VideoDetective.com
The Naked Gun (1988)
Released By: Paramount Home Video   Rating: PG-13   In Theaters: N/A
Your video will start shortly...



More Videos:
Preview Details
User Reviews
Studio: Paramount Home Video
Genre: Comedy
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: David Zucker
Language: English
Official Website: N/A
Theatrical Release: N/A
Home Video Release: N/A
Cast: George Kennedy, John Houseman, Leslie Nielsen, O.J. Simpson, Priscilla Presley, Ricardo Montalban
Published ID: 952
UPC: 097363210047, 097363210023, 097361384245,
Plot: We know we're in a 1988 film when we're invited to laugh at O.J. Simpson in an opening slapstick sequence. We can also pinpoint the year of production when hard-nosed cop Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen), during a scuffle with the world's leading dictators, wipes the wine-colored birthmark off the head of Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev. Those wacky ZAZ boys -- David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker -- serve up a feature-length spin-off of their cult favorite TV show Police Squad!. Seeking vengeance when his partner (Simpson) is shot full of holes by drug dealers, dead-pan and dead-brained Lt. Frank Drebin searches for the Mister Big behind it all. Drebin suspects above-reproach shipping magnate Vincent Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban), but he can't prove a thing. Bumped from the force by the mayor (Nancy Marchand), Drebin, with the unexpected assistance of Ludwig's ex-girlfriend (Priscilla Presley), manages to nab the bad guy at a baseball game, where Reggie Jackson has been programmed to assassinate Queen Elizabeth. MGM mogul Irving Thalberg once reportedly told the Marx Brothers, You can't build jokes on top of jokes. The producers of Naked Gun prove otherwise; indeed, one could develop writer's cramp just listing the gags in the film's first 20 minutes. Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad was followed by two lesser but still hilarious sequels, Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991) and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
IDDateTimeTitleReviewHelpfulVotesTotalVotes
A Classic
Added 8/8/2009

This was one of the movies I literally grew up watching. It's simply hilarious from beginning to end. A comedic benchmark, the Naked Gun stands the test of time.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
laugh out loud funny
Added 7/3/2009

leslie nielson is hilarious there is jokes after jokes and his driving is funny (if you watch you know what i mean)
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Another Childhood Favorite!!!
Added 6/13/2009

Ever since I was a kid, I have loved the Naked Gun series. I love all the hilarious situations, and dialogue. Leslie Nielsen is awesome as Frank Drebin, a cop who gets into silly situations. When his friend, Nordberg is shot and almost killed, Frank takes the case and investigates a man named Vincent Ludwig, who is a drug boss and will attempt to have Queen Elizabeth II assassinated at a California Angels baseball game. Frank pretends to be the umpire while searching each of the players for the weapon. I highly recommend THE NAKED GUN: FROM THE FILES OF POLICE SQUAD!!!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Great movie - questionable edition
Added 3/3/2009

The Naked Gun and Airplane series have earned their places in the annals of comedy fame. Slapstick comedy, outrageous dialogue and hilarious situations elevate normal everyday stories to films of such comedic heights that they're remembered fondly by everyone. I don't think I'm crossing a line when I say that Leslie Nielsen deserves a fair share of the credit. "Don't call me Shirley" still gets used in offices around the world and there's point denying that Leslie Nielsen (until about 10 years ago) was the ultimate clueless slapsticker of his day.

Case in point: The Naked Gun.

Sidelining all the other comedic talents to be found in Airplane, The Naked Gun places all the pressure squarely on the shoulders of Nielsen as Police Officer Frank Drebin. Right from the credits The Naked Gun sets the tone for a cop story gone zany. As an aberrant cop car starts off with siren blaring, it quickly becomes apparent that its route isn't what you'd think; a perfect analogy for the movie itself. Playing on all the tough-guy, film noir personalities of the decades of filmmaking that came before, the Frank Drebin character oozes stoic masculinity while simultaneously being in way over his head - like a man who won't stop and ask for directions.

