Martin Brest

Better than I expected. I haven't seen it since the 80s, and I registered it back than as a mildly diverting action movie. But the non-action parts are really well-done. It's not a paint-by-numbers buddy cop flick -- Judge Reinhold's character gets involved gradually and organically. It also lets the cranky older cops' characters evolve, so that when they decide to support Axel Foley it feels earned. What's most surprising is Eddie Murphy's subtlety -- that goofy laugh he does became iconic to the point where it overshadowed how restrained the rest of his performance is. He chooses genuinely relating to the other characters over playing for laughs, making it easier for the viewer to feel invested in his mission to avenge his murdered friend. It's also refreshing that his friendship with the main female character is never shoehorned into romance, thought that might be due to the times, and the risk of inserting a mixed-race romance into a blockbuster.… (mais)