by Shane Conto, Staff Writer
The Naked Gun franchise is one of the most beloved series of spoof films to grace the silver screen. Leslie Nielson launched a whole secondary career as the straight man in parody and satirical comedies, with The Naked Gun being a key piece of his legacy. Frank Drebin is one of the most fun characters in the history of cinema. With The Naked Gun 33 1/3 having come out in 1994, it has been quite a long time since we saw franchise return to the big screen, but the creative forces of Seth Macfarlane and The Lonely Island have now delivered a legacy sequel.
With Akiva Shafer directing and co-writing, this new film is a mixture of the classic Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker style parody and the raunchier, darker The Lonely Island sensibility. Tonally, it is just completely weird. Like the original, 2025’s The Naked Gun is just straight dumb… in the best way possible. You should take none of it film seriously, because the filmmakers don’t either. The third act admittedly tries to be a little bit more action/thriller than comedy, and unfortunately, that is the least engaging part of the film. But even when it leans more heavily in that direction, Schaffer is still able to leverage a sizable number of laughs. The laughs per minute do get lower as the film goes on, but it never stops being funny.
A reliance on CGI at moments might take you out of the film, but this franchise was never known for its visuals to begin with. You will even want to stick around into the credits, because there is some hilarity to appreciate there as well. Most impressively, most of the gags, jokes, and word play land.
The film’s story also gets a little unwieldy. The scale of the antagonist’s plan is way too large for the scope of such a silly, short film. Instead of focusing on the humor centered around police work, this becomes a world-threatening story, and it feels off. The antagonists are not interesting either, with only a few moments of levity.
But the most important element of the film is the comedy. Schaffer and company deliver some of the funniest moments in a movie in a long time. It mixes physical gags, word play, cultural references, and more. Some of the more outlandish and complex setups might be more hit or miss, but the ambitious nature of some of the humor is just impressive. What is most surprising (and refreshing) is that the gags feel new and don’t just rip off all the same laughs from the original films. Frank Drebin Jr. is a great character who is a strong mixture of arrogance, obliviousness, archaic world perspectives, and a general sense that he doesn’t really know what the heck he is doing.
And that’s all thanks to Liam Neeson. He’s had some roles which showed his comedic chops before, but The Naked Gun opens the flood gates, staying completely straight-faced in the face of complete lunacy. He sells the physicality well and has expert comedic timing, throwing his whole body, and all his facial expressions, into it. Neeson is all-in for his role, and the film benefits from his committed performance.
Pamela Anderson is quite impressive herself, with a similarly committed performance. The bravery to shun her persona for the film’s antics is commendable. She has a musical performance that is so silly and over-the-top. Paul Walter Hauser is a nice supporting piece as well — he gets a few moments to shine comedically, but is mostly there to be Neeson’s straight man.
Meanwhile, Danny Huston is not the most dynamic actor, but he completely dives into his ridiculous villain role, and he gets some genuinely funny moments. Kevin Durand is certainly intimidating as Huston’s henchman, but it is disappointing that the film doesn’t give him more to do in a comedic sense, as he is ultimately forgettable, which is a shame for an under-respected actor like him. CCH Pounder is essential, too, as the hard-nosed and strait-laced chief at Police Squad.
I appreciate Schaffer’s take on the Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker formula for sure. There are plenty of elements that feel like vintage The Naked Gun, delivering a ridiculous number of laughs for a film that is barely 78 minutes without credits. The third act is a bit of a letdown compared to the rest of the film, but there is still plenty of silly fun to be had. It doesn’t stop Neeson and the rest of the cast from delivering a riotous experience that should really be experienced in a packed theater.
Rating: Liked It
The Naked Gun is currently playing in theaters
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