Director Report Card: John Landis (1994)

14. Beverley Hills Cop III

After starring in “Beverly Hills Cop II,” Eddie Murphy said that the concept was completely played out and, if he did a third film, it would only be for the money. Despite that assurance, the studio was determined to make another Axel Foley adventure, spending a considerable amount of the budget on various scripts before a director was even found. Even with their acrimonious relationship while making “Coming to America,” Murphy must have liked something about working with John Landis. Once again, he vouched for the guy and put him behind the camera. When “Beverly Hills Cop III” was belatedly released in theaters in 1994, Murphy's assertion that he was only in it for the money could not have been more apparent. It was another flop for Landis and Murphy, who were both experiencing downturns in their career at the time.

It's the early nineties but Axel Foley is still working as a cop in Detroit. During what should have been a standard stake-out, his boss Inspector Todd is killed by mysterious smugglers. Foley is determined to fulfill Todd's dying wish that he catches the perps. He follows the case to – where else? – Beverly Hills, California. There, he discovers the bad guys are running a counterfeiting operation out of Wonder World, a family friendly amusement park. As in past adventures, Foley teams up with the nerdy Officer Rosebloom, butts heads with the authorities, gets in lot of trouble, but somehow manages to undercover the real crooks.

The “Beverly Hills Cop” films have never been distinguished by their originality. The first one was influenced by any number of renegade cop flicks. In part one, Axel went to Beverly Hills to avenge a dead friend. In part two, he went back to Beverly Hills after an officer he befriended last time was nearly killed. Now, on the third go-around, he's on yet another mission of revenge at the behest of another fallen pal/fellow cop. This guy goes through acquaintances with almost as much frequency as Charles Bronson. Also as in the last two adventures, Foley's reasoning for going to California are ultimately unimportant. It's just another excuse to get him involved in a standard criminal plot and be a fish-out-of-water on the west coast. (Though you'd think he would be pretty familiar with Beverly Hills by this point.)

As I said, Paramount Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer – who would eventually exit the project – spent a lot of time and money on various scripts for “Beverly Hills Cop III” before finding a premise everyone could agree on. These included several concepts that would've sent Axel to London, seemingly negating the “Beverly Hills” part of the title. Eventually, Steven E. de Souza – co-writer of some of the greatest action hits of the eighties – would pen the chosen script... And it's basically “Die Hard at Disney World,” Foley spending a lot of the movie as the sole good cop in an amusement park full of baddies. Yet even that premise is not as well utilized as you'd think. The sequel never attempts to subvert the cheeriness of its setting, in contrast with bloody action theatrics. The Walt Disney stand-in, called Uncle Dave, is never depicted as anything but a wholesome figure. You'd think John Landis, famous for sticking it to snobs in his films, would've found something more to do with this idea.

“Beverly Hills Cop III” came at kind of a weird point in Eddie Murphy's career. After becoming the biggest stand-up in the world and a hugely successful movie star in the eighties, Eddie was suffering something of a midlife crisis. He tried directing with “Harlem Nights” and it didn't work.  The previous year, he recorded a socially conscious R&B album that flopped. After this film, he would star in “Vampire in Brooklyn” and “Metro,” both of which were more violent and less comedic than his earlier movies. It seems Murphy was very determined to be taken seriously as an artist. According to John Landis, he was actively trying not to be funny in “Beverly Hills Cop III.” Axel is more pissed-off here, physically attacking way more guys. Not once does Axel attempt to con his way in to some establish club here, the trademark of the series. Murphy cracks fewer jokes and one-liners. He seems very listless, even timid.

Murphy and Landis both agreed that the script for “Beverly Hills Cop III” sucked. John hoped his leading man could make it funny but, when Murphy decided Axel couldn't crack jokes anymore, it left the director with few other options. So you can see “Beverly Hills Cop III” desperately attempting to insert comedy whenever it can. The humor frequently feels wildly out-of-place. A reappearance from Bronson Pinchot's camp gay Serge goes on far too long. He introduces a farcical machine gun into the story, which seems like something better suited to a Z.A.Z. spoof. Moments where Wonder World costumed performers cover kids' eyes or Murphy has to dance on-stage with the cartoon characters feel like sweaty attempts to wring some humor out of the situation. And sweatiness is not something you want audiences to pick up on when you're trying to make a comedy.

Because the sequel had gone so far over-budget before filming even began, the action sequences were cut way down for “Beverly Hills Cop III.” This led to more of a focus on the detective elements. This is a problem though. Axel Foley isn't Sherlock Holmes. His smart-ass ability to sneak into situations was his greatest strength but, as I said, Murphy was determined to downplay that. So, instead of sleuthing, he just badgers witnesses and then punches them. This really does little besides emphasize Murphy's sudden desire to be taken seriously as a tough guy. Murphy doesn't have the physical prowess of Wesley Snipes or the intensity of Denzel Washington. Stripped of his smart-ass wit, he just comes off as a bully.

