Beverly Hills Cop :Axel F

Forty years ago, cop movies changed forever with the release of Beverly Hills Cop. Before its release, cop films were typically serious, depicting good guys tracking down bad guys in stories that reflected contemporary issues and public perceptions. Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer asked, “Why so serious?” and, with the casting of Eddie Murphy, launched a new way to tell a story about cops and robbers. Now, forty years after that release, we have the latest chapter. The only question is: will it feel fresh and fun like the first two, or will it be as forgettable as the third film?

Four decades is a long time, but Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) is still putting the heat on criminals in Detroit. However, his latest bust results in his boss Jeffrey (Paul Reiser) taking the fall for him. Things aren’t just going bad for Axel; his daughter, Jane (Taylour Paige), is in some trouble of her own, which takes Axel back to Beverly Hills once again. There, he seeks out his old friend Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold), but he quickly finds himself in over his head when he encounters a couple of guys searching Rosewood’s office. Things get out of hand, but Axel manages to get away, causing a bit of mayhem along the way, which lands him in jail. It’s there he meets Det. Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who questions Axel’s motives. Fortunately, Axel’s other old friend Taggart (John Ashton) is the chief now, so Axel is set free once again. After tracking down his daughter, he discovers things are a lot deeper than they seem. So it’s up to Axel and his daughter to crack the case and make Beverly Hills a little safer once again.

Written by Will Beall, Tom Gormican, and Kevin Etten, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F feels like good old comfort food, filled with nostalgia, breadcrumbs, nods, and homages to the previous installments. Some of these nods come in needle drops, including songs from the original, notably Axel’s theme that we know so well. Much like this year’s other Bad Boys, the writers cleverly mix returning characters with some younger ones who can carry the heavier action scenes. This decision helps everything work better, as the OGs focus on making us laugh, which is something that they still do very well.

After the last Beverly Hills Cop (the one we don’t talk about), my hopes for something good were pretty low. I’m happy to say I was wrong, as Axel F is the perfect Beverly Hills Cop movie for 2024. Murphy is in top form, and while this installment doesn’t have as much comedy as the first two, the jokes land in the right places. This is a thoroughly entertaining sequel, and it’s great to see the cast back and in top form, as well as the new additions, led by Levitt and Kevin Bacon, making 90210 cool to visit again. My only slight complaint is that I wish they had let the bad guys develop a bit more. Bacon is great with what he has, but I think with a little more depth, he could have been a top-tier villain. That’s really my only wish that didn’t get granted, as Axel F is the perfect Beverly Hills Cop sequel for the present day.