Lethal Weapon
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 "I'm too old for this shit!"
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Lethal Weapon is a 1987 buddy cop action film directed and co-produced by Richard Donner, written by Shane Black, and co-produced by Joel Silver. It stars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover alongside Gary Busey, Tom Atkins, Darlene Love, and Mitchell Ryan.
Plot
Following the death of his wife, Los Angeles police detective Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) becomes reckless and suicidal. When he is reassigned and partnered with Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover), Riggs immediately clashes with the older officer. Together they uncover a massive drug-trafficking ring. As they encounter increasingly dangerous situations, Riggs and Murtaugh begin to form a bond. Riggs' volatile behavior might just help them apprehend the criminals -- if it doesn't kill them both first.
Why It Rocks
- It is considered one of the greatest buddy cop duo films.
- Richard Donner did a great job directing the film as he did with The Omen and Superman.
- Great story written by Shane Black.
- It especially came out during the age when action heroes were portrayed as killing machines.
- It helps redefine action movies for the 1980s and 1990s.
- Great acting, especially from Mel Gibson as the insane, suicidal cannon LAPD cop Martin Riggs, and Danny Glover as the calmer, sane, and more cautious Roger Murtaugh.
- Mel Gibson and Danny Glover have great chemistry and continued to star in 3 more films of the franchise.
- It contains a lot of Christmas themes that make it look like a Christmas movie, like Die Hard.
- Memorable lines:
- "I'm too old for this shit!".
- "You're not trying to draw a psycho pension! You really are crazy!"
- Riggs' backstory is very sympathetic, considering he lost his wife and is now in a depression and thinks about killing himself to put himself out of his misery which is the reason why he acts crazy.
- Heartwarming ending where Riggs visits his late wife's grave and says "Merry Christmas, Victoria Lynn. I love you".
- It spawned a TV series which came out in 2016.
- Lots of cool action scenes, especially the fight between Riggs and Mr. Joshua.
The Only Bad Quality
- Riggs trying to commit suicide over the death of his wife while watching Looney Tunes is very scary and sad to watch.
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on 56 reviews, with an average rating of 6.90/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The most successful installment in a phenomenally successful franchise, Lethal Weapon helped redefine action movies for the 1980s and 1990s. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.
Awards and Nominations
It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing, but lost to The Last Emperor.
