David R. Walker

The Naked Gun

Director: Akiva Schaffer

Cast: Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Danny Huston, Paul Walter Hauser, CCH Pounder, Kevin Durand, Busta Rhymes, Dave Bautista, Liza Koshy

Running Time: 1 hour and 25 minutes

Film Rating: 7 out of 10

Saturday Night Live director Akiva Schaffer gives The Naked Gun 1990’s film franchise a hilarious reboot in 2025, which is the spoof comedy that the world needs right now.

Perfectly cast with action star Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr and Baywatch and The Last Showgirl star Pamela Anderson as the blonde femme fatale Beth Davenport in The Naked Gun, the 2025 version which is absolutely hilarious, utterly inappropriate and features a cast all over the age of 55 which is refreshingly original.

Who knew Oscar nominee Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List) could do comedy so well? Or Danny Huston for that matter? Danny Huston (The Constant Gardener, The Aviator) who normally stars in serious drama or action roles plays the villain, tech tycoon Richard Cane who has plans to decimate Los Angeles with a weird microchip that will take humanity back to their animal instincts.

Drebin and his partner Ed Hocken Jr played by Paul Walter Hauser (The Fantastic Four, Richard Jewell) are called to the case of Beth’s brother who is found dead in Malibu after his self-driving car plunged off a cliff.

Director Akiva Schaffer pays homage to the original spoof trilogy which featured Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley, O.J. Simpson and George Kennedy in the first three films from 1988 to 1994.

Fortunately the 2025 version depends on good chemistry between the two main leads and Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson perfectly hold this spoof parody of a L. A. film noir together with all the humour and panache required.

Liam Neeson is brilliant as Drebin Jr the idiotic police detective who destroys electric cars, bathroom doors and everything in between.

Pamela Anderson is fabulous as Beth Davenport a cheesy crime fiction novelist with titles like The Killer Wore Red Lipstick who is desperate to track down her brother’s killer. Miss Davenport gets accosted by the villainous misogynistic tech billionaire Richard Cane in a night club as she soon realizes who the killer really is and that Drebin is a good catch.

Audiences should also look out for the fantastic C.C.H. Pounder (Baghdad Cafe, Postcards from the Edge) as the exasperated police chief Davis who battles to keep Drebin and Hocken in line according to the bizarre rules of police squad.

Drebin and Davenport strike up a love affair which involves a kinky snowman, basting turkeys and vodka. All the scenes in The Naked Gun are hilarious made more so by the three main cast members who keep a straight face amidst a ludicrous script packed with cheesy dialogue.

If viewers enjoyed the first Naked Gun trilogy, then catch the 2025 version in cinemas now. It is just under 90 minutes of pure laughter and trust me, you will forget all your troubles at the door.

Naughty, mischievous and filled with sassy sexual innuendo, the script of The Naked Gun reads like one long Dad joke, but this comedy is worth seeing. Recommended viewing.

The Naked Gun is laugh out loud funny and gets a film rating of 7 out of 10.

A perfect parody of film noir with an aging detective and a gorgeous blonde thrown in, all set in the city of Angels. What could possibly go wrong?

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