John Landis isn't exactly an experienced action director either. An early car chase sequence operates fairly well, perhaps because of Landis' “Blues Brothers” experience. However, many of the other action scenes have the same weirdly mean-spirited quality we saw in “Into the Night.” During the climax, there's far too much focus on people being hurt while getting gunned down. Many of the film's other attempts to incorporate the action element into the theme park come off as inept. A scene devoted to Foley rescuing two kids from a malfunctioning Ferris Wheel ride is so incredibly awkwardly framed. Never once do you believe Murphy, who seems totally bored in this moment, is actually dangling hundreds of feet above concrete.

The best moments in “Beverly Hills Cop III” tend to utilize the theme park setting in a more direct way. During the last act, Axel is led through a chase through Wonder World at night, pursued by a limitless supply of goons. A few times, he actually utilizes the park attractions to help himself out. Such as when an alien invasion show – obviously the “Earthquake!” ride at Universal Studios with some “Battlestar Galactia” Cylons wandering around it – ends up helping him crush a few guys. An even more extended foot chase takes place through a dinosaur-themed dark ride – actually “Kingdom of the Dinosaurs” at Knott's Berry Farm – is probably my favorite sequence in the film. If only because the contrast of a kiddie ride with cop movie violence is interesting, the silently moving attractions provide some mildly spooky ambiance, and that I like kitschy dinosaur attractions like that.

“Beverly Hills Cop III” was obviously John Landis operating in work-for-hire mode. However, you can see him trying to insert a few of his trademark into the otherwise desperate material. Yes, he includes many of his director or film culture friends in bit parts. Watch out for cameos from Joe Dante, Ray Harryhausen, Forest Ackerman, Al Green, Peter Medak, Arthur Hiller, and John Singleton. Most amusingly, George Lucas appears as a disgruntled park-goer. What makes this most feel like a Landis movie is the numerous call-outs to classic animation in the park setting. The director even got the Sherman Brothers to write an “It's a Small World After All” style song.

Another indication that “Beverly Hills Cop III” is a truly unnecessary continuation of the series is the lack of appearances from established favorites of the series. Of Foley's usual supporting cast, only Judge Reinhold returns as Sgt. Rosewood. While Reinhold does his best to get some goofy physical comedy out of the part, he's also saddled with some of the film's worst gags. Otherwise, it's all new faces. Most obviously, Hector Elizondo is awkwardly inserted as a replacement for John Ashton's Sgt. Taggart, whose absence is explained by saying he retired. Ronny Cox's Chief Bogomil, so important to part two's plot, doesn't even get that much. Both characters were included in earlier drafts but the actors had to pass after pre-production dragged on. (And also because the script sucked.) This lack of trademark characters makes part three feel disconnected from the other films, which is further emphasized by the lack of Harold Faltermeyer's trademark theme. Instead, we are greeted to a trip-hop version of “Axel F.,” presumably because it was 1994.

As for the new additions, few make much of an impression. Theresa Randle appears as a love interest for Foley. The two characters have almost no connection and her romantic attraction to him is inexplicable. Timothy Carhart plays the film primary villain, a smarmy weasel that continues the series' tradition of weak and forgettable antagonists. Slightly better is John Saxon, as the scheming head of Wonder World, if only because the late, great Mr. Saxon could bring dignity and depth to any role. Stephen McHattie – about twenty years younger than I'm used to seeing him but immediately recognizable nevertheless – also shows up as a Secret Service agent, being one of the better foils Axel has in this film.

The stink of failure is all over “Beverly Hills Cop III” and audiences could smell it. Despite the first two being widely beloved, the third entry failed to outgross its budget. (At the domestic box office anyway. It did slightly better overseas.) Critics were merciless. Murphy himself has been all too open about bashing the movie over the years, somewhat hypocritically since it sounds like he played a big role in its creative failure. The sequel was so bad that it actually made Murphy want to return to the role of Axel Foley, to give him a proper send-off. “Beverly Hills Cop IV” has been in-and-out of development for two decades now. It mutated into a TV show before changing back into a movie. Even though I see no demand for it, the Netflix sequel was actually just about ready to start production before the pandemic shut everything down. Until then, this abject failure of a continuation is the final appearance of Eddie Murphy's most iconic character. ”Beverly Hills Cop III” suffers deeply from a disinterested leading man, a bland script, and a listless execution. [Grade: D]