| Lethal Weapon | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Richard Donner |
| Written by | Shane Black |
| Produced by | Richard Donner Joel Silver |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Stephen Goldblatt |
| Edited by | Stuart Baird |
| Music by | Michael Kamen Eric Clapton |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 112 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $15 million |
| Box office | $120.2 million |
Lethal Weapon is a 1987 Americanaction film directed byRichard Donner and written byShane Black. It starsMel Gibson andDanny Glover alongsideGary Busey,Tom Atkins,Darlene Love, andMitchell Ryan. InLethal Weapon, a pair of mismatched LAPD detectives—Martin Riggs (Gibson), a formerGreen Beret who has become suicidal following the death of his wife, and veteran officer and family manRoger Murtaugh (Glover)—work together as partners.
The film was theatrically released in the United States on March 6, 1987, byWarner Bros.. Upon its release,Lethal Weapon grossed over $120 million (against a production budget of $15 million) and was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Sound. It spawned afranchise that includesthree sequels and atelevision series, with afourth sequel in development.
Following the recent death of his wife,Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) narcotics SergeantMartin Riggs, a formerSpecial Forces soldier, has become suicidal and erratic. Despite the protests of the police therapist, the captain believes Riggs is faking his psychosis to be forcibly retired with a generous pension, and partners him with fellow war veteran and seasoned Homicide SergeantRoger Murtaugh. Riggs and Murtaugh do not get along well at first as Murtaugh is equally dismissive of Riggs's mental state, but is eventually convinced Riggs is genuinely suicidal.
Murtaugh is contacted by a formerVietnam War friend, Michael Hunsaker, ostensibly to help his daughter Amanda escape her life of prostitution and pornography, but Amanda kills herself by jumping from an apartment balcony before she and Murtaugh meet. Her autopsy shows she was fatally poisoned with tainted drugs, indicating she was potentially murdered. Riggs and Murtaugh attempt to question her pimp, but are assaulted after finding drugs on the premises, forcing Riggs to kill the pimp to save Murtaugh. Their final lead is Dixie, a prostitute who witnessed Amanda's death, and whom the pair believe may have poisoned her. Dixie's home explodes as they arrive and her corpse is later recovered. Riggs locates components of amercury switch explosive among the debris, a specialty explosive he recalls being used byCentral Intelligence Agency (CIA) mercenaries in Vietnam. The suspect is detailed by neighborhood children, who noticed he had an elite special forces tattoo similar to Riggs's.
Suspecting Hunsaker is withholding information, Riggs and Murtaugh visit him at Amanda's funeral. He reveals that during the Vietnam War he worked for "Shadow Company", a defunct CIA paramilitary unit tasked with destabilizing the local heroin trade. Following the war, the ex-CIA agents, mercenaries, and soldiers involved reformed Shadow Company as a criminal organization and began shipping large quantities of heroin from Asia to the United States, under the leadership of retired General Peter McAllister and his right-hand man Mr. Joshua. Hunsaker's role as a banker allowed him tomake the illicit funds seem legitimate. He initially called Murtaugh to confess and turn witness against Shadow Company, but McAllister had Amanda killed in retaliation. Joshua arrives in a helicopter and kills Hunsaker before escaping. He later attempts to kill Riggs in a drive-by shooting, and Riggs's death is faked to give him and Murtaugh an advantage.
Concerned Murtaugh knows too much, Shadow Company kidnaps his daughter Rianne and forces Murtaugh to meet them atEl Mirage Lake. Riggs provides sniper support to help Murtaugh and Rianne escape, but all three are captured and recovered to a nightclub basement, a Shadow Company front. Riggs and Murtaugh are tortured for information until Riggs escapes, kills several Shadow Company members, and frees Murtaugh and Rianne. Although Joshua escapes, Murtaugh kills McAllister. Deducing Joshua will seek revenge at Murtaugh's home, Riggs and Murtaugh ambush him. Riggs defeats Joshua in a brawl, but chooses not to kill him. Police officers take Joshua into custody, but he breaks free, takes an officer's gun, and attempts to shoot Riggs and Murtaugh; the pair return fire and kill Joshua.
