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FRANCHISE ME: LETHAL WEAPON

post #1 of 42
3/14/12 at 8:30pm
Thread Starter 
by Joshua Miller: link

Josh isn't too old for this shit.
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post #2 of 42
3/14/12 at 8:57pm

*WAILING SAX*

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post #3 of 42
3/14/12 at 9:22pm

So hold on, this movie would have worked better if Riggs and Murtaugh had arrested bad guys instead of killing them? I don't know, arrests are hella boring.

 

And McAllister was primo.

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post #4 of 42
3/15/12 at 4:50am

Just curious. But what the difference between the Director's Cut and the normal version?

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post #5 of 42
3/15/12 at 8:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by felix View Post

Just curious. But what the difference between the Director's Cut and the normal version?

 

I'm assuming this, since I have zero goddamn memory of this scene.

 

Quote:
Riggs shows up at a crime scene where a gunman has taken school children hostage, and utilizes his death wish by walking into plain sight, allowing the gunman to fire wantonly at him and then shooting the gunman in the face.

 

 

 

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post #6 of 42
3/15/12 at 8:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by felix View Post

Just curious. But what the difference between the Director's Cut and the normal version?


School shooting scene and Riggs picks up an underage prostitute but only wants her to watch tv with him thus illustrating his loneliness. I imagine they took out the shooting because as cool as it was it's overkill and the Christmas tree lot made the same point and introduced him better. Now the hooker bit was actually short and sweet and it really worked. However im sure they cut it because if even a small percentage of the audience thought for a second Riggs was fucking an underage girl it makes him just a tad bit harder to root for. 

 

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post #7 of 42
3/15/12 at 8:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moltisanti View Post

So hold on, this movie would have worked better if Riggs and Murtaugh had arrested bad guys instead of killing them? I don't know, arrests are hella boring.

 

And McAllister was primo.

Yeah not to mention shoot to wound is WAY harder than it looks. You have a guy trying to kill you and your going to aim for the smallest part of his body rather than the chest or stomach. Most of the time when the cops do shoot and wound the guy the shot is in the torso and he just happens to live. Not to mention the part where he may still try to shoot you. And the end where Riggs is talking about shoot to kill makes total sense. They are going out there without any help from police per the kidknappers instructions. It's 2 guys against a small army and his daughter is there. Not really a way your arresting anyone in that situation. At no point in the movie do they justify cold blooded murder and shooting unarmed men. Do they cut some corners to do that? Yeah but that is for the audience, they really wanted to see Mr. Joshua bite the bullet, and with those teeth her certainly could.

 

However the second film? There is where that issue pops up. Riggs openly says fuck it at the end.

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post #8 of 42
3/15/12 at 9:01am

The point Josh was making is that although you can make a case for each individual use of lethal force being necessary throughout the film, taken as a whole it paints an odd and incongruous picture of our heroes.  Not only are they kind of bloodthirsty, but when you realize they didn't make a single arrest at any point in the case, they seem weirdly incompetent at the job they were assigned to do (which is not really the same as their "job" as movie characters, but still).

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post #9 of 42
3/15/12 at 9:08am

But who sits down to watch LETHAL WEAPON to view a realistic depiction of penal code enforcement? Would anyone watch HARD BOILED and say "Why did Tequila shoot all those guys? Surely some could have been rehabilitated."

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post #10 of 42
3/15/12 at 9:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Schwartz View Post

The point Josh was making is that although you can make a case for each individual use of lethal force being necessary throughout the film, taken as a whole it paints an odd and incongruous picture of our heroes.  Not only are they kind of bloodthirsty, but when you realize they didn't make a single arrest at any point in the case, they seem weirdly incompetent at the job they were assigned to do (which is not really the same as their "job" as movie characters, but still).


Thank you.

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post #11 of 42
3/15/12 at 9:23am

Also - oops - I inadvertently watched the director's cut, which is actually the version of the film I've seen the past two times I watched it. But I have amended my article to remove mentions of this cut (there were only two scenes I referred to; plus the removal of one kill from the overall kill count).

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post #12 of 42
3/15/12 at 10:04am

Joshua Miller, I like...Both cuts of Lethal Weapon!  Excellent overview of an...Awesome cop film!  

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post #13 of 42
3/15/12 at 11:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moltisanti View Post

But who sits down to watch LETHAL WEAPON to view a realistic depiction of penal code enforcement? Would anyone watch HARD BOILED and say "Why did Tequila shoot all those guys? Surely some could have been rehabilitated."


It's the way the movie asks you to take the psychology of Riggs seriously that makes the incrongruities stand out where they wouldn't in Face/Off.

 

I love Lethal Weapon, btw.

