Main Cast: Leslie Nielsen, George Kennedy, Priscilla Presley, Ricardo Montalban, O.J. Simpson
Release Year: 1988
Country: US
Run Time: 85 minutes
Plot
We know we're in a 1988 film when we're invited to laugh at O.J. Simpson in an opening slapstick sequence. We can also pinpoint the year of production when hard-nosed cop Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen), during a scuffle with the world's leading dictators, wipes the wine-colored birthmark off the head of Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev. Those wacky ZAZ boys -- David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker -- serve up a feature-length spin-off of their cult favorite TV show Police Squad!. Seeking vengeance when his partner (Simpson) is shot full of holes by drug dealers, dead-pan and dead-brained Lt. Frank Drebin searches for the Mister Big behind it all. Drebin suspects above-reproach shipping magnate Vincent Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban), but he can't prove a thing. Bumped from the force by the mayor (Nancy Marchand), Drebin, with the unexpected assistance of Ludwig's ex-girlfriend (Priscilla Presley), manages to nab the bad guy at a baseball game, where Reggie Jackson has been programmed to assassinate Queen Elizabeth. MGM mogul Irving Thalberg once reportedly told the Marx Brothers, "You can't build jokes on top of jokes." The producers of Naked Gun prove otherwise; indeed, one could develop writer's cramp just listing the gags in the film's first 20 minutes. Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad was followed by two lesser but still hilarious sequels, Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991) and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
In 1982, the creators of Airplane!, Jim Abrahams and brothers Jerry Zucker and David Zucker, were asked to translate the success of their disaster movie spoof into a weekly television series. The result was the inspired Police Squad!, a dead-on parody of prime-time cop dramas starring a veteran of series TV, the stone-faced Leslie Nielsen. Perhaps their aim was too accurate: viewers didn't respond to the deadpan wit, and the series was cancelled after only six episodes. But the show remained dear to the filmmakers, and six years later they reached a larger audience with the broader, full-length feature The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!. What the film version lacked in sardonic wit, it made up with a rapid-fire onslaught of jokes -- gross-out slapstick, bad puns, and pop culture references happily co-exist, often within the same shot. This brand of humor marked a shift away from the more satirical laughs of Airplane! and Police Squad!, and it would influence a slew of Saturday Night Live-derived features, as well as the no-holds-barred Farrelly brothers comedies. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
Nancy Marchand - Mayor; Melvin Allen - Baseball Announcer; Susan Beaubian - Mrs. Nordberg; Raye Birk - Pahpshmir; Susan Breslau - "Hey, look out!"; Joyce Brothers - Baseball Announcer; Jeannette Charles - Elizabeth II; Dick Enberg - Baseball Announcer; Chuck Fick - Angels Catcher; Charles Gherardi - Khomeini; Curt Gowdy - Baseball Announcer; Joe Grifasi - Foreman; Mark Holton - "It's Enrico Pallazzo!"; Prince Hughes - Idi Amin; Reggie Jackson - Angel Right Fielder; Ronald G. Joseph - Thug #27; David Katz - Arafat; Christopher Keene - "Please disperse. Please disperse."; Leslie Maier - 'Weird Leslie'; Tim McCarver - Baseball Announcer; Ken Minyard - Ken &; Edwina Moore - "Mr. Pallazzo, our head usher will be.."; Dennis Packer - Baseball P.A. Announcer; Jim Palmer - Baseball Announcer; Hank Robinson - First Base Umpire; Tiny Ron - Al; Brinke Stevens - Girl in showers (uncredited); Lawrence Tierney - Angel Manager; Dick Vitale - Baseball Announcer; Nicholas Worth - Thug #1; Jeff Wright - "Mr. Pallazzo? Would you come with me?"; Weird Al Yankovic - 'Weird Al'; Burton Zucker - Photographer; Charlotte Zucker - Dominique; John Houseman - Driving Instructor; Ed Williams - Ted Olsen; Tom Dugan - Drug Dealer #2; Fredric Arnold - "Hey! What's the meaning of this?"; Brett Bartlett - Seattle Centerfielder; Winifred Freedman - Stephie; Doris Hess - Nurse #2; Jim Smith - "Sorry, fellas"; Don Woodard - "There he is!"; Rick Seaman - 'Ya dumb broad!'; Sydney Urshan - Baseball Fan with O.J.; Robert Arthur - Bob
Credit
Don Woodruff - Art Director, John D. Schofield - Associate Producer, Kevin Marcy - Associate Producer, Fern Champion - Casting, Pamela Basker - Casting, Chuck Fick - Consultant/advisor, Mary Vogt - Costume Designer, John T. Kretchmer - First Assistant Director, David Zucker - Director, Michael Jablow - Editor, Jim Abrahams - Executive Producer, Jerry Zucker - Executive Producer, David Zucker - Executive Producer, Ira Newborn - Composer (Music Score), Jim Scribner - Makeup, John J. Lloyd - Production Designer, Robert M. Stevens - Cinematographer, Robert Weiss - Producer, Rick T. Gentz - Set Designer, Thomas D. Causey - Sound/Sound Designer, Ronald Judkins - Sound/Sound Designer, Steve Maslow - Sound/Sound Designer, Jim Abrahams - Screenwriter, Pat Proft - Screenwriter, Jerry Zucker - Screenwriter, David Zucker - Screenwriter, Alan Gordon - Featured Music
The Naked Gun is a series of comedy films written and produced by the comedy filmmaking trio Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was based on their short-lived 1982ABC television series Police Squad!, which was cancelled after six episodes. The first two films were directed by David Zucker, and the third film was directed by Peter Segal.
