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Lethal Weapon 2 (1989) More at IMDbPro »

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122 comments in total

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31 out of 43 people found the following comment useful :-
Quite possibly one of the best sequels of all time..., 20 September 2003
Author: MovieAddict2009 from UK

"Lethal Weapon 2" is the type of sequel you don't screw with, for fear of getting seriously beat up if you do. Luckily the praise comes as easily as the film is good -- and boy, is it good.

If you haven't seen "Lethal Weapon" (1987), get off your computer, drop that Cheez-It out of your hand, rush to your closest video outlet and buy it. If you have seen it, then drop that Cheez-It out of your hand, rush to your closest video outlet and buy the sequel, "Lethal Weapon 2." It's a real ball-breaker, a bruiser, the type of film where the heroes get beat up mercilessly but when they get mad, boy are they mad, and they tear apart everything in their path that is standing in their way. There's a particular shoot-out scene aboard a docked ship where Riggs (Mel Gibson) goes on a rampage and really kicks butt with a vengeance.

But I think I'm getting ahead of myself.

The film opens with a high-speed car chase on a freeway in Downtown LA. Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) are in hot pursuit, tearing up Murtaugh's wife's brand-new car as they chase the speeder through an underground tunnel, up a bridge, and so on and so forth.

When they finally catch the speeder they find African gold hidden in the back of his truck. Soon they are being threatened to stay off of the case by African diplomats, one of whom Riggs really enjoys annoying. They can't arrest them because of diplomatic immunity, so Riggs goes in and shoots up the place where they're staying.

Riggs finds himself a new girl (Patsy Kensit), while Murtaugh protects a federal witness named Leo Getz (Joe Pesci), a lovable little blabbermouth who likes being one of the cops. He waddles around throughout the film like a little eager puppy, ready to do anything he's told. Of course Riggs and Murtaugh pick on him throughout the movie, but their friendship is a sort of love-to-hate, explained in "Lethal Weapon 4" (1997).

What a hard action movie/sequel this is. I had heard nothing very positive about this movie until right before I saw it. I sat down, watched it directly after I watched "Lethal Weapon," and realized just how great of a sequel it really is. It's not repetitive -- it continues the character progression and friendship seen at the end of "Lethal Weapon," while at the same time adding a bit more humor than the first film.

One of the things I praise about the first "Lethal Weapon" movie is that the characters didn't just suddenly agree to like each other at the end of the movie like so many films. They gradually learned to trust each other throughout the film, adding a sense of true friendship and realism to the film. In "Lethal Weapon 2," the friendship between Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh is definitely expanded more to the point where they're best buddies. Most of the time when there is a sequel to a cop-buddy film, the directors and writers are afraid to continue the friendship. They seem to forget the end of the original film, and in the second film the characters hate each other again and the progress of friendship starts all over again. (As seen in such films as "Another 48 Hrs.")

But "Lethal Weapon 2" is brave -- it isn't afraid to continue the story. I think that might be part of what makes it such a great, well-rounded series. It never really repeats itself, it always seems eager to move forward and ignore the past. The first film was a humorous, hard cop-buddy film about two opposites learning to trust each other. The second movie is a continuation of their friendship. The third film is almost a full-out comedy. And the fourth film is a tribute to the first three. Darn good film-making here.

"Lethal Weapon 2" is quite possibly one of the best sequels of all time. It avoids repetitions, it avoids cop-buddy clichés, and when it all comes down to it, Mel Gibson and Danny Glover and Joe Pesci are such an amazing trio, that even if this film did follow the routine procedures I'd still love it. And you can't say that about many movies.

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22 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
An action movie with heart, 18 December 2004

Author: Matt Shane from USA

Many action flicks over the years have been called loud and dumb. This is no exception. The "Lethal Weapon" series has never been especially noted for its intellect but it has something that a lot of action films lack: heart. Mel Gibson and Danny Glover's winning chemistry created some of the most tender moments in the series and "Lethal Weapon 2" excels because they make the audience care about their characters. This movie is by far the best in the series with tones of moments registering directly to the viewer. Gibson and Glover provide these characters with depth that could easily have been lacking and the ending of this film leaves the audience actually feeling the love these two men have for each other. And, as a bonus, "Lethal Weapon 2" digs even deeper into one of the protagonist's past, shedding even more light as to why he is the way he is.

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20 out of 25 people found the following comment useful :-
God, I love this job!, 29 May 2005

Author: MinorityReporter from Denmark

First of all this movie is almost as good as the original. It retains all of the elements that made the first film so darn entertaining and adds some new elements.

