Franchise Review- Beverly Hills Cop

Forty years ago this month, a 23 year old Eddie Murphy became one of the biggest stars in the world. "Beverly Hills Cop" spent thirteen consecutive weeks as the #1 movie at the box office(14 total). That won't ever happen again. The Axl Foley phenomenon rolled on through the summer of '87 with it's first sequel, and remains Murphy's defining role, with all due respect to Donkey, Akeem, Sherman Klump, and Reggie Hammond. The franchise produced two more installments, with the LONG-awaited fourth film generating substantial buzz for Netflix. Four decades, four directors, one great character. But Foley wouldn't have been able to take down the villainous Victor Maitland(Steven Berkoff) and his ilk without the lovably square duo of Judge Reinhold and John Ashton(the super-cop story was working). I'm shoving a banana in your tailpipe with Harold Faltermeyer's synth score in my head as I type this. So, fire up some Glenn Fry and join me as I recap their adventures. We need these guys now more than ever.

"Beverly Hills Cop"(1984) The FIFTH highest-grossing film of the 1980s was turned down by Al Pacino, James Caan, Mickey Rourke, Harrison Ford and many others. Michael Eisner and Don Simpson both claimed credit for the fish-out-of-water concept, that was crafted(separately) into a high-octane action comedy by screenwriters Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr. Director Martin Brest was a perfectionist that brought a gritty realism to the Detroit opening and a sunny sheen to buttoned-up Beverly Hills. Sylvester Stallone came VERY close to playing Axl Foley(or Axl "Cobra" Cobretti, I should say) before his "Rambo"-style heroics were deemed too ambitious and expensive by Simpson and his producing partner Jerry Bruckheimer. "48 Hrs." made Eddie Murphy a viable replacement in the spring of '84, and the "SNL" sensation delivered one of the most entertaining, electric screen characters of all time(with a ton of improvisation, of course).

Every great movie is a perfect storm of the right people/elements coming together at the right time. The quiet hallway murder of Foley's jailbird buddy James Russo by HOF-worthy right-hand man Jonathan Banks is like something out of the '70s. Btw, Ronny Cox(as the brave Sgt. Bogomil) can boast of being a key part of the two best "BHC" movies. Patti LaBelle's "Stir It Up" is practically an antidepressant. I've personally outgrown strip clubs, but I'll hit one with Axl any night of the week. We can assume that Lisa Eilbacher's Jenny Summers(a love interest in earlier iterations) left L.A. Bronson Pinchot's "Serge" stayed. This is a special film.

"Beverly Hills Cop II"(1987) Roger Ebert gave it one-star. Giddy moviegoers didn't give a shit. The late, great Tony Scott was offered the directing reins by Simpson and Bruckheimer, based on the enormous success of 1986's top grosser "Top Gun", and his fingerprints are all over Foley's second trip to the West Coast. From the soundtrack("Shakedown") to the Aviator sunglasses to the Stallone jokes and casual misogyny/gun-play(Brigitte Nielsen is a big bitch), there may be no more EIGHTIES movie than "Cop II". I'm certain it will be studied in the year 2087. Emboldened by his audience approval rating, Eddie is an unstoppable comedic force in every exchange. That wouldn't be the case for much of the '90s.

An evil Nielsen, Jurgen Prochnow, Dean Stockwell, Allen Garfield, Gilbert Gottfried, and the Detroit tag team of Paul Reiser and Gil Hill all keep "II" from being a one-man show. That's a seriously good supporting roster. Movie buff Hugh Hefner granted rare access to the Playboy Mansion(and a Chris Rock cameo). Most of all, I watched this a hundred times on cable because of the Foley/Taggart/Rosewood dynamic. Their friendship is the heart of the series("I love you, guys"), and the next two films were foolish not to fully realize this.

"Beverly Hills Cop III"(1994) After a few years of resistance, Murphy was persuaded by Paramount(and a $15 million salary) to put on Axl's Detroit Lions jacket and cruise through Los Angeles to uncover another criminal conspiracy. Simpson and Bruckheimer dropped out over the story and budget, but Eddie reconciled with his "Trading Places"/"Coming to America" director John Landis, ending their fued(read about it). The magic was gone the moment we find out that Taggart is retired(Hector Elizondo is subbed in for John Ashton) and all the action takes place at the Disney-like Wonderworld amusement park- a wonky construction of "Die Hard" screenwriter Stephen E. de Souza. Musician Nile Rodgers is no Harold Faltermeyer, and Murphy's misguided belief that Foley is "more mature now" kept the laugh quotient strangely low, as early summer audiences saw "Speed" and "The Flintstones" instead.

I like the chop-shop shoot-out/chase, and an excited Bronson Pinchot who clearly understood his assignment. In a world with ten "Fast in the Furious" films, it's weird that we didn't get five "BHC" movies between 1984-1998. Foley should've matched the film count of Rocky Balboa and Captain Jack Sparrow. I don't think Eddie knew what he had. "The Rush Hour" movies ran with the mismatched funny cop formula, with director Brett Ratner professing his love for Axl F. in the mid-'00s and officially breaking the ice on discussions for a fourth film. Nobody could've imagined how long that would take.

"Beverly Hills Cop: Axl F"(2024) Thirty years. My god. Many writers and directors(and a TV show) were rejected before Netflix and Jerry Bruckheimer made #4 a reality. I wish I could say it was worth the wait. An ageless Eddie tries to summon the energy that made Foley such a fun character in the '80s on his 40th anniversary, but is let down by a pedestrian script and first-time filmmaker Mark Malloy. The Axl I knew wouldn't be estranged from his daughter(a dour Taylour Page). It doesn't make sense that we don't know who her mother is. Where's Theresa Randle("Bad Boys")? Kevin Bacon's underwritten bad guy doesn't get enough to do. I honestly prefer Ellis DeWald(Timothy Carhart). Yes, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton(R.I.P.), Bronson Pinchot, and Paul Reiser are all present. But this movie blew it's only chance to put Foley's friends in the same place at the same time(sigh).

Nostalgic callbacks aside, Malloy and Bruckheimer couldn't even get the soundtrack right. You'd think a $150 million budget would've allowed the use of "Going Back to Cali" from The Notorious B.I.G., in the actual movie and not just the trailer. Malloy was more focused on his helicopter stunts(Murphy and young gun Joseph Gordon-Levitt hover above BH in the biggest set-piece) to be bothered with the little details that make a film rewatchable. But I'm not mad, I'm glad I grew up with "Cop I and II". The only films in the franchise anyone will return to.

Great Movies- Beverly Hills Cop

Forty years ago today, Eddie Murphy