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 Director
: Richard Donner
Starring
: Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Rene Russo, Joe Pesci, Chris
Rock, Jet Li
Picture
1.85:1 anamorphic, DD 5.1, Dual-layer, Double sided,Snap
Case
Running
Time : 127 mins
The
story:
The
Gangs all here!
When
Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Murtaugh (Danny Glover) are involved
in a case that ends up destroying a large part of a city
block the police insurers decide to pull the plug. The Captain
has no choice but to promote them both so that they spend
more time in the station. Family seems to be a major part
in both their lives now with Murtaugh looking to his retirement
(Again!) and Riggs looking to settle down with his pregnant
fiancee, Cole (Rene Russo). Murtaugh also has problems with
his daughter who is also pregnant after dating a cop (Chris
Rock) but will not reveal his identity because she is afraid
of the consequences. They all become involved in triad extortion
case that sees them far from behind desks and leads to the
most action they have ever seen. Together with their fast
talking friend Leo (Joe Pesci) they must track down the
leader of the gang (Jet Li) and stop him in his tracks.
The
summary:
Only
occasionally do you get a franchise that spawns a fourth
film and very rarely is that film any good due to a poor
story or none of the original cast remaining. This is a
sort of exception to that rule in that the major cast return
for this installment as well as introducing a few new faces
in Chris Rock and Jet Li (in one of his first Hollywood
starring roles). But what promises to be an exciting and
action packed conclusion (?) to the Lethal Weapon series
just degenerates into a buddy cop movie with a little family
life thrown in for good measure. The story is pretty weak
and proves that this has turned into a sort of big screen,
big budget soap with not a great deal to say. That said,
it is still an enjoyable film in its own right, just a bit
lame when you compare it to the grittyness of the first
film. The action element is just right with countless explosions
and gun fire, even if Riggs and Murtaugh do seem a little
too bulletproof for my liking - They almost seem like superheroes
now. The whole feel of the film is a lot more humorous than
the previous three, largely due to the very funny Chris
Rock and some good moments from Joe Pesci. You certainly
won't be disappointed with it, just not overly impressed.
One last thing is that it does smack somewhat of Rush Hour,
which was released at almost the same time and comparisons
do have to be made, and if so Lethal Weapon 4 would not
come out on top. Probably worthy of a rental.
The
DVD itself is pretty impressive for a Warner release with
stunning sound and picture quality and a whole truck load
of extra's (Again, VERY unusual). The 5.1 mix is notable
for lots of great explosions and gunfights and will certainly
impress. Does seem a bit odd though that they have included
extra's from the first three films as well. Surely they
should be on the first three DVDs to entice you to buy them!
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Extras:
*
Cast & Crew - Text
based biographies and filmographies of all the major cast
and crew
*
Commentary - Commentary
with director Richard Donner and CO-producers J. Mills Goodloe
and Geoff Johns
*
Theatrical Trailers
- Trailers for all 4 of the Lethal Weapon series
*
Cut/Extended scenes
- Deleted or extended scenes from the first three films.
Lethal Weapon has 6 scenes (7 Mins), LW2 has 2 scenes (3
Mins) and LW3 has 3 scenes (3 mins)
*
Interview Gallery -
8 individual interviews with all of the major cast and crew
about the fourth film.
*
B-Roll footage - Behind
the scenes and outtakes. 9 Minutes long.
*
Pure Lethal - A newly
made documentary on the making of all four of the films.
Very good with some excellent behind the scenes content
and outtakes. 30 minutes long.
*
Reel Recommendations
- Includes trailers for Forever Young, The Colour Purple,
Mad Max, Mad Max:beyond Thunderdome and Tequila Sunrise.
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