Runtime: 127 minutes
Directed by: Richard Donner
Starring: The usual crew, plus Jet Li, Chris Rock and quite a few others
From: Warner Bros.
Why not revisit yet another film produced by Joel Silver? It was nice seeing a late 80’s R-rated action film (Action Jackson) Friday night so the next night, going with a bigger budget late 90’s R-rated action film was LONG overdue. In 2016 I viewed then reviewed the first three Lethal Weapon pictures, which had all been watched & enjoyed by me for many years by that point. The fourth one I recalled as being notably worse than the first three after one experience way back then; turns out, this was not true so this should have also been reviewed in 2016. Regardless, with Mel Gibson fallen even more out of favor now than in '16, that does make this more awkward... I'll still separate the art from the artist here.
The story is a real mess; that is the Achilles’ heel of the film. If you read about the rushed production and how many people ultimately contributed to the script, no wonder. It involves Triads, human smuggling, counterfeiting, and a whole lot more… without even factoring in at least six different subplots that fight for screentime. There are also TWO loud characters played by Joe Pesci and Chris Rock; that is perhaps a reason why Pesci’s Leo Getz is sidelined for long stretches. I also forgot that not only were there homophobic moments, there was also racism; both have aged like milk. That’s a shame as otherwise the Murtaugh/Riggs duo were usually as amusing as they were in the first three. The Riggs in the first is mostly gone… although there is character growth and his first wife is referenced.
Thank heavens for as messy as this was, the action still delivers. The opening sets the tone for how gleefully over the top that element is: a non-sequitor where a random armored guy w/ an assault rifle and a FLAMETHROWER is tearing things up during a rainy night, with an absolutely absurd conclusion. The biggest setpiece involves a car chase that (to steal a phrase) was straight out of a Fast & Furious film from years later due to some insane moments. The highlight was Jet Li as the main villain who delivered on the martial arts action and was an easy character to loathe. I was also delighted to once again hear one of the franchise’s trademarks one more time… of course I refer to the wailing sax on the soundtrack & the contributions to the soundtrack by Eric Clapton—speaking of people who have fallen even further in the public eye due to his beliefs.
The finale was quite loud and brash yet was still a nice way to conclude the franchise; now, I realize that among the many issues in the long-proposed 5th film-if it ever happens-is that it would likely ruin this movie’s ending by presenting a lame story starring two actors who truly are too old for this s---, not to mention the supporting characters they’d bring back. As 4 was better than remembered by me, it would be best if there wasn’t a 5.
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