The Lethal Weapon Anthology: A Review of "Lethal Weapon"

In the realm of 80s movies, which I do love endlessly as you've no doubt already well-established, the action movies were some of the most memorable action movies ever made. Among the most well-respected entries in cinema history is the action sub-genre, also a comedy sub-genre; the "Buddy cop" movie. Buddy cop movies have become a common trope as they've developed more and more, pairing two unlike characters together for comedic moments and exchanges, as well as subjecting them to incredible action sequences... many of which would supply even more comedic one-liners if the characters were compelling enough. Of the buddy-cop movies, the most well-known has to be Richard Donner's quadrilogy of action-comedy buddy cop movies... Lethal Weapon. Originally conceived as a largely dark and brutal action movie series, the Lethal Weapon series soon developed into funnier and funnier action movies as the series continued, culminating in probably one of my favorite action movies of all time... Lethal Weapon 4. The Lethal Weapon series has somehow maintained impeccable quality throughout all four films, each one a solid A+ action movie. While the first one is a little depressing and not quite on the happy side of things, the fourth one is a ribald hysterical action thrill ride, and justifiably so. I'm here this month to talk about all four movies... each one just as fun and memorable as the last one. Let's get this started with the first Lethal Weapon from 1987.

Shortly after his 50th birthday, LAPD Homicide Sergeant Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) is partnered with Sergeant Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson), a transfer from narcotics. Riggs, a former Special Forces soldier who lost his wife in a car accident three years prior, has turned suicidal, and has been taking his aggression out on suspects, including a stand off with cocaine smugglers in a Christmas tree lot. This leads his superiors to request his transfer, where they fear if he goes any farther, he could hurt himself or innocent bystanders if he snaps. Murtaugh and Riggs quickly find themselves facing off with each other with disagreeing stances during a scene where Riggs forces a jumper off a roof by handcuffing himself to him, leading Murtaugh to deduce that Riggs really is suicidal.

That's the background gist. The main story begins when Murtaugh is contacted by Michael Hunsaker (Tom Atkins), a Vietnam War buddy and banker, but before they can meet, Murtaugh learns that Hunsaker's daughter, Amanda (Jackie Swanson) apparently committed suicide by jumping from her apartment balcony. Autopsy reports show Amanda to have been poisoned with drain cleaner, making the case a possible homicide. Hunsaker tells Murtaugh that he was concerned about his daughter's involvement in drugs, prostitution, and pornography, and was trying to get Murtaugh to help her escape that life. Murtaugh and Riggs attempt to question Amanda's pimp, but find a drug lab on the premises, leading to a shootout. Riggs kills the pimp and saves the life of Murtaugh, who starts to tolerate his new partner even despite all of his crazy antics. Even though the case seems to have reached its end, Riggs is aware that the only witness to Amanda's apparent suicide was Dixie, another prostitute who was working away from her normal streets. They attempt to question Dixie at her home, but it explodes as they approach it. Riggs finds parts of a mercury switch from bomb debris, indicating a professional had set the bomb, someone with Special Forces training similar to Riggs'; some children who had been nearby even claim to have witnessed a man approach the house with a tattoo similar to the one Riggs has, and Murtaugh suspects Hunsaker is not telling the full story.

A devout Christian kidnaps Mel Gibson following
the release of The Passion of the Christ, c. 2004

Riggs & Murtaugh approach Hunsaker before Amanda's funeral, where he reveals that he had previously been part of "Shadow Company," a heroin-smuggling operation run by former special forces operators from the Vietnam War, masterminded by retired General Peter McAllister (Mitchell Ryan) and his right-hand chief enforcer, Mr. Joshua, played by the commonly insane-looking Gary Busey. Hunsaker had been laundering the money, but wanted to get out, and when McAllister found out he had contacted Murtaugh, the general had Amanda killed in retaliation. As Murtaugh tries to get Hunsaker to reveal everything he knows about Shadow Company, Joshua arrives in a helicopter and kills Hunsaker with some very precise sniper shots. That night, Shadow Company arrives and attempts to kill Riggs in a drive-by shooting, but he is saved by a bulletproof vest. Murtaugh and Riggs fake his murder to gain the upper hand.

Shadow Company later kidnaps Murtaugh's daughter Rianne (Traci Wolfe) and demand that Murtaugh turn himself over to them for her return. Murtaugh and Riggs plan an ambush at the exchange at El Mirage Lake with Riggs providing sniper support, but Riggs is caught by McAllister and the trio are taken to an unknown location. Murtaugh and Riggs are tortured for information, but Riggs manages to overpower the captors, frees Murtaugh and Rianne, and they escape to find themselves at a busy nightclub used as a front for Shadow Company. With their cover blown, McAllister and Joshua attempt to escape separately. Joshua manages to get away, but McAllister's driver is shot by Murtaugh, causing the general's car to veer out of control and get struck by a bus on Hollywood Boulevard, and McAllister is killed when a fire causes hand grenades in the car to detonate. Murtaugh and Riggs race back to Murtaugh's house, knowing that Joshua will come after his family for revenge. They arrive in time to prevent him, and Riggs beats Joshua in a violent brawl on the front lawn, letting Joshua take "a shot at the title" as Riggs puts it. As backup officers arrive to take Joshua into custody, he breaks free and steals a gun from one of the patrolmen, but Murtaugh and Riggs pull their guns and shoot Joshua dead in one wild shot. After visiting his wife's grave, Riggs spends Christmas with the Murtaughs, having become best friends with Murtaugh and bonding with the rest of the family. Riggs also gives Murtaugh a symbolic gift: a hollow-point bullet which he had been saving to commit suicide, as he does not need it anymore...

Lethal Weapon is a stone-cold classic of an action movie. While it is the most serious and least-funny of the four of them, it still holds up as being a nail-biter of a mystery-thriller. There's some trace amounts of comedy, but again, it is more of a serious movie, dealing with plot lines involving suicide and mental health. The action scenes are masterfully put together, including the sniper support scene in the desert, and the escape from the Shadow Company front is pretty stellar too. The "shot at the title" fist fight on the Murtaugh front lawn is a little awkwardly cut, but you still get the feeling of a "final battle" as you would from a video game. I also didn't really know what the point of the 'Rianne crush on Riggs' arc was for, but I guess it was just one of those innocent teenage crushes in 1987. Nowadays, people might cock their heads at it funny. Tastes have changed, I guess. The movie even comes accompanied with some interesting soft, yet memorable music. A saxophone wail becomes synonymous with these movies once you watch them, and this first one is no exception. There's even a track known as "Riggs' theme", composed by guitar playing legend Eric Clapton.

Danny Glover and Mel Gibson developed perfect chemistry for on-screen banter together, teaming together again three more times... even once more for a humorous tribute cameo in Donner's other Gibson-led flick, Maverick. The movie plays like Die Hard in that it's an action movie that makes you think it's a Christmas movie, even opening with the familiar "Jingle Bell Rock" and ending with shot of the Murtaugh's house at Christmas time with snow on the ground. It's an absolutely badass movie, and each of the three sequels follow suit. If anything, they get better and better. Stay tuned as we press on and look at a guy who knows all about "diplomatic immunity"...