Simpson, Nancy Marchand, Susan Beaubian, Raye Birk. Starring Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley, Ricardo Montalban, George Kennedy, O. Here are the graded entries in the Naked Gun franchise:ĭirected by David Zucker. Word of mouth ensured its success, and two sequels followed, not daring to change the formula that worked so well that first time. Early Mel Brooks and Airplane! had prepared movie audiences for its saturation style of comedy, and they recognized its specific sort of comic brilliance right away. The first movie, The Naked Gun, did not struggle to find an audience like the show did (finishing just shy of a spot on the Top 10 box office of 1988, both domestically and worldwide), and spawned two sequels. Despite echoes of police procedurals, sketchy/variety shows, “Get Smart,” and others, no show had ever been quite like it before, though many shows since have copied its style once it was recognized as being ahead of its time (and the time had, by then, arrived). That show was “Police Squad!”, which debuted in 1982 and only lasted four episodes before it was canceled (two more previously-filmed episodes were broadcast over the summer). You don’t see The Naked Gun often mentioned as being one of the finest comedies of all-time, but it does pop up a lot in discussions of the funniest comedies of all-time.Īs for the origins of the film series, it comes from one of those rare instances of a short-lived (and quickly-canceled) television show getting adapted for the silver screen (thanks to the cult status the show gained in the years following its termination). No substance beyond the accumulation of its barrage of jokes. “Laugh riots,” as the clichéd blurb phrase goes. They’re not interesting movies in any way other than the fact that they’re usually quite funny. And while the specifics may change, the basic plots and structures are the same: the protagonist works a case, solves it (often by accident or from the insights of others), defeats the villain (often by accident or from the assistance of others). The recurring characters don’t change much, and the new ones mostly just replace the ones that didn’t return. If you’ve seen them all, you may recall a handful of jokes and forget exactly which one they belonged to. ![]() ![]() ![]() Making matters worse (or less interesting), the Naked Gun movies are largely interchangeable. Did the movie generate laughter? If it did, it’s a good example of the sub-genre. While various elements go into the success of these kinds of pictures (how well the actors play the material, the direction and editing getting the best out of the way the jokes land and find a rhythm, the actual writing of the gags, etc.), the only thing that really matters is whether or not the movie is funny-a pretty subjective matter even in the subjective field of criticism. Nothing against the films being reviewed-all three are good to varying degrees-it’s just that reading reviews (capsule or otherwise) of parody/spoof movies aren’t terribly engrossing or informative. Right off the bat, you should be warned this is not going to be a very interesting post. Following through on yesterday’s batch of films connected by the word “naked” being a common ingredient to all eight titles, today, it’s the spoof comedy The Naked Gun series. Grading the Franchise is a recurring feature at Cinecaps Digest where I review an entire film series.
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