It’s been six long years since the last installment of the franchise, and a lot has changed. Mel Gibson may be an Academy Award winning director now, but he eases back into his LAPD detective role very easily. But it’s a much mellower Riggs this time (with shorter hair, too). The character that began as a dark, suicidal cop -- a “lethal” man so dangerous because he didn’t care if he lived or died -- has now morphed into an easygoing goofball with a gun. It’s a transition that began in the third Lethal Weapon entry, which was light on angst and heavy on screwball comedy. Early on in part four, there’s a scene where Riggs talks about the still painful scars of losing his wife, and for a moment there seems to be a hope that this sequel will see a return to the edgier roots of the earlier films. But the mood quickly passes.
Danny Glover’s Murtaugh has had a far less extreme character arc. He’s still the uptight cop who’s still on the verge of retirement and who’s still “too old for this shit.” The difference this time is that Riggs is showing his age as well. That realization, along with worries of his impending fatherhood, has the Gibson character moving a lot slower than he used to. This may be a realistic concession, but did they really have to take the fun out of things for us?
The real action star on display here is the villain. Producers Joel Silver and Richard Donner hop on the Asian-action bandwagon, importing Hong Kong martial arts star Jet Li to be the bad guy. It turns out to be an inspired choice. Li displays some moves so stunning he makes Jackie Chan look like Charlie Chan. Unfortunately, the movie’s not about him.
Instead, much time is devoted to the ever-widening circle of characters around our two detectives. What started as a buddy cop series has evolved into a family cop saga. This time around, Riggs deals with the pregnancy of fellow-officer and girlfriend Lorna (again played by Rene Russo) as well as questions of marriage. Murtaugh meanwhile has a pregnancy in his own family to deal with. His daughter is pregnant by eager-young Det. Lee Butters (Chris Rock), whom she’s married in secret. Things get complicated when Butters joins our heroes to crack a murder case involving a Chinese immigrant smuggling ring. But just why the marriage must be kept a secret is never made clear; why would Murtaugh object to his daughter marrying a straight-shooting detective much like himself?
Rock, by the way, may be one of the finest comedians out there today, but he can’t act. His performance is shaky and way off base. He seems to be acting in an entirely different movie. Meanwhile, Joe Pesci returns again to hang around pointlessly as one-time informant Leo Getz. Pesci’s presence isn’t as forced here as it was in part three, but he still serves no purpose plot-wise. Another development that seems pointless is the promotion of Riggs and Murtaugh to Captain. The move is supposed to keep them off the streets and out of action, but that concept is completely ignored and the duo go right on getting involved in all sorts of mayhem.
And that’s a good thing, because there is a lot to enjoy here, especially a nicely staged car chase along a freeway through an office building and back onto a freeway. The scene ranks up there with the best stunt sequences of the series. But the action bar has since been raised by films by Chan and John Woo, and nothing in this film can match the jaw dropping thrills of their movies.
Lethal Weapon 4 is an entertaining two hour visit with some old friends who’ve been absent for too long. But after they leave, you’re not in any rush to see them again.