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post #14 of 42
3/15/12 at 11:45am

For those who've never seen the directors cut and are curious, here are the differences:

 

In a new trailer scene, Riggs smashes his tv with a beer bottle; later he buys a new one. Murtaugh, before partnering with Riggs, goes to practice at the firing range. Riggs, before the dope shoot out, answers a call in a scool yard with a sniper. Riggs walks out into the line of fire and kills the sniper, emptying his clip into him. Riggs, after leaving Murtaugh's house, goes out to solicit a prostitute. The aftermath is not shown, but Riggs says he wants to take her home to watch The Stooges with him; for this he pays her $100.

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post #15 of 42
3/15/12 at 12:11pm

Great start so far, looking forward to more.

 

... particularly a hefty deconstruction of the problematic fourth film.

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post #16 of 42
3/15/12 at 3:24pm

wow, so all this time i've been watching the Directors cut? I would have a hard time watching the original now.....

 

great choice for a series though, can't wait for the next ones.

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post #17 of 42
3/15/12 at 4:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Jarvie View Post

wow, so all this time i've been watching the Directors cut?


That was my reaction. Until the Blu ray only the Director's Cut was available on DVD since 2000.

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post #18 of 42
3/15/12 at 4:44pm

Might as well continue reviewing the director's cuts.  It's how we all have been watching them for years now.  Just make a note of it in the reviews.

 

Personally, I'm kinda pissed that the BRs won't have both cuts.  Honestly, I doubt I'll upgrade because of that.

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post #19 of 42
3/15/12 at 4:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.D. Bob Plissken View Post

Might as well continue reviewing the director's cuts.  It's how we all have been watching them for years now.  



...it is?

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post #20 of 42
3/15/12 at 5:14pm

If you've been watching DVDs, yep.

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post #21 of 42
3/15/12 at 5:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.D. Bob Plissken View Post

If you've been watching DVDs, yep.



Last time I was watching LW, it was on my old taped from censored netowrk tv VHS copy.

 

Of course, I've seen that copy about a thousand times. Literally.

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post #22 of 42
3/16/12 at 2:02am
The theatrical cuts have been available on DVD since 1997, although for some odd reason LETHAL WEAPON 2 was not anamorphic like the rest. I still have the box set.
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post #23 of 42
3/16/12 at 9:10pm

I thought they stopped making the theatrical cuts as soon as the director's versions were released?  Anyway, I've owned the DCs since they came out.  I honestly can't even remember what the theatricals were like.

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post #24 of 42
3/16/12 at 9:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.D. Bob Plissken View Post

I thought they stopped making the theatrical cuts as soon as the director's versions were released?  Anyway, I've owned the DCs since they came out.  I honestly can't even remember what the theatricals were like.

Yeah I don't think they're for sale anywhere except eBay and the like nowadays. I have the DCs on VHS(in widescreen!) and on DVD, and really wish they were the theatricals(the first movie is really the only one harmed by the additions though).

I figure this is as good a place as any to ask, although I'm jumping the gun as far as Joshua's series goes...
On the back of my VHS box of LW3 it says one of the additions is finding out how Leo gets his vehicle or something(a cop car, as I recall), but I'm pretty sure this isn't even in the movie. Anyone know what I'm talking about?
 

 

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post #25 of 42
3/16/12 at 9:36pm

I love all the additions, ESPECIALLY the ones in the first one.  I'm pissed that the sniper scene won't be on the BR, other than as a deleted scene.

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post #26 of 42
3/16/12 at 9:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.D. Bob Plissken View Post

I thought they stopped making the theatrical cuts as soon as the director's versions were released?

Nope, they've always been available along with the DCs. Most of the DVDs WB releases rarely go out of print.
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post #27 of 42
3/16/12 at 10:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Stockslivevan View Post

Nope, they've always been available along with the DCs. Most of the DVDs WB releases rarely go out of print.

Weird. I haven't seen them for sale for years and years. Even the "4 Film Favorites" set for the LW series has the DCs of the first three.
 

 

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post #28 of 42
3/17/12 at 7:15pm

I have the novelization for this. And the ending is radically different.

 

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

Riggs resigns from the Force.

The end scene is with Riggs at Church with Rog's family. Apparently he'll be teaching a Self-Defense class there on the weekends.

 

 

 

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post #29 of 42
3/17/12 at 10:48pm
Yeah, an alternate ending was shot with Riggs and Murtaugh parting ways. Strangely it's on the special features for Lethal Weapon 4. However it plays differently from what you said about the novel.
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post #30 of 42
3/18/12 at 1:42am

Thank you for exposing the sheer horror that is Honeymoon Suite's closing-credits song. I pull the remote control like fucking Quick Draw McGraw to turn the movie off before I have to ensure a single note of that shit.

