'Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F' Is a Fun Return to Form!

In 1994, Paramount released “Beverly Hills Cop III” and it was universally panned by both the critics and the fans. The movie was less violent, John Ashton was missing as Sgt. Taggart, it had way too many celebrity cameos for no reason, and the story was thinner than thin.

The worst thing about the movie, though, is that it also featured a star comedian who was depressed at the time and didn’t want Axel to be the wisecracking cop that he was in previous movies. Director John Landis said that he thought the script was rather weak, but he figured he would make it funny with Murphy at his side.

Instead, any suggestions that Landis gave were ignored by Murphy. After the movie’s release, Murphy himself admitted that the movie was the weakest entry into the series. Plans for a fourth film began in the late ‘90s mostly because Murphy did not want the series to end on a low note.

Unfortunately, “Beverly Hills Cop IV” entered development hell. There were various scripts and directors attached along the way. After a fourth film didn’t seem to be coming anytime soon, Murphy developed a TV show that would follow Axel’s son while he would make appearances here and there in a supporting role.

Eddie Murphy is heading back to 90210 in 'Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F'!

After the pilot was filmed, CBS decided not to move forward with a series. This was when Paramount shifted gears back into making a fourth movie with Axel Foley as the star.

Eventually, Paramount signed a one film licensing agreement with the option to produce another sequel with Netflix. The fourth film finally got underway and despite a delay due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” was finally produced.

So, does the movie deliver 30 years after the last movie came out and 40 years after the original classic? Well, it definitely makes up for “Beverly Hills Cop III”. I can’t say that it is as good as the original or even the second film, but it is definitely a welcomed return to form.

Axel Foley is still on the streets of Detroit causing chaos in his search for justice. His deputy chief is actually his old partner Jeffrey Friedman (Paul Reiser) and tries everything he can to keep his friend out of trouble.

Things quickly escalate for Axel in 'Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F'.

Meanwhile, back in Beverly Hills, Axel’s estranged daughter Jane Saunders (Taylour Paige) is a lawyer that is trying to uncover a conspiracy with Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold), who is now a private investigator. After Jane’s life is threatened and Rosewood is kidnapped, Axel returns to Beverly Hills to try and help his daughter stop the bad guys along with a new partner from the Beverly Hills Police Department named Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt).

The movie follows the formula well with Axel being in Detroit and there being a reason for him to head back out to Beverly Hills. The estranged daughter storyline allows for Murphy to successfully play both the wisecracking Foley we remember and the (slightly) more mature Foley that Murphy wanted to play in the third film.

Gordon-Levitt’s Bobby Abbott is also another welcomed addition and it is good to see both Ashton and Reinhold back even if their parts are minimal compared to Foley and the new characters. Kevin Bacon also joins in on the fun as Captain Cade Grant, a police captain who is wearing way too many expensive clothes to be a good cop.

Mark Molloy, an Australian commercial director, makes his feature film directorial debut with this movie. It is a beautifully directed movie with plenty of great action set pieces. If this movie is any indicator, I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more of Molloy’s directing work in the future.

Lorne Balfe takes over duties for the film’s score and he does a great job honoring Harold Faltermeyer’s original score while giving this movie its own epic tone. Balfe is another rising star having done scores for the last two “Bad Boys” films as well as two of the “Mission: Impossible” films and “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves”.

Balfe is a student of Hans Zimmer from Zimmer’s production company Remote Control Productions and it shows. He knew just how much to pepper in the iconic theme song and when to really go for it and the overall score adds to the impact of the action.

So, all that said, the fourth film in the long-running “Beverly Hills Cop” series isn’t as good as the original, but none of the sequels are as good as that classic action film. The movie is the one thing it has to be: a fun ride. It sure as hell beats “Beverly Hills Cop III” and should this be the last movie in the series, at least the series is finally going out on a high note.