Beverly Hills Cop 3
- “Vic Morrow has a better chance of working with Landis than I do.” – Eddie Murphy after “Coming to America.”
- Murphy’s performance is uncharacteristically forced. He doesn’t seem like he’s feeling anything quite right. Even in something like “The Adventures of Pluto Nash,” he can guy into his characters. And you’d think with Axel Foley it’d be a cakewalk. But it’s not!
- This was 1994, and apparently he wasn’t real happy with how his career was going, as since 89’s Harlem Nights, which he wrote and directed and which flopped, Another 48 Hr.s, Boomerang, The Distinguished Gentleman all underperformed at the box office. Additionally, his music career, which had in the early 1980’s inexplicably launched him onto the Billboard charts with “Party All The Time” had also REALLY cooled off, with his 1993 release “Love’s Alright” not even charting.
- Jump the shark level action, and whatever INXS-style song used over the car chase is in no way as good as Neutron Dance.
- Bad guy in suit checks his watch. So cliche. And he totally lacks any pursuasive edge needed for aa character like this! Stephen Berkoff and Jurgen Prochnow, Timpthy Carhart is NOT.
- Hector Elizondo is the new Taggart? Hmm. Feels… meh. Definitely missing John Ashton.
- Wonderworld special effects are pretty half-ass in that first shot! Wonderworld. Fantasy Park. Terrible names. Everything just seems so bland. Conceptually, this just seems off. An amusement park makes literally everyone a fish out of water, not just Axel.
- Man,this ride sequence is all I remembered from this movie and my God, is it ever not convincing. Murphy’s stuntman doesn’t even had the same hairline. It’s all shockingly poorly directed with unconvincing green screen and terrible insert shots. The editing loses the suspense and, oh God, the music is awful.
- John Saxon! That’s fun.
- THe length of the Serge scene, with Bronsnan Pinchot, is fucking painful. It’s so overlong. And so hammy.
- So much repeating of names! WHY??? Ellis DeWald, Uncle Dave.
- The fucking forced romance between Foley and Theresa Randal’s character, Janice, is laughable. Did they actually get their faces too close together while pouring over schematics of the park?
- This movie is more fun as a spot-the-cameo game. Hey look, George Lucas! Is that Arthur Hiller and Ray Harryhausen in the bar? Wait, a second, director John Singleton is that fireman! I have no idea why DeWald was in Detroit shooting up a chop-shop, but I’m at least marginally enjoying seeing Joe Dante as a jail guard.
- Everything looks cheap and studio-based. It all looks so plain and poorly lit and boring and ugh. I hate this.
- EVERYONE DIES! Holy shit, how many people get shot in this movie??! And does no one care that Rosewood looks like he was shot to shit?
- Beverly Hills Cop (2013) – Old friend Barry Sonnefeld, he of Nine Lives, helmed a tv pilot – absolutely awful. One of the worst things Murphy ever signed on to do and thankfully removed from the Canon by 2024’s Axel F. It was about Axel’s son Aaron Foley going to Beverly Hills where he is assisted by his dad to bring the murderer of a lover (whine he met while undercover) to justice. Brandon T. Jackson played Aaron Foley and did not possess anywhere near the required charisma to match Murphy’s Axel Foley, who ran away with their scenes together.
- The career of John Landis needs to be discussed here. This is a guy who, in the late 70’s and early 80’s directed some of the best, most treasured comedies of all time. “Animal House,” “The Blues Brothers,” “An American Werewolf in London” and “Trading Places.” But after an accident on the set of his segment of “Twilight Zone: The Movie” killed two children and veteran actor Vic Morrow, Landis lost his mojo. I guess he’s lucky that he didn’t wind up in jail due to gross negligence, but aside from 1986’s “Three Amigos” and 1988’s “Coming to America,” neither of which touch – in my opinion – any of those previously-listed movies, the director’s output was subpar. “Spies Like Us?” It may have had a moment or two, but it was largely unsatisfactory. “Oscar?” A DIsney-financed attempt at Stallone doing period comedy? No. “Innocent Blood?” “The Stupids?” “Blues Brothers 2000?” By the 2010’s, Landing was largely directing episodic television, TV movies and fucking Taco Bell commercials. HOW?? Had to be the accident, right?
Bottom Five Eddie Murphy performances
5. Coming 2 America (2021)
Dir. Craig Brewer
When Eddie Murphy teamed up with director Craig Brewer for Dolemite Is My Name in 2019, the result was a critical hit that reignited Murphy’s career. So naturally, when the two reunited for Coming 2 America, fans hoped for another win. Instead, they got a half-baked nostalgia trip that barely spends any time in America, despite the title. What’s worse? The movie actually calls itself out on its own failures.
Early in the film, Lavelle Junson (Jermaine Fowler) tells his love interest, Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha):
“What do we have besides superhero shit, remakes, and sequels to old movies nobody asked for?”Together, they finish: “If something is good… don’t try to ruin it.”
That’s Coming 2 America in a nutshell—a sequel to a beloved comedy classic that nobody really asked for, and one that ultimately tarnishes the legacy of the original. The film is stuffed with fan service, from returning characters to rehashed jokes, but none of it feels fresh. And while it boasts a massive ensemble cast (including Wesley Snipes, Tracy Morgan, and Leslie Jones), most of the players are wasted in forgettable roles.