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post #31 of 42
3/18/12 at 1:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by felix View Post

I have the novelization for this. And the ending is radically different.

 

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 


I find it almost impossibly funny that you're spoiler-tagging the novelization of a buddy cop action film made in 1987. 

 

On subject, there seems to be an attempt to juxtapose the relationship between Riggs and Murtaugh with Joshua and Gen. McAllister that never manages to materialize in any meaningful way because Black has a tendency to under-develop his villains, but it's there in the margins of the piece. Joshua is Riggs' negative, both men are expert killers, but Joshua is cold and machine-like, and McAllister is Murtaugh's negative, a cold and unfeeling father-figure who inspires the same attitude and mode of behavior in his surrogate son / younger brother.

 

Also, for the record, Black's original script is quite a bit more winky and weird than the ultimate film, a bit closer in that respect to Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. I really enjoyed the piece, Miller, but I am a bit surprised that you didn't note that certain aspects of Riggs' character and entire scenes in the film are lifted wholesale from Dirty Harry.

 

Edit: Want to know why Black often sets his stories during the Christmas season? Finally! The answer...at 2:15...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uEQ7m71E80&feature=fvst

 


Edited by JacknifeJohnny - 3/18/12 at 2:16pm
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post #32 of 42
3/6/13 at 1:26am

Just saw this for the first time.

 

Was not all THAT impressed with the movie, but as Joshua's piece stated... it's really the cast that makes this.  Gibson is electric. 

 

Blame expectations a bit.  The film was always held up as a classic of 80s action movies.  It didn't help that it directly followed up a viewing of Die Hard, which I was delighted to find had lots of connections to Lethal Weapon!

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post #33 of 42
3/6/13 at 5:17am

Wow, just now getting to LW?! Too bad you didn't see it earlier, because it's awesome to come to it at age 12-13.

 

Check out 48 HRS.if you haven't. The decade's gold standard for buddy movies in my opinion. It's hilarious, and the Walter Hill Action is top notch.

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post #34 of 42
3/6/13 at 5:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post

Check out 48 HRS.if you haven't. The decade's gold standard for buddy movies in my opinion. It's hilarious, and the Walter Hill Action is top notch.

 

Also, watching it, you can pinpoint to the minute when Eddie Murphy became a superstar.

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post #35 of 42
3/6/13 at 5:37am

Ashamed to admit it but i haven't seen 48 HOURS yet. Did watch ANOTHER 48 HOURS though.

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post #36 of 42
3/6/13 at 6:00am

Seconding/thirding 48 HOURS.  Excellent film.  Avoid the sequel at all costs, though.

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post #37 of 42
3/6/13 at 6:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post

Seconding/thirding 48 HOURS.  Excellent film.  Avoid the sequel at all costs, though.

 

Great post/avatar conglomerate.

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post #38 of 42
3/6/13 at 9:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post

Wow, just now getting to LW?! Too bad you didn't see it earlier, because it's awesome to come to it at age 12-13.

 

Check out 48 HRS.if you haven't. The decade's gold standard for buddy movies in my opinion. It's hilarious, and the Walter Hill Action is top notch.

 

Oh man, I don't know if I would've been ready for it at that age.  The hardest thing I'd seen around 6th grade was SPEED or T2!   Hahahaha. 

 

It was around jr high that I started gradually getting more and more into movies... because Star Wars. 

 

Sigh.

 

I think I actually HAD seen 48 HOURS somehow when I was younger.  Of course, I had no idea what I was watching back then and couldn't appreciate it.  So I can't count it.

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post #39 of 42
3/6/13 at 9:13am

I think "48 Hours" is the perfect mixing of 70's and 80's filmmaking. The grit of the "Dirty Harry" 70's with the pacing/humor of the "Beverly Hills Cop" 80's.

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post #40 of 42
3/6/13 at 12:43pm

48 Hours is...good.  I wouldn't put it as a top buddy cop movie.  Lethal Weapon 1-4, Bad Boys II, Robocop, Bad Boys, Running Scared would all be before 48 Hours.  I am not really a fan of Nick Nolte.

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post #41 of 42
3/6/13 at 4:48pm

Heyyy, what's up with Another 48hrs?  As unnecessary cash-ins go its pretty darn good, I reckon.  It probably tilts too far toward comedy for fans of the first I guess.  And it doesn't really have that core conflict and good villain either, preferring instead to sling various baddies at our heroes video game style.

But it's pretty entertaining as an OTT actioner  (I mean people still go on about Commando like that's something beyond ironic enjoyment sometimes)

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post #42 of 42
3/6/13 at 4:53pm

Muzman, Of course!  Commando remains...Schwarzenegger's...Best Film!  It is a true classic, with top flight action, great quips and puns, and...EEEEEvil Villains!

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