The Naked Gun 2 1/2 - The Smell of Fear (1991)

It's more of Leslie Nielsen's Lt. Frank Drebin, the bumbling cop from the old Police Squad! television series. This time, Drebin uncovers a plot--led by supervillain Robert Goulet!--to sabotage America's energy policy. The jokes don't stick as well as those of the first film (Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!), but there are some very funny slapstick moments, including several involving former First Lady Barbara Bush (played by an actress, of course). --Tom Keogh Amazon.com

Another Leslie Nielsen laugh-fest

The Naked Gun 2 and ½: The Smell Of Fear is directed by David Zucker. The film stars Leslie Nielsen and co-stars Priscilla Presley, George Kennedy, O. J. Simpson, and Robert Goulet. Ira Newborn contributes the musical score.

The Smell Of Fear is the second film in The Naked Gun series. This time around, Frank Drebin has gained a promotion with Police Squad, but it has come at the price of his relationship with Jane Spencer, the woman he was romancing in the first film. Drebin's work is never done. This time around, he and his partners on the force must deal with a group of environmental terrorists, aiming to profit immensely from their crimes. As if it wasn't bad enough that a new threat had entered the fray, Jane has developed a relationship with one of its top leaders.

The second installment in The Naked Gun series is more of the same zany stuff the first movie served up. While not a superior product by any means, it's still a good sequel. And like the original, it's impossible to write a conventional review for this film. While there is a plot here and entertaining characters, this is more-or-less a showcase of well-written, fast-paced jokes - just like the first time around. The writers keep the puns and gags flying at you from start to finish. Normally putting the jokes first and the characters and plot second is a recipe for disaster. But The Naked Gun series pulls it off nicely. Much like the first movie, there are very few scenes that won't have you in stitches.

Leslie Nielsen reprises his role of Frank Drebin from the first film. And his acting here is no less excellent than it was in the first film. He steals every scene he takes part in, delivering the fast-paced comedy with an unusual level of seriousness, never cracking a smile no matter how comical or inappropriate what he says is. The Naked Gun is probably Nielsen's best-known series of films, and it won't be long into the movie before you see why that is.

Like the original, there's really not much point in going too in depth about the supporting cast and what they do. This movie belongs to Leslie Nielsen. But amongst its ranks are O. J. Simpson as Drebin's long-time, loyal partner on the force, Priscilla Presley as the now-estranged love interest, and Robert Goulet as one of the evil geniuses behind the film's sinister plot. Everyone does well in this film, but no one steals the show the same way Nielsen does.

The style in which this film is presented stays true to the original, and that`s a good thing. The writers/director throw the jokes at the audience endlessly - there's not a single scene in this movie without something to make you laugh. And with Leslie Nielsen usually in charge of delivering these cleverly-written puns and gags, with his signature serious nature, you know the laughs won't let up.

The musical score for the film is written by Ira Newborn. Easily, the most recognizable piece of music in the film is its classic opening credits theme, which was also uses as the theme for Police Squad!, the show that the film was spun off from. Newborn's score is largely a jazzy, big-band one, which fits the cop/detective atmosphere well. It only helps to make the product feel more like a spoof/satire. Much of the score is rehashed from the original, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

This isn't a perfect movie, I won't kid you. The original was a comedy masterpiece. It was fresh, and easily one of the best spoofs ever made. The problem with the second film is that it's, to say the least, more of the same. And the jokes, while still downright hilarious, don't quite hit as hard and fast as they did the first time around. That's not to say this isn't a great comedy film in its own right, though - it is.

Sadly, the DVD is a huge disappointment. Like the first film, the only extras available are a commentary track and trailers. Why couldn't they include interviews with cast and crew, or anything of that sort? I'm sure there's plenty of good material that could have been used on here.

In the end, second film in The Naked Gun series isn't quite the comedy masterpiece that the first one was, but it`s still a worthy addition to the Leslie Nielsen catalogue, and definitely worth your time. Although it`s not as good as the original, I`m still recommending it. If you liked the original, it's a good bet you'll like the sequel.

