Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
One of my all-time favorites: witty, warm, and very funny!
Martin Brest has only made five feature films (Going in style, BHC, Midnight
run, Scent of a woman, and Meet Joe Black), films strikingly different from
one another, but that all share certain traits. They are finely crafted,
energetic, and extraordinarily human. The warmth and friendship shine
through, even through the gun- and fist-play which are obligatory in a
cops-and-robbers movie. This is one of the first and best prototypes of the
buddy movie.
Brest's casting is superb, and he elicits performances which are often the
best of even young actors' careers. Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, and Ronnie
Cox are outstanding, and the ensemble clicks like a well-oiled infield. To
me, this movie is still far and away Eddie Murphy's best performance. He is
remarkably talented, a comic genius. As an actor, his expressions are
sometimes outlandish, but always completely in character, and appropriate to
the dramatic situation. Villain Victor Maitland (played by Steven Berkoff,
the husband of Alberta Watson, Madeline in La Femme Nikita) is chillingly
underplayed; the cold-blooded evil shines through the
civilized facade.
BHC is one of the few movies which I can watch with my loved ones again and
again and never tire. Even as a comedy, it has a solidness and integrity
which make it extremely durable. I look forward eagerly to Martin Brest's
next film. Meanwhile, I always
have Beverly Hills Cop.
