Ancora 48 ore

When I was little and saw the first 48 Hours, I thought Eddie Murphy looked pretty scrawny in that suit and that, upon seeing the sequel, he looked a lot more fashionable. Then I realized he was wearing the same suit throughout this movie (I guess he was in a lot better shape). Other than considering this film to be a fairly entertaining rehash of the first, I guess that's my review.

Although I must mention that if someone were to fire a Desert Eagle handgun as close to their face as Andrew Divoff does in the final act of this film, he would probably burn his cheek and deafen himself... but I guess that's just part of Walter Hill's bombastic direction.

Another 48 Hrs. feels like a missed opportunity; it feels as if the makers have recognised the potential of the idea and have done half a job. This is because it never really elevates itself above the material it actually is. At a time when the Lethal Weapon films had proved there was a demand for white cop with black sidekick buddy combination type films, Another 48 Hrs. is perhaps a cash in sequel to a film that was never anything special any way. Where as it sounds like I'm being negative, the film was enjoyable for what it was and that said; I would have a hard time in deciding which one I liked more.

A scene from this film which typically sums up the genre the film is working under highlights not only the genres inability to ever be anything above a certain level but also the problem films face when they age. The film is a crime film; a buddy combination of two people getting involved in shoot outs and general criminal activity whilst battling each others egos. In 1994 when Pulp Fiction came out, films like Another 48 Hrs. were history and a particular scene is defining evidence: shortly after a prison bus has rolled over a few times, two hells angels are going to kill someone on board. But what happens is instead of riding up to the overturned bus and finishing the job, they park their bikes a few hundred yards away, get off very slowly and walk up to the bus with the intent to kill. Now, there is absolutely no reason for them to do this apart from add suspense to the scene and perhaps have two bikers walk in tandem; in slow motion amongst the heat wave in a 'cool' fashion. This is the point; films such as these rely on what would look good cinematically rather than stick to what their characters would do.

I know it's wrong to compare a film to another film made after it but this highlights not only the bad way in which Another 48 Hrs. has aged but further cements what a great film Pulp Fiction really is; the buddy combination in that film of Jules and Vincent who are by no coincidence black and white but Tarantino plays with realism in the film and the scene in which someone is accidentally shot in the back of the car is so much more clear in the sense it is two fingers up to scenes like the one just mentioned in Another 48 Hrs. The film starts off with Reggie (Murphy) still in prison and shows up its other half of the buddy combination as a bit of an idiot. Another 48 Hrs. suffers from its cliché that its best cop on the force, Jack (Nolte), is actually a loose cannon whom needs to be removed even though the job is actually perfect for him; an idea toyed with in the third Die Hard film but with John McLane. Jack seems certain that an antagonist known as The Iceman is at large but is demeaned and shown up as perhaps a bit of a schizophrenic; one officer labelling this Iceman as an imaginary friend/enemy who Jack has been pretending to chase.

Unfortunately, the initial incident in the film happens a little early by way of a shooting at a race track. What I couldn't understand is that with all those people watching the race, nobody saw the bad guy shoot at Jack and consequently; the police have their eye on him. Reggie on the other hand is out of jail and he miraculously survives an attack on a bus (mentioned earlier) as it rolls over several times; something that would have killed him. But the film suffers from it lack of logic that can be applied to certain situations: The bus rolls over; the bikers aren't professional enough; the back up arrives a too quickly and are unable to spot the bikers fleeing; the bikers in other scenes get their guns out in full public view too many times but nobody ever seems to mind and generally, there is an acute sense of frustration during these times. But the film backs itself up with a scene in a nightclub during which it makes a pastiche out of its predecessor by putting Jack in a punch up only for Reggie to save him by acting out his cop/no nonsense routine by threatening to shoot first and the ask questions later. Along with this, Jack even makes reference to 'typical bar punch ups that you get in the movies' where he states someone always hits else someone over the head with a chair or a glass bottle. Jack then does exactly that with a bottle and the chair soon follows.

But to me, this is Another 48 Hrs. recognising that is knows what it is; that it knows the formula its using and is having fun playing around with the clichés; even if scenes such as the bus rolling and the bikers not doing what they should do by finishing the job. The film is by no means great or groundbreaking but I was never bored or put off by what I was seeing; it may have lacked realism and been since pushed down a peg in the crime genre hierarchy by bigger and better films but it remains entertaining to a degree with gunshots powerful enough to propel people through windows and cops smart enough to wear bullet proof vests whilst off duty. Another 48 Hrs. is by no means a big winner but it is by no means a massive loser, even if it may indeed look like that in another twenty years.

Another 48 HRS. is good for one reason and one reason only, Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy's chemistry together. They work off each other perfectly. This film is not interested in telling a story, it is a mere stage for these two actors to showcase their talent. The film only works when these two are on -screen. When Murphy and Nolte are not on-screen, the film is rather boring. This can be credited to the fact that Nolte and Murphy are so fun to watch that you don't care at all about the rest of characters. Fortunately, Nolte and Murphy are on-screen more than 90% of the time.

Another 48 Hrs. (1990) was another sequel. During the 80's any movie that made the slightest of profits made a sequel. For one reason only, to make even more money. However many producers never made another dime off of the momentum of the previous film and were stuck with a sequel that cost two or three times as much as the original film, Another 48 Hrs. was a prime example. The only reason films that produced multiple sequels raked in the dough was the films were cheaply made, low overhead means more potential for a profit. When you pour millions into a movie and expect to make a buck, two out of three times you're going to lose your shirt.

The movie has a "rushed into production" feel. I felt the same way after watching Scary Movie 2. The director was given what he had to work with. I can't fault Walter Hill because he made a pretty watchable movie. The problem was this film didn't need a sequel. The end results are a remake of the first movie. No more, no less. This film was made during the peak of Eddie Murphy's over exposure period. Like so many actors, he was a victim of his own excess. Nick Nolte seemed to be going through the motions whilst Eddie Murphy had that "look at me" thing going.

Overall it's not a bad movie. But if you're expecting something different then look elsewhere. Maybe the filmmakers should have watched the first movie again before they wrote the script. It would have helped a bit.

Recommended for fans of the first film.

B

I agree with most of the past commentators. This film is a half-sequel, half-remake. So many elements were simply copied from the original film. I'm sure the filmmakers considered this homage, but it comes off as a lack of ideas. And we won't even go into the monumental plot holes. Gigantic plot holes. Brobdingnagian plot holes. And while I hadn't previously noted the enormous amount of glass breaking, until reading the comments, yes, I'd have to say they made it more or less a motif of the film. Murphy and Nolte did reasonably well resurrecting their respective characters, and there were some truly funny moments, and truly snappy repartee. But it's not enough to save this one. If you liked the original film (and who didn't) you should probably see this one, just don't have high expectations for it.