damn entertaining. There's great action scenes-that are clearly shot-(the movie starts off right away with a quality car chase sequence). There are some pretty big laughs to be had. There are some unforgettable scenes (literally), such as the bomb on the toilet and what ended up being a commercial for condoms. There's still some time for heavy drama. And even if you exclude the whole Apartheid thing, the villains are really rotten people so you love them getting their comeuppance. Also, it has to be said that the score from Michael Kamen, David Sanborn and Eric Clapton is very good and fitting to this motion picture. I am thankful that a film I loved seeing as a youngster is still awesome in 2016.