A short time later, after visiting his wife's grave, Riggs sharesChristmas Day dinner with Murtaugh and his family. He gifts Murtaugh ahollow-point bullet he has been saving to commit suicide, as he no longer needs it.
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In addition, the film introduces various minor characters—and the actors who portray them—seen inall four films of the franchise, including: Murtaugh children Nick and Carrie, played by Damon Hines and Ebonie Smith, respectively;Steve Kahan as Captain Ed Murphy; andMary Ellen Trainor as police psychologist Stephanie Woods.
Other actors in the film includeJackie Swanson as Amanda Hunsacker,Grand L. Bush as Detective Boyette,Jack Thibeau as Detective McCaskey,Don Gordon as Officer Hines,Ed O'Ross as Mendez,Al Leong as Joshua's assistant Endo,Lycia Naff as Dixie, andSven-Ole Thorsen andGilles Kohler as Shadow Company mercenaries.Jimmie F. Skaggs, Jason Ronard and Blackie Dammett play the trio of drug dealers Riggs apprehends.
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RecentUCLA graduateShane Black wrote the screenplay in mid-1985. Black stated that his intention was to do an "urbanwestern" inspired byDirty Harry where a violent character "reviled for what he did, what he is capable of, the things he believed in" is eventually recruited for being the one that could solve the problem. The protagonists would beeverymen policemen, "guys shuffling in a town like Los Angeles searching for something noble as justice when they're just guys in washed and worn suits seeking a paycheck".
According to Black, his original first draft of the script was very different and much darker than the final film. It was 140 pages long and both the plot and characters were different, and action scenes were also much bigger. The ending of the script contained a chase scene with helicopters and a trailer truck full ofcocaine exploding over Hollywood Hills with cocaine snowing over the Hollywood sign. Black hated this first draft and initially discarded it but later picked it up again and re-wrote it into the new drafts that were eventually used for filming.[1]
His agent sent theLethal Weapon script to various studios, being rejected beforeWarner Bros. executiveMark Canton took a liking to it.[1] Canton brought along producerJoel Silver, who loved the story and worked with Black to further develop the script. Writer Jeffrey Boam also did some uncredited re-writes on Black's script after complaints that parts of it were too dark. Boam added more humor to the script, and later did a complete re-write of Shane Black and Warren Murphy's rejected script for the second film. He also wrote the script for the third film and an unused draft for the fourth film.[2]
After the script was purchased for $250,000, studio production executives offered it to directorRichard Donner, who also loved it.Leonard Nimoy was among the directors considered for the project, but he did not feel comfortable doing action films, and he was working onThree Men and a Baby at the time.[3]
Donner, having just finished filmingLadyhawke, had long been interested in working with Mel Gibson. Casting directorMarion Dougherty first suggested teaming Gibson with Danny Glover, given Murtaugh had no set ethnicity in the script.[1] She arranged for Gibson to fly in from his home inSydney while Glover was flown in fromChicago, where he was appearing in a play, to read through the script.Bruce Willis was approached for the role of Riggs, but turned it down as he found the script "too violent".[4] This is referenced in the spoof of theLethal Weapon films,Loaded Weapon 1; Bruce (asJohn McClane) appears after the villains attack the wrong beach residence, looking for the protagonist.Christopher Lambert andChristopher Reeve were both approached, but neither was interested.Michael Biehn was also a brief contender to play Riggs as Donner had enjoyed his performance in The Terminator, but he was already committed toAliens. Other actors that were considered for the role includedPierce Brosnan,Stephen Lang,Ron Perlman,Michael Nouri,Sylvester Stallone,Patrick Swayze,Michael Douglas,Jeff Goldblum andKurt Russell.
According to Donner: "It took about two hours and by the time we were done, I was in seventh heaven. They found innuendoes; they found laughter where I never saw it; they found tears where they didn't exist before; and, most importantly, they found a relationship—all in just one reading. So if you ask about casting... it was magical, just total dynamite".