As all actors from the first movie appear in the second one as well its pretty clear what you can expect acting wise and surprise, surprise: The acting is still stellar, close to perfection. Mel Gibson is always good and in the second installment of the series he gets to be a little more wild and add even more nuances to the character. For example we get to see Riggs hit on women which adds an entire new side to him as the side we saw in the first film was of him mourning. Also we find out how his wife dies in a beautifully underacted scene (if you want to know how she dies you'll have to see the movie). Danny Glover returns as well and he plays the character pretty much as he did in the first film which is good because the character he plays is the one who is not supposed to change. He is meant to be square and combined with the character of Riggs this becomes highly entertaining. However, a new element is put into the mix to make it even more entertaining, Leo Getz, played beautifully by Joe Pesci and is to this day still one of his most memorable characters. He is funny and fast talking but most importantly: he is a crook and when you put him together with Riggs and Murtaugh the mix becomes explosive. The main villains are played by Joss Ackland and Derrick O'Connor and they are also good and a bit more developed than the villains of the first movie obviously because they had to focus more on the relationship between Riggs and Murtaugh in the first movie. Riggs' love interest is played Patsy Kensit and she is good if a bit underdeveloped.

The story is excellent and is almost better than the story in the first one. It is entertaining and funny and best of all the incredible chemistry between Mel Gibson and Danny Glover is maintained and is almost as good as it was in the first movie. Furthermore the addition of Joe Pesci was a very nice touch because he immediately makes the scenes with him, Gibson and Glover even more interesting and entertaining. The plot with the villains is kept relatively simple like in the first film, which is good because the goal for the film is entertainment not to be thought provoking.

The action of the film is kept in the same style as in the first movie and it is still both exhilarating and entertaining. The effects are still relatively realistic and this of course gives the movie a level of credibility that is sorely needed in many modern action movies.

All in all a worthy sequel and an excellent film on its own.

8/10

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13 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :-
A really lethal sequel, 8 August 2000
Author: coverme6 from Allentown, PA

Mel Gibson and Danny Glover return to kick heads and shoot bad guys for the second time, as Riggs and Murtaugh, the "Oscar and Felix" of law enforcement in "Lethal Weapon 2." This time

around, the boys are forced to become the 3 Stooges when they are assigned to guard a feisty, foul-mouthed federal witness named Leo Getz (the frantic Joe Pesci) from a group of sadistic Afrikaner thugs (led by the usually dark-natured character actor Joss Acklund). At the same time, Riggs meets a new love named

Rika (the hot Patsy Kensit), who happens to be a pawn in the

villain's dangerous games.

The action is faster and more furious in this sequel to the

slam-bang original. Even the banter gets a boost, thanks to the

added comedic riff by Pesci. Watch for his slightly annoying,

yet hilarious speech on a Subway tunafish sandwich!

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6 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
America's pot calling South Africa's kettle ..er...black., 15 July 2007

Author: ianlouisiana from United Kingdom

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Richard Donner shows off his liberal credentials with this ludicrously overcooked simplistic attack on the politics of South Africa.It's not as if America is the cradle of racial harmony and brotherly love - and further irony is added by the fact that the movie is set in the city that was the home of Rodney King and glorifies the Police Department that did so much towards community relations with their brutal racist behaviour. So Donner's salt and pepper pairing who clearly have a late = developing teenage crush on one another do their own thing with fine disregard for the rule of law or the rules of evidence and no one worries because the bad guys are white South Africans - surely a worrying example of police racism in itself? Inside Rudd's (Joss Ackland - eminently hissable) office the decor is designed and lit to resemble as far as possible the Fuhrerbunker and just in case some rather dumb moviegoers miss the point,he and his men are referred to as "nazis" at regular intervals. For me the only bright spot in the movie was when Mel Gibson turned up at an anti - apartheid demonstration carrying a banner bearing the inscription "End Aparthied Now". The intensely irritating Joe Pesci is introduced into the franchise to take some of the weight off the boys' shoulders by following them around yapping incessantly like a badly-trained puppy.This would be bearable if there was the remotest possibility of him ending up in a concrete overcoat,but sadly he survives to irritate another day. Miss Patsy Kensit seems in a world of her own,perhaps not believing her luck at being cast opposite Mel Gibson who has little trouble sweeping her into bed in his mobile home which appears to have been washed up on a beach somewhere.Shortly after consummating their affair they come under fire from a number of helicopters that fire enough rounds into Mel's caravan to keep the U.S. Army in Iraq going for six months. Fortunately he has a pet dog who is not afraid to cause coitus interruptus just as they are going for seconds and his barking warns them of the imminent attack.I hope he got a special bone as a reward. The film climaxes(without interruption from Mel's dog) on a cargo ship bound for Nazi Germany (sorry,South Africa),when Mel and Danny murder so many members of the master race that I lost count.Despite jiggling around like Bonnie and Clyde under the impact of a hail of bullets,Mel survives,curled up in his partner's arms like a small child with a wise and benevolent father.Take that,Apartheid!

