Lethal Weapon (1987)

This time we declare our love for one of the most iconic action movies from the 80's, Lethal Weapon (1987). The first entry in a franchise that would eventually degenerate into silly slapstick.

Our man-crush Shane Black wrote the script - when he was barely 20, for God's sake! - and Richard Donner directs Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in the leads.

On this track we cover:
- The Lethal Weapon franchise
- The brilliance of Shane Black
- The film vs. the script vs. deleted scenes
- Action movies of the 80's
- The careers of Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, and Richard Donner
- And Dennis thinks Danny Glover is a bloody thief

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: May 29th, 2012.
Version: Theatrical cut on Blu-ray or NTSC DVD.
Movie runtime: 1:49:37

SCREENSHOTS

Danny Glover as Murtaugh.

Mel Gibson as Riggs.

The airbag-with-print-of-a-car stunt, performed by the actress Jackie Swanson.

Mel Gibson buys drugs from Anthony Kiedis' dad. Ah, Hollywood for ya.

Mel Gibson just saw Lethal Weapon 4.

Beautiful shot, by Stephen Goldblatt.

Simple, effective, visual storytelling, without any cuts.

So what if I did "Gone Fishin'"! At least people will still talk to me.

Another beautiful shot.

Raw, brutal violence.

The chaotic final fight.

From Lethal Weapon 2: No, Glover is not a bloody thief.
He pics up the money, and slams it down, when the bad guys shut the door.

LITERATURE

Lethal Weapon, Screenplay by Shane Black.

American Cinematographer, April 1987, article by Bess Wiley.

Crash, bang, wallop what a picture, article by Sam Delaney. Link.

Back in Black, interview by Alex Simon. Link.

AUDIO/VIDEO

Bluray special features

Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol (1979). Link.

LINKS

IMDb. Link.

Wikipedia. Link.