The Naked Gun

Had to take a raincheck on seeing Rocky Horror yesterday due to extenuating circumstances, but I did see the Naked Gun reboot/sequel earlier today. It’s easily the funniest movie I’ve seen in a while, and an easy contender for my coveted “Most Fun I Had With A Movie” award. It’s a nonstop gag-fest from start-to-finish and Akiva Schaffer does a great job channelling the vibe of those old-school ZAZ spoofs with great visual gags, background gags, one-liners, cheeky innuendos and snappy punchlines galore. Liam Neeson as the new Frank Drebin is genuinely inspired casting. His gruff, straight-laced action star persona works perfectly for a character like Drebin and it helps that he’s able to recite absolutely preposterous lines of dialogue without breaking kayfabe.

Goddamn, it feels like forever since we’ve had a proper old-fashioned comedy in cinemas (at least if I’m not counting genre mashups, Marvel movies, dramedies or weird, darkly comedic fare like The Banshees of Inisherin or Poor Things… I love both movies but they’re not your traditional type of comedies). The fact that this is a legacy sequel means this could’ve very easily become another piece of streaming fodder, but I’m so glad this got an actual theatrical release and wasn't left to the mercy of an uncaring algorithm. Seeing this on the big screen really reminded me of how fun it is to watch comedy with an audience. I really hope this means that comedy will make a comeback on our cinema screens.

Go see it if you haven’t.