My Review of "Lethal Weapon"

Lethal Weapon is a buddy action movie that came out back in 1987. Admittedly, I should have seen this movie a long time ago. This is the first time I've ever seen it and I'm shocked that it took me this long. It's got a little of everything that I've ever want in an action movie and more.

The movie starts out with what seems like a suicide of a young woman at the top of a gigantic high rise. She seems to be high on drugs and leaped for her life. Soon after that we get introduced to Murtaugh.

He's a middle aged family man that works as a police officer. His sensibility is high and he can't wait to retire from his job. He's a hardnosed cop but can separate work and home pretty well. Meanwhile, we also get introduced to Riggs.

Riggs is also a police officer but he's a loose cannon. He's recently lost his wife and he's going through an existential crisis from his mourning. Many think he's lost his mind because he doesn't seem to fear death. It's fortuitous that the two of them are partnered together as they believe Murtaugh is grounded enough to keep Riggs in line.

The two of them are soon placed on the case for the young woman who dies in the opening credits. Pretty soon they start discovering that there's more to the death than meets the eye. It's witty how they do this because it's a catalyst to expose the history behind each of the characters. They all have some sort of military background and their past seems to be haunting them again in the present day.

The chemistry between the two reluctant partners is quite electric. You have this playful sense of brotherhood between the two even though they are totally opposite from one another. Each of them are very much their own personality and they reflect that in their approach to the law. I like how lines start blurring when they start to trust one another. We see each of them learning from the other and believing in each other.

Although these characters seem like tough grizzled veterans they are quite welcoming and we feel that as an audience. I had a sense that I felt comfortable with them and wanted to learn more about each of them.

The scenes are quite dark at times so it's hard to make out what's going on. Though the parts that you can see are quite exciting. The action sequences although at times rudimentary by today's standards are very well done. It helps that they are over the top. You wouldn't see this many real cars flying in the air in movies nowadays. They're usually CGI and not to this level. I would say that they still feel innovative after all these years.

It's also really cool that they use mixed martial arts back in those times whereas today they're just starting to add this type of fighting into movies. So you can say the action is ahead of its time.

Though the action is fun, it's the progression of the story that really helps push this movie. They're able to build anticipation for big fights or revenge situations that really hit you where it needs to. This movie is one of those movies that will have you pumping your fist when the good guy gets the bad guy.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and again, I'm shocked it took me so long to see it. It's a really well paced fun action movie. There are some minor hiccups throughout this movie that can be overseen because the overall package outshines its shortcomings. I would watch this again and recommend it to others. That's why I give this movie an 8 out of 10.