I must say I was excited about this, and thought it would be an ideal character move for Liam Neeson, but alas… The Naked Gun (2025) is a remake/tribute to the original’s 7.5/10 genius, but it falls flat at 5/10.
Liam Neeson steps in as Frank Drebin Jr., the bumbling cop son uncovering an assassination plot – think chases, puns, and cameos nodding to Leslie Nielsen’s legacy. The bank heist opener is a fun sight gag, and the interval sting operation has some magic, but it fizzles fast.
Neeson’s deadpan works for a chuckle, channeling his Taken toughness into stupidity, but he lacks Nielsen’s impeccable timing. Pamela Anderson’s Beth is a nostalgic wink, Paul Walter Hauser’s Hocken adds energy, and Kevin Durand’s villain is hammy fun, but the cast feels like they’re in a different movie.
Akiva Schaffer’s direction apes the Zucker style with clever bits, but the script by Schaffer, Dan Gregor, and Doug Mand relies too much on recycled tropes, dragging the pacing.
Those 20-minute laugh stretches? Rare. It’s shot like a thriller for laughs, but the charm’s gone – more Netflix sitcom than big-screen spoof. I smiled a few times, but my phone was out for most of it.
A decent one-time watch for fans, but it doesn’t live up to the original’s brilliance. Skip if you cherish the classic.
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