Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) Movie Review

Synopsis:

Det. Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) links the murder of his boss to the California amusement park, Wonder World. In Beverly Hills once again, Foley reunites with Det. Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) to investigate. Joining them is Det. Jon Flint (Héctor Elizondo), where they discover that the park is being used as a counterfeiting ring.

Review:

With this third Beverly Hills Cop film, it is obvious that the franchise has lost its charm and focus. For context, director John Landis took control of this third installment.

As a whole, Beverly Hills Cop III has a decent opening. It establishes the stakes brought on by the death of Axel’s boss.

Outside of a couple of meaningful scenes, the film loses track of time.

This is evident from the film’s second act, which loses considerable momentum. Most of this film’s second act is at Wonder World.

There’s little to no wonder present, highlighting the film’s inconsistent tone and visuals.

Take a scene where Axel has to rescue two children from a Ferris wheel. As a whole, there’s some decent stunt work in this scene.

Despite the decent stunt work, it is all too clear that the background is fake. This is the case with almost every other scene that takes place at Wonder World.

Outside of the Wonder World scenes, the film has some decent visuals.

Despite some decent shots, the film’s tone is much less stylistic than the previous two. As a result, much of the film’s visual style comes across as flat.

This film’s action is also formulaic. It amounts to little more than henchmen spraying bullets while standing out in the open. While it may be formulaic, it can be impactful.

Furthermore, the film’s music is not as pronounced as the other films in the series. Harold Faltermeyer returns to compose “Axel F”, used during parts of the film.

For context, Nile Rodgers and Richard Hilton provided a remixed version of the original.

Although this remixed version is not awful by any means, it lacks the catchy energy of the original.

This film finds some entertainment with its characters. As expected, Eddie Murphy and Judge Reinhold have their usual chemistry.

Both actors seem to be enjoying themselves, despite the average script.

While their chemistry is good, John Ashton's absence as the straight man is a missed opportunity. This movie’s other characters fail to leave much of an impression.

Take Timothy Carhart’s Ellis DeWald as an example. For context, he portrays the film’s central antagonist.

Despite being an accomplished businessman, that is the extent of his development.

One minor development for Ellis as a character is that he used to be a police officer.

Though this could have provided further context, the film fails to make an effort to explore it. As a result, this revelation is somewhat pointless.

While the actor is decent in the role, Ellis DeWald lacks screen presence as a character.

Also joining the cast is Theresa Randle. She portrays a Wonder World park employee named Janice.

Her character’s existence is to look pretty and provide Axel with instructions. Other than this, she has little else to offer.

Conclusion:

As a whole, Beverly Hills Cop III is the weakest entry in the franchise yet. It has an inconsistent tone, visuals, plot structure, and formulaic action.

Eddie Murphy and Judge Reinhold still have good chemistry when portraying their characters.

Still, the lack of John Ashton is noticeable. Other characters also fail to leave an impression. As a whole, Timothy Carhart puts in a decent performance as Ellis DeWald.

Regardless, the script does not offer any opportunities to make his character stand out. This rule also applies to Theresa Randle’s Janice.

Other than her defined role as a Wonder World park employee, the actress has little more to do.

Some of the music is above average. This includes a remixed version of “Axel F” composed by Nile Rodgers and Richard Hilton.

Even for die-hard Beverly Hills Cop fans, Axel’s Wonder World trip may leave them asking for a refund.

Sam’s Action Reaction score:

Characters - 6/10

Story - 5.5/10

Action - 6/10

Visuals - 6/10

Soundtrack - 6/10

Overall score: 5.9 out of 10