Gibson said that "this particular story was a cut above others I had passed on, because the action is really a sideline which heightens the story of these two great characters. I picture Riggs as an almostChaplinesque figure, a guy who doesn't expect anything from life and even toys with the idea of taking his own. He's not like these stalwarts who come down fromMt. Olympus and wreak havoc and go away. He's somebody who doesn't look like he's set to go off until he actually does".
The draw for Glover was equally strong. Fresh from his success as Mister inThe Color Purple, he felt the role of Roger Murtaugh offered a whole new range of character expression and experience: "Aside from the chance to work with Mel, which turned out to be pure pleasure, one of the reasons I jumped at this project was the family aspect. The chance to play intricate relationships and subtle humor that exist in every close family group was an intriguing challenge, as was playing a guy turning 50. Murtaugh's a little cranky about his age until everything he loves is threatened. His reawakening parallels Riggs'".
Both actors were signed by early spring 1986. Gibson and Glover then flew home to pack, and, returning to Los Angeles, began an intensive two months of physical training and preparation. Meanwhile, the crucial role of Mr. Joshua was settled whenGary Busey asked to read for the part. An established star since hisAcademy Award-nominated performance inThe Buddy Holly Story, Busey had not auditioned for a film in years but was suffering from a career slump; he creditedLethal Weapon with reviving his stardom. In Busey's comment: "I had butterflies, I'd never played a bad guy. And no one had seen me since I'd lost 60 pounds and got back into shape. But I decided to take the initiative in order to have the opportunity to work with Dick, Joel, Mel, and Danny. I'm constantly looking for someone to pull the best performance out of me and any of those guys could. They even talked me into dyeing my hair!" In hisE! True Hollywood Story biography, Busey says he was hired to play Joshua because the producers were looking for someone big and menacing enough to be a believable foe for the imposing Gibson.
Stunt coordinatorBobby Bass planned and supervised all phases of Gibson's and Glover's intensepre-production training; physical conditioning, weight workouts, and weapons handling and safety. Bass also used his own military experiences to bring a greater depth of understanding to the Riggs character. To familiarize the actors with the specialized skills and sensibilities acquired by undercover cops, arrangements were made for Gibson and Glover to spend time in the field accompanying working LAPD officers. Throughout filming, technical advisers from the LAPD as well as the LA County Sheriff's Department worked closely with Donner and the actors to ensure authenticity.
Cedric Adams was the first technical adviser brought in. Donner said that "Adams thought the best possible way to show just how lethal Riggs really is—is to show his mastery of a form of martial arts never before seen onscreen". Donner wanted Riggs's style of fighting to be unique with the second assistant director Willie Simmons, who was interested in unusual forms of martial arts, choosing three martial arts styles.[5] Gibson and Busey were instructed inCapoeira by Adams,Jailhouse rock by Dennis Newsome andBrazilian Jiu-Jitsu byRorion Gracie.[5][6] Bobby Bass, the stunt coordinator, a formerUS Army Special Forces instructor and judo champion, also provided training in various techniques.[5] At one point, the actors trained in between filming, for four hours a day for six weeks and did months of choreography.[5]
An alternate opening and ending were both filmed and can be seen on theLethal Weapon 4 DVD. The alternate opening featured Martin Riggs drinking alone in a bar where he is accosted by a couple of thugs who attack him for his money, but are easily subdued by Riggs. Director Richard Donner felt the film should open with a brighter look at Riggs, and replaced the bar scene with the scene in which Riggs awakens in his trailer. The alternate ending featured Riggs telling Murtaugh not to retire. Without even thinking about the possibility of sequels, Donner decided that Riggs and Murtaugh's relationship is one of friendship, and filmed the ending that appears in the completed film.[citation needed]
In addition to the film's theatrical release, an extended Director's Cut version was released later on DVD. The Director's Cut version is longer (117 minutes) than the original theatrical release version (110 minutes), and features additional scenes. One extended scene depicts Riggs dispatching a sniper who had been firing at children in a playground. In another scene, Riggs picks up a street-walking prostitute, but instead of having sex with her, he takes her home to watchThe Three Stooges on TV, thus illustrating his loneliness following the death of his wife.[citation needed]
Michael Kamen, who just completed work onHighlander, composed the score forLethal Weapon. EditorStuart Baird had usedEdge of Darkness heavily as a temp score for the film, resulting in Kamen being brought on to create the score.[7] The guitar part of Riggs's theme was performed byEric Clapton. Kamen and Clapton had worked together on the music for the 1985BBC television seriesEdge of Darkness (thefeature adaptation of which would later, by coincidence, star Mel Gibson). The saxophone part of Murtaugh's theme was performed byDavid Sanborn. TheChristmas song "Jingle Bell Rock", performed byBobby Helms, is played during the film's opening credits.Honeymoon Suite's song, "Lethal Weapon", is played during the film's end credits without being credited.
