Surely this is a reboot that no one was after? Well I thought so, but I’ve got to admit as the opening titles roll to ‘The Heat is On’, I’m smiling. We’re in Detroit with Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy), possibly the most 80s name ever. Does he still make sense 40 years on? Well let’s face it the original films were always a bit thin on plot, heavy on action and dodgy comic quips, punctuated by needle drops. This doesn’t deviate from that. High speed chases, destroying city property, as Bob Seger cranks out and Foley catches the bad guys. Its cheesy. It’s a bit crap. It’s sort of fun. To be fair though, someone has realised that Eddie Murphy’s laugh isn’t enough to carry this. Alongside all the old faces, we get Jane Saunders (Taylor Paige), a lawyer… and Foleys estranged daughter, who is of course just as much a thorn in the establishments side as he is. She’s going after bent cops… in Beverley Hills. Where his old buddy Billy (Judge Reinhold) is also involved. Taggart (John Ashdon) gets shoehorned in too, he’s Chief of police now, the boss of Jane’s ex, a detective Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). It’s all very incestuous. So the crux is Axel trying to reconnect with his daughter, whilst they catch the bent cops, that are lead by Captain Cade Grant (Kevin Bacon). The acting is bad across the board. The story plods and is predictable. Its attempts at being relevant in 2024 are cringe inducing… but I don’t hate it. It’s watchable. Perhaps only because I watched the originals and films like them as a kid. I can’t imagine what anyone coming cold to this would think.
4/10
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