Perhaps the film’s most bittersweet moment is James Earl Jones’s final screen appearance. The legendary actor, reprising his role as King Jaffe Joffer, appears briefly before his character dies in a bizarrely comedic funeral scene—one that feels oddly rushed and a little disrespectful for such a towering figure in cinema.
What’s most frustrating is that the movie could have been a heartfelt, culturally relevant sequel. Instead, it’s a lazy retread that relies on Murphy and Arsenio Hall’s multi-character schtick—a gimmick that has long since worn out its welcome. The original Coming to America was a sharp satire on race, class, and the immigrant experience. This sequel? It’s about as deep as a TikTok trend.
The irony is that the movie itself acknowledges its own mediocrity with that early meta-dialogue. The problem is, knowing you’re a bad sequel doesn’t make you a good one.
4. Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)
Dir. Wes Craven
Vampire in Brooklyn had the ingredients for a hit: a horror-comedy hybrid directed by Nightmare on Elm Street legend Wes Craven, with Eddie Murphy starring as a suave vampire wreaking havoc in New York. What could go wrong? Apparently, a lot.
The film’s biggest problem is its wildly uneven tone. Is it a horror movie with comedic elements? A comedy with horror touches? Neither Craven nor Murphy seemed to know, and the result is a bizarre mess that fails to be either funny or scary.
Murphy plays Maximillian, a vampire with a questionable wig and an even more questionable Caribbean accent, who comes to Brooklyn to find a half-human, half-vampire mate. Along the way, Murphy indulges his love for multi-character performances, but the results are underwhelming. His turn as a foul-mouthed preacher is awkward, and his transformation into an Italian mobster is downright cringeworthy.
Critics panned the film, and it bombed at the box office, making just $19 million on a $14 million budget. Murphy later admitted that he only took the role to avoid being typecast in family-friendly roles—a decision that clearly backfired.
Despite its failure, Vampire in Brooklyn has developed a cult following, but I would say that has more to do with how much Angela Basset positively radiates in her role as Murphy’s target of affection.
3. Harlem Nights (1989)
Dir. Eddie Murphy
What happens when a comedic superstar with no directorial experience decides to write, direct, and star in a big-budget period piece alongside some of the biggest names in Black entertainment? You get Harlem Nights—a vanity project so misguided it’s hard to believe it made it to theaters.
Murphy’s intentions were noble: pay homage to classic gangster films while showcasing Black talent in front of and behind the camera. But the execution? Yikes. The film is a loud, profane mess that never finds the right balance between comedy and drama.
Despite a stellar cast that includes Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx, Della Reese, and Jasmine Guy, the film wastes its talent on a convoluted, sluggish plot that’s neither funny nor compelling. Murphy, clearly trying to prove he’s more than just a comedic actor, bites off more than he can chew, delivering a performance that’s overshadowed by the film’s clunky direction and uninspired dialogue.
At the box office, Harlem Nights made a respectable $60 million, but critics weren’t impressed. The film holds a dismal 21% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with most agreeing that Murphy’s ego got in the way of making a truly great film.
2. Norbit (2007)
Dir. Brian Robbins
After receiving critical acclaim for Dreamgirls (2006), Murphy seemed poised for awards glory, but then Norbit hit theaters, and any goodwill he’d built up vanished overnight.
Directed by Brian Robbins (of Good Burger fame), Norbit is an offensive, mean-spirited comedy that relies on tired stereotypes and crude humor. Murphy plays the titular character, a nerdy orphan married to the grotesque Rasputia, also played by Murphy in a fat suit. Rasputia is a walking caricature of relentless cruelty, making it clear that the joke is that her personality matches her appearance.
As if that weren’t bad enough, Murphy also dons yellowface to play Mr. Wong, the orphanage owner, complete with an exaggerated accent and offensive mannerisms. The whole thing feels like a time capsule from an era when Hollywood didn’t know better—but this was 2007. They should have known better.
Despite being a box-office success, grossing $160 million worldwide, Norbit was universally panned by critics and audiences alike. It remains a blemish on Murphy’s career and a prime example of how not to do comedy.
1. The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)
Dir. Peter Segal
How do you take a beloved remake like The Nutty Professor (1996) and ruin it? Simple: make a sequel that doubles down on everything that didn’t need doubling. The Klumps is bigger, louder, and cruder, but it’s also a soulless, unfunny mess that feels like a parody of the original.
Peter Segal, a seasoned comedy director behind hits like Tommy Boy and Naked Gun 33⅓, somehow managed to churn out this disaster. The film brings back Murphy’s multi-character shtick, with him playing nearly every member of the Klump family, but the novelty has worn off. What was charming in the first film feels tired and forced here.
The plot, which involves Sherman Klump trying to remove Buddy Love from his DNA, is convoluted nonsense, but the real low point? A scene in which Larry Miller’s character is mounted by a giant mutant hamster. Yes, that’s the level of humor we’re dealing with.
Critics weren’t kind, and neither were audiences. While the film made $166 million at the box office, it marked the beginning of the end for Murphy’s reign as a bankable comedy star. The Klumps is the epitome of diminishing returns—a sequel that nobody needed, filled with jokes that nobody wanted.