Lethal Weapon was released in the United States and Canada on March 6, 1987. During its opening weekend it grossed a total of $6.8 million from 1,256 theaters—an average of $5,437 per theater—making it the highest grossing film of the weekend, ahead ofA Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors ($6.7 million) in its second week of release, andPlatoon ($6.1 million) in its twelfth.[8][9][10] In its second weekend,Lethal Weapon retained the number 1 position with a $7.1 million gross—a 4% increase from the previous week—still ahead ofA Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors ($5 million) andPlatoon ($4.7 million).[11]
Lethal Weapon remained the number 1 film in its third weekend with a $6.3 million gross, ahead of the debutingBurglar ($4.5 million), andPlatoon ($3.8 million).[12]Lethal Weapon fell to number 2 in its fourth weekend with a gross of $5 million, behind the debut ofBlind Date ($7.5 million).[13]Lethal Weapon spent 13 weeks among the top ten highest-grossing films.[9] In total,Lethal Weapon grossed $65.2 million in the United States and Canada, making it the eighth-highest-grossing film of 1987.[9][14]
Outside of the United States and Canada,Lethal Weapon is estimated to have earned a further $55 million. It saw some of its most success in Gibson's home country of Australia.[15] This figure givesLethal Weapon a total worldwide gross of $120.2 million.[15][9]
Lethal Weapon has been released onBetamax,VHS andDVD numerous times, along with a singleBlu-ray Disc release. The first DVD was released in 1997 and featured the film's theatrical version. The Director's Cut was released in 2000. Since then, numerous sets have been released that contain all four films in the series (featuring the same DVDs).[16] The theatrical version was also released on Blu-ray in 2006.[17]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 80% of 55 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "The most successful installment in a phenomenally successful franchise,Lethal Weapon helped redefine action movies for the 1980s and 1990s. "[18]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 68 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[19]
Variety wrote, "Lethal Weapon is a film teetering on the brink of absurdity when it gets serious, but thanks to its unrelenting energy and insistent drive, it never quite falls."[20]Richard Schickel ofTime called it "Mad Max meets The Cosby Show", saying that it works better than expected.[21] Richard Harrington ofThe Washington Post described it as "a vivid, visceral reminder of just how exciting an action film can be".[22] AtThe New York Times,Janet Maslin wrote, "The film is all fast action, noisy stunts and huge, often unflattering close-ups, but it packs an undeniable wallop."[23]Roger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times gave the film four out of four stars, saying Donner "tops himself".[24]
The film was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Sound Mixing (Les Fresholtz,Dick Alexander,Vern Poore andBill Nelson) (losing toThe Last Emperor).[25]
In 2011,Warner Bros. announced it would reboot theLethal Weapon franchise without Gibson and Glover. The new franchise was set to feature the same characters but a brand-new cast.[26]Will Beall was hired to write the script, but was eventually cancelled.[27]A television version premiered in September 2016 onFox starringClayne Crawford asMartin Riggs,Damon Wayans asRoger Murtaugh, andThomas Lennon asLeo Getz.[28]
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