After the unfortunate, though ridiculously non-fatal shooting of Detective Nordberg (O.J. Simpson), Frank Drebin sets out to investigate the circumstances behind it all only to catch on to a scheme so nefarious that the only reasonable setting for the climactic ending is a baseball stadium. Clues left by Nordberg lead Drebin to business tycoon Vincent Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban) and his sexy secretary Jane Spencer (Priscilla Presley). Is Ludwig up to something? Is Jane only interested in Drebin as a spy?

Drebin has to get to the bottom of things fast lest the Queen of England fall prey to an assassination attempt that could be perpetrated by anyone!

With that said - it's not the plot that matters here. The plot is window dressing for an endless stream of visual gags and funny dialogue. While I don't think The Naked Gun achieves the same jokes per minute ratio as Airplane - there's still so much going on in the foreground and background that to really catch everything requires multiple viewings. As comedic cinema experiences go, The Naked Gun is quite rich.

Leslie Nielsen, god bless him, really plays the same character no matter what he's in. He has three total expressions: shock, skepticism and sexy. Or whatever passes for sexy with Leslie Nielsen. What he lacks in variety he makes up in sheer deadpan excellence. There's never a Jimmy Fallon moment of approval-seeking to the camera. He makes dry joke after dry joke and never stops to see if the audience has caught it all - that's your job, not his. Again, this rapid-fire pace of one-liners and double-entendres makes for terrific viewing and re-viewing experiences.

O.J. Simpson. What do you say about this guy? On one hand we can applaud him when he had a bright future in both football and comedy. As Nordberg, Simpson gets slammed, rocked, jarred and thrown out windows all for the cheaper laugh. What makes it all funny is Simpson's ability to keep the look of pure dismay plastered across his face. Superb.

DVD Extra Features:

As with all the DVDs in the "I Love the 80s" Edition pool, this DVD version of The Naked Gun features very little in terms of DVD extras. However, I'm happy to note that with The Naked Gun you get a rather funny commentary track featuring David Zucker (Director, Writer), Robert Weiss (Producer) and hosted by Peter Tilden. Not as funny as the movie itself obviously, but interesting to hear about onset anecdotes about Nielsen, Simpson and the rest.

0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Best of the 3 films
Added 9/14/2008

Based on the short lived "Naked Gun" TV series, this is the funniest of the 3 films.

Still 20 years later it is very funny.

Leslie is perfect doing Frank.

"Weird Al Yankovic is on the plane" just love this little cameo since I am a fan.

My favorite scene is during the baseball game when Leslie "Frank" is dress as the umpire & starts doing the calls per how the crowd reacts. I will replay that scene.

For an older DVD the extras on this are lacking.

So many memorable lines & gags.

The 1 down side to the 3 films is, now of course after history, OJ.

0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
A Classic
Added 8/8/2009

This was one of the movies I literally grew up watching. It's simply hilarious from beginning to end. A comedic benchmark, the Naked Gun stands the test of time.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
laugh out loud funny
Added 7/3/2009

leslie nielson is hilarious there is jokes after jokes and his driving is funny (if you watch you know what i mean)
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Another Childhood Favorite!!!
Added 6/13/2009

Ever since I was a kid, I have loved the Naked Gun series. I love all the hilarious situations, and dialogue. Leslie Nielsen is awesome as Frank Drebin, a cop who gets into silly situations. When his friend, Nordberg is shot and almost killed, Frank takes the case and investigates a man named Vincent Ludwig, who is a drug boss and will attempt to have Queen Elizabeth II assassinated at a California Angels baseball game. Frank pretends to be the umpire while searching each of the players for the weapon. I highly recommend THE NAKED GUN: FROM THE FILES OF POLICE SQUAD!!!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Photos


There are currently no photos.
Shopping
IDPriceImageUrlPurchaseUrlIdTypeBindingStore
DVD
$9.98 @ Amazon
VHS
$3.00 @ Amazon