Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) Movie Review
Synopsis:
Police detective Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) returns to Beverly Hills. He investigates the near-fatal shooting of police Captain Andrew Bogomil (Ronny Cox). There, he reunites with Det. Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Sgt. John Taggart (John Ashton) to discover the suspect.
Review:
With Axel Foley’s return to Beverly Hills comes a new director, Tony Scott.
Known for Top Gun a year prior, Tony brings his signature visual style to Beverly Hills Cop II.
Tony Scott captures the vibrancy of Beverly Hills to Detroit’s industrial factories.
In some ways, this film’s visuals surpass the first film. As a whole, Beverly Hills Cop II has many good shots throughout.
As fans of this series should expect, the film has a catchy soundtrack.
This film brings back Harold Faltermeyer’s “Axel F”, which is a welcome addition.
Though the rest of the soundtrack is good, it fails to reach the heights of the first film. Despite this, Beverly Hills Cop and fans of 1980s music should find satisfaction.
This film also has good chemistry between Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, and John Ashton. Together, they give the film its most memorable character moments.
Furthermore, Beverly Hills Cop II’s action is good. Its two main sequences are a high-speed chase and a gunfight during the film’s conclusion.
Each one, despite being brief, is impactful. For fans of the first film’s action, Beverly Hills Cop II should provide entertainment.
Where this film falters is its over-reliance on Eddie Murphy’s humor and a scattered plot. It also falters with its pacing in the first half.
As a result, this leads to significant portions of downtime where the plot is motionless. This film’s antagonists also leave little of an impact.
For context, this film’s antagonists are Jürgen Prochnow’s Maxwell Dent and Brigitte Nielsen’s Karla Fry.
Brigitte Nielsen’s character participates in a high-end store robbery during the film’s opening. Aside from her towering presence, Karla Fry is a standard character.
Shown in the film’s second half, Jürgen Prochnow’s Maxwell Dent is a figure shrouded in darkness.
Jürgen has a menacing presence, though his character has very little screen time to stand out.
Conclusion:
As a whole, Beverly Hills Cop II has good action, visuals, and soundtrack.
This film’s chemistry between Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, and John Ashton is also enjoyable.
Where this film stumbles is with its antagonists and pacing. It also relies far too much on Eddie Murphy’s comedy.
This leads to scenes in the first half that are difficult to sit through.
While Eddie Murphy’s jokes with the other two leads are funny, most others are not.
Furthermore, this film fails to develop its antagonists. As a whole, Jürgen Prochnow’s Maxwell Dent and Brigitte Nielsen’s Karla Fry are standard.
Jürgen Prochnow gets little screen time, despite being the main antagonist.
Brigitte Nielsen, other than having the occasional presence, is also underused.
Despite these flaws, fans of Eddie Murphy or the Beverly Hills Cop series should find enjoyment in this sequel.
Sam’s Action Reaction score:
Characters - 6.5/10
Story - 6/10
Action - 7/10
Visuals - 7.5/10
Soundtrack - 7/10
Overall score: 6.8 out of 10
