The Naked Gun

The Naked Gun Movie Review Rating:

Star Cast: Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Paul Walter Hauser, Danny Huston

Director: Akiva Schaffer

What’s Good: The relentless string of jokes and the fabulous pacing.

What’s Bad: As in many comedies, the jokes will be hit or miss, and some of them feel a bit repetitive.

Loo Break: The short runtime doesn’t really allow for breaks to the loo.

Watch or Not?: If you want to have a good laugh, there is no better option out there in theaters.

Language: English (with subtitles).

Available On: Theaters

Runtime: 85 Minutes.

User Rating:

Comedy has been a dying genre in theaters, as at some point in the last decade, it was decided that the genre would fit better in streaming services. While it is great to have brand-new comedies that we can watch at home, the feeling of sharing a laugh with a bunch of strangers cannot be toppled, and so The Naked Gun, a new reboot of the legendary series of slapstick comedy, feels like a breath of fresh air in today’s theater landscape.

The Naked Gun Movie Review: Script Analysis

The Naked Gun was a very strange comedy franchise, tracing its DNA to Airplane, one of the most legendary comedy films ever created. And so, The Naked Gun swings for the fences, trying to create that same sense of the absurd and pulling off some of the most outrageous visual gags, alongside a ton of dry humor that can only work thanks to Liam Neeson’s perfect delivery.

The script makes use of Neeson’s persona to expand his repertoire of jokes and create some very absurd sequences, and at least for me, most of them worked. The film will definitely not be for everyone, especially since the pacing goes straight to the point and there is very little fat going around. The jokes are relentless, and basically every few seconds there is a new visual gag, some of them more sophisticated than others, but there is definitely a sense that the film can overwhelm you with how much it does on every frame.

The script even has the time to leave a couple of emotional moments here and there that only enhance certain jokes. The genius of the piece can be too much for some people, but that is the essence of comedy; not everyone is going to find everything as funny as someone else. And yet, we need to applaud the efforts of the film when it comes to doing something different every time, even if at times it feels like it repeats itself. The film is around 80 minutes, and that is basically the only way to keep the flow of the jokes without making people mad.

The Naked Gun Movie Review: Star Performance

Liam Neeson’s career is a very interesting one. He went from a very respected drama actor to an action star, and now, finally, someone is using his comedic assets in the best possible way. Seth MacFarlane, who has already used Neeson this way on some of his previous films, serves here as a producer, and you can definitely feel his touch everywhere. Neeson does it right, even great, and we can only hope this opens new doors for him once again.

Pamela Anderson is the other standout. The actress finally returns to the screen, and she does amazingly well. She has proper charisma, great chemistry with Neeson, and the chance to explore her comedic side. Anderson, along with all the minor characters, fills the screen with fun, and you can tell everyone had a blast making the film.