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11 out of 17 people found the following comment useful :-
Not bad, some interesting points, 16 February 2003
Author: Ampers from London England

The first point I found interesting is that it was evident they used real South Africans as extras in the film. In one scene one of the extras called out "Jou Moer" to our intrepid heroes.

"Jou Moer" translates into English, quite unmistakenly, as "You C*nt". As this was still in it, years later, when I just saw it for the second time, I feel that nobody in America check unidentified words for their true meaning.

This has given many South Africans high amusement over the years and they may not be well disposed towards me for spilling the beans.

Another thing was that Patsy Kensit played the part of an Afrikaaner (A Dutch descent South African and, whilst an English descent South African might say she (or he) hates his country, an Afrikaaner would never say that. He or she might say they hate the government but they would NEVER say they hate their country.

But apart from that, a good film, and it gave me so much amusement to see they hadn't cut out the offending word.

From an English rooinek.

Andrew

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7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
A powerful message? No, rather simplistic, 11 June 2005

Author: duvel71 from South Africa

It's a fun movie, but having lived in South Africa for some time, there's not much that rings true. One user comment said it contained a powerful message for him, since he's black and never quite understood apartheid.

Well, if this is what you're going to base your knowledge on, you're very far from the truth. Don't get me wrong, South Africa was racist, and many Afrikaners were rather backward redneck types, but the characters in this movie aren't even caricatures. The actors ham it up with no character research at all.

You want to understand South African racism? See Cry the Beloved Country, or something. Lethal Weapon is a cheap action movie. Don't mistake it for something that tries to deliver some deep and meaningful message. It doesn't.

Though it is unintentionally ludicrous if you're South African, it's watchable.

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10 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
Double the lethal, double the weapon, double the fun! :D, 7 July 2005

Author: Kristine (kristinedrama14@msn.com) from Chicago, Illinois

A terrific sequel to one of the first action duo films that worked well. Adding Joe Pesci to the cast, what a great choice! He was so funny, together, Mel, Danny, and Joe are the three stooges of Lethal Weapon. They work together so well. This movie has everything that you could want: action, romance, comedy, and drama.

Again, like in my last Lethal Weapon comment, must we go on for ten sentences? I mean, is it just me or isn't that a little silly? I think so. It's like, you can't just put down you liked the movie or hated it? I miss the old IMDb! *sob!*

8/10

PS: Ask me questions about the movie if you have doubts about me witnessing it's glory.

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3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Good, But Original Was Better, 7 September 2009

Author: eric262003 from Canada

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

In keeping up the tradition of the original "Lethal Weapon", the sequel still continues the time-honoured tradition to providing the the action, the humour, and the thrills that made "Lethal Weapon I" one of the best buddy-cop movies in the history of cinema. The chemistry between Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Murtaugh (Danny Glover)is still remarkable. The only thing now is that Riggs is less self-destructive as he was in the first movie, but I guess it's so that in the first he tries to get over the loss of his wife and he somehow has moved on. Not as exciting as the first, but still very believable.

Some historical-political elements that provides some surprising educational facts are delivered here in the movie that's obscurely mentioned in classrooms. Here it takes aim the the South African apartheid fiasco that ran from 1948, up until 1994 by Nelson Mandela who over-turned the government and became President of South Africa putting a stop to apartheid. During it's dying stages, the government provided segregated communities to it diverse ethnics and tried to promote theocracy. The South Africans depicted may have been over the top, but the political upheaval was executed immaculately.

In spite of that cultural reference, there's a setback to it as well. I don't understand why did the South Africans killed Riggs' wife and now have targeted his girlfriend. What's up with that? The whole logic was completely null and void and has no logic to it at all. Some editing should have been taken to consideration.

It's still an enjoyable film, but the first one stands above them all.

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3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
What a thin plot, 24 May 2009

Author: ga-bsi from South Africa

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Riggs and Murtough are back but the magic of the first film has disintegrated. The story line is just awful! I mean really, South African diplomats smuggling the mythical Krugerrands into the U.S. It's just painful! And the accents are absolutely abysmal! Can no one get an Afrikaans South African accent right? Or will we forever hear the British or Americans making them sound like drunken Hollanders? The only guy who got the Afrikaans accent right was Tim Robbins in Catch A Fire. Another thing about this movie that i disliked was when Danny Glover so artlessly describes an Afrikaans accent as being shitty! I mean what a slap in the face to the Afrikaans. There's also enough hypocrisy in this film to make me vomit. I mean Mel Gibson's character is like so against the diplomats but then sleeps with their P.A. type! Don't waste your time watching this rubbish non-researched film. If you want to see a film that doesn't completely insult a cultural group then rent Die Hard 2.

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