Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

Directed by Martin Brest. Starring Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Lisa Eilbacher, Ronny Cox, Steven Berkoff, James Russo, Paul Reiser, Gil Hill, Jonathan Banks, Stephen Elliott, Bronson Pinchot. [R]

After his childhood friend is murdered, Detroit cop Axel Foley (Murphy) heads out to posh Beverly Hills to investigate, impeded by local police who don’t take kindly to his aggressive, streetwise ways. Slick combination of humor and violence is a tailor-made vehicle for Murphy’s talents (even though it was originally written as a harsher, more serious cop thriller for Sylvester Stallone); paper-thin and clichéd plot can’t negate the star’s energy, though the fish-out-of-water aspect could have played out with more satire, less shouting. Though most of the supporting characters are straight foils and slimeballs, the script does allow Reinhold and Ashton (as a pair of Beverly Hills officers assigned to track Foley) to get in on the fun. One of the decade’s biggest box office hits; inseparable from the ubiquitous instrumental tune “Axel F” by Harold Faltermeyer. As art gallery employee Serge, Pinchot (and his mangled accent) is memorable in a brief appearance; Damon Wayans has a bit part. Followed by two sequels.

73/100