Thumbs up
December 17, 2007

Leslie Nielson's funniest movie trilogy...

I was lucky to find these movies for cheap, but it's definitely one of the best trilogies I have ever seen. The 2nd and 3rd are no match for the first...but the sequels are hardly ever as good as the first in any case. February 27, 2007

Recomendado!!!

Es un clasico, se debe tener en casa para ver por lo menos una vez al año. Gracias a Leslie por la serie y las 3 peliculas Naked Gun y al director David Zucker por la imaginacion tan graciosa de las situaciones de la vida.

En esta 2da parte, los Bush son la burla y el tema la energia atomica y los contaminantes es el ambiente en el cual se desenvuelve nuestro personaje.

February 6, 2007

The Naked Gun 2 1/2 - The Smell of Fear

The Naked Gun 2 1/2 - The Smell of Fear~ Lloyd Bochner is just as good as the first Naked Gun movie. Leslie Neilsen is absolutely hysterically funny and the gags are many of them are just on the mark. The scene at the blue note is just great with photos of titanic and a singer that sings about feeling blue. The drink that is impossible to drink and the waiter with a bare backside. They also make fun of Casablanca with Sam playing the piano. I love the dialog and the screen play is great. Once again we get to see O.J. Simpson star in the movie and then we have to remember that at the time of the movie he was only known as a former football player and did not have the dubious reputation that he does today. I highly recommend this movie and I give it the 5 stars that it deserves. October 29, 2006

" She was the kind of woman who made you want to drop to your knees and thank God you were a man!"

Watching this 1991 sequel to Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad, is like opening a time capsule. A slapstick comedy/satire set in Washington, DC, during the Presidency of George H. W. Bush, the plot involves the kidnapping of Dr. Albert Meinheimer (Richard Griffiths), the President's energy czar, who wants to reduce the country's pollution and its dependence on coal, oil, and nuclear power. Working as the Public Relations Director of the Meinheimer Institute, is Jane Spencer (Priscilla Presley), to whom Police Lt. Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) was once engaged (until he was found in a compromising situation with the Queen in Naked Gun I). Jane is now the lover of Quentin Hapsburg (Robert Goulet), who has planned the Meinheimer kidnapping.

Filled with sight gags, one-liners, parodies of other films, stock comedy routines, jokes hidden within the sets (a portrait of Mike Dukakis on the wall, for example), and non-stop action that runs amok, the plot is the least of director David Zucker's concerns. Lt. Drebin (Nielsen), his romance with Jane, and his constant missteps as an investigator serve as the primary focus. Goulet acts the suitably oily villain, and actors George Kennedy and O. J. Simpson, who work with Drebin, are as bumbling as he is.

In the opening scene, a Presidential reception hosted to honor Drebin by President George H. W. Bush (played by John Roarke, who is hilariously realistic), Drebin decks Barbara Bush several times (with Margery Ross, who plays the First Lady as a valiant trouper, always coming up smiling). The setting quickly changes to a strip joint, a bowling alley, and operating room, and eventually includes a bomb site, a blues bar, and a dance-reception before the chases start. Nelson and Winnie Mandela, John Sununu, and Davy Crockett have roles here, and ZsaZsa Gabor and Mel Torme appear in cameos.

The action is wild and wacky, and the gags (both verbal and visual) never cease. Love scenes add romance--or attempts at romance, since those, especially a seduction in which the two people are making a vase from wet clay in an art studio when the wheel goes out of control--are as off-the-wall as the rest of the film. Especially time-sensitive regarding O. J. Simpson, who dominates his scenes ironically in ways that he never did in 1991, when the film was made, Naked Gun 2 1/2 is a hilarious but poignant comedy--the energy problems of 1991 are, unfortunately, not all that different now. n Mary Whipple
May 6, 2006

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