The Naked Gun came out when I was only eight years old, and way too young to appreciate a lot of its jokes. Still, there was enough low-brow and physical comedy to crack me up, and it was one of my early favorite movies. And while I've outgrown a lot of stuff I liked at that age, I can still watch The Naked Gun and laugh, and I even get the jokes that went way over my head as a young'un.
The film, subtitled From The Files of Police Squad!, couldn't be simpler, and that's the way they want it. Lt. Frank Drebin has to to clear the name of his partner Norberg (The now ironic OJ Simpson) while protecting the life of Queen Elisabeth, in Los Angeles on a tour of America. For ninety minutes, the movie exploits, and frequently ignores, the plot in the name of jokes. Just plain and simple, this movie is out to make you laugh, and it will sink to any depth to get there.
Everyone has their favorite Naked Gun moment; mine has to be Leslie Nielsen performing the worst rendition of the Star Spangled Banner in history. His fireside monologue about a lost love who played the harp is priceless as well.
Kudos also to Ricardo Montalban's performance as real estate tycoon Vincent Ludwig. So ridiculous is his accent and accentuations that he makes even straight lines funny. I'll never get tired of him saying to a frightened Priscilla Presley, "It was easy my dear! You forget I spent two years as a building contractor!" Stupidty at its funniest.
This is not a classic, and it didn't change the face of comedy (It is after all, a simple application of the "Airplane!" formula to cop movies), but The Naked Gun is funny, and it never loses its charm no matter how many times you watch it.
The film, subtitled From The Files of Police Squad!, couldn't be simpler, and that's the way they want it. Lt. Frank Drebin has to to clear the name of his partner Norberg (The now ironic OJ Simpson) while protecting the life of Queen Elisabeth, in Los Angeles on a tour of America. For ninety minutes, the movie exploits, and frequently ignores, the plot in the name of jokes. Just plain and simple, this movie is out to make you laugh, and it will sink to any depth to get there.
Everyone has their favorite Naked Gun moment; mine has to be Leslie Nielsen performing the worst rendition of the Star Spangled Banner in history. His fireside monologue about a lost love who played the harp is priceless as well.
Kudos also to Ricardo Montalban's performance as real estate tycoon Vincent Ludwig. So ridiculous is his accent and accentuations that he makes even straight lines funny. I'll never get tired of him saying to a frightened Priscilla Presley, "It was easy my dear! You forget I spent two years as a building contractor!" Stupidty at its funniest.
This is not a classic, and it didn't change the face of comedy (It is after all, a simple application of the "Airplane!" formula to cop movies), but The Naked Gun is funny, and it never loses its charm no matter how many times you watch it.