LETHAL WEAPON
A film review by James Kawashima
Copyright 1987 James Kawashima
Starring: Mel Gibson, Danny Glover Directed by: Richard Donner +3.5 on a scale of -4 to +4
This is a police thriller in the tradition of 48 HOURS and THE FRENCH CONNECTION. It's taut, well-executed, and not entirely predictable. It comes to us from Richard Donner, of SUPERMAN fame, who is noted for his interest in characterization and making the characters seem real and believable to the audience despite their often superhuman abilities. In SUPERMAN, this took the form of an alien with amazing super powers. In LETHAL WEAPON, this takes the form of Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) whose incredible prowess with any kind of firearm as well as his proficiency of a number of martial arts make him the "lethal weapon" to whom the title refers. He also spends some of his evenings alone in his motor home mourning over his dead wife and deciding whether or not he should join her. He is what one could call a cop on the edge. He is paired with Roger Murtholdt (Danny Glover) who is a family man, celebrating his fiftieth birthday. The idea of pairing two opposites is by no means a new one, especially in police stories, but Donner pulls it off well. Both characters are basically likable. Neither pull a lot of comedic one-liners or fit any stereotypical cop roles. Murtholdt (sp.?), Glover's character has a kind of presence simply due to his stature coupled with his natural soft-spoken style. Gibson's character is so interesting because we never know for sure whether or not he is as insane as Glover as well as the police psychologist seem to believe. He certainly does well as a killing machine, claiming that killing is "the only thing he could ever do well."
As a thriller, the movie is nearly flawless. There are few slow scenes (one in a firing range where the two are discussing a case seemed to drag a bit). The plot is interesting and not as predictable as some reviewers have claimed. True, the idea of having ex-CIA men going BAD and smuggling drugs is not a new one, but it's used well in this film and provides some interesting interplay between the good guys and the bad guys. The action scenes are, on the whole, extremely well executed; I was on the edge of my seat for most of the movie.
In short, this film is a must see for anyone at all interested in the present rage of killer-cop and angry soldier movies this Spring (and also for those who aren't interested but like action). Credit is also due to Gary Busey who turns in a fine performance as a psychopathic Vietnam vet (he's good at playing crazies) and to Tom Atkins as Glover's old war buddy whose daughter stars in one of the most stimulating opening scenes I have ever seen.
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