Detective Frank Drebin tries to uncover a plan to assassinate Queen Elizabeth II, who is on a state visit to the USA. The main suspect is Vincent Ludwig, a man (hired by Papshmir, a recurring villain) who has a way of turning anyone into an unknowing assassin at the press of a remote control; it appears that the victims are responding to a post-hypnotic suggestion, but the film makes no effort to clarify the point. As with previous ZAZ spoof comedies, the ostensible "plot" was culled most from another - more serious - movie. In this case, it was Telefon wherein people were triggered into assassins via hypnotic phone calls (indeed, dialogue in the 'post-hypnoptic suggestion' demonstration scene is copied word-for-word from Telefon).
As he works on the case, Drebin meets and falls in love with Ludwig's assistant Jane Spencer. It is eventually revealed that Jane knows nothing about Ludwig's plot, and after the pair spend the night together, she helps Frank with his investigation.
Frank discovers that Jane's new boyfriend, Quentin Hapsburg, is involved in an evil plan to kidnap Dr. Albert S. Meinheimer (portrayed by Richard Griffiths), a scientist whom President George Bush (portrayed by John Roarke) has chosen to start a new national energy policy. Quentin Hapsburg plans to kidnap the real Dr. Meinheimer and replace him with a look-a-like, named Earl Hacker (also portrayed by Griffiths) who will endorse an energy policy according to the dictates of the energy lobby.
In the third film of the saga Frank is married to Jane, and he's retired from Police Squad. The film introduces the criminal Rocco Dillon, who is stuck in prison. He's contacted by Papshmir to be given a target for a bombing. Frank is pulled out of retirement, and has to go undercover pretending to be a prisoner named "Nick 'The Slasher' McGuirk Jr., III" at the jail where Rocco Dillon is being held, and they break out of jail. When outside they are escorted by Dillon's gangster mother to his country retreat. At his hideout Frank is told of the plot to blow up the Academy Awards. When Jane arrives looking for him, she is taken hostage.
Future
In 2008 it was announced that a fourth installment is in development. [1]
Release
Reception
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! – 89% at Rotten Tomatoes[2]
The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear – 55% at Rotten Tomatoes[3]
The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult – 52% at Rotten Tomatoes[4]
Leslie Nielsen as Sergeant Frank Drebin, a Detective Lieutenant Police Squad. He's the main character of all three films and the former tv series Police Squad!. In the first two movies he and Jane have a relationship, in the third film they are married, and Frank is retired from the force. He is known for being a bumbling fool, oblivious to the disasters he constantly triggers. He, Ted Olsen and Al (who only appeared in the first film) are the only characters who appeared in both Police Squad! and The Naked Gun Films and were portrayed by the same actor.[8] Archive footage of Frank Drebin was used in various other films, documentaries and tv series.
Priscilla Presley as Jane Spencer (Jane Drebin in the third film). In the first film she is Vincent Ludwig's assistant, but knows nothing about his world domination plans. After she spends the night together with Frank, she helps him with his investigation. She returned in the second film, revealing that her relationship with Frank is over. She has a new boyfriend, Quentin Hapsburg. This is the second time she falls for a man with evil plans. She and Frank make up during the end of the second film. In the third film (in which she is married to Frank, who is retired from the force) she reveals to be a lawyer.
O. J. Simpson as Officer Nordberg, one of Frank's colleagues. He and Frank are partners for about five years, and he's Frank's best friend as stated in the first film. Nordberg always gets himself in very painful situations in all of the films. Officer Norberg (without the d) from Police Squad! seems to be the same character according to the Internet Movie Database.[9] Norberg was portrayed by Peter Lupus.
George Kennedy as Captain Ed Hocken Frank's boss. Ed stimulates Frank to talk to Jane in the second movie. Just like Frank and Nordberg, he knows a lot about boxing. He's responsible for Quentin Hapsburg's accidental death (although the real cause of his death is that he was eaten by a lion). It's revealed in the first film that he is married to a woman named Ethel, although in the second film he is married to a woman named Edna (and it is stated that he has been for thirty years). In the TV series Police Squad he was portrayed by Alan North.
Ed Williams as Ted Olsen a scientist who works at the lab. In Police Squad! Ted was always giving a highly suspect or dangerous lesson to a kid, in a parody of Watch Mr. Wizard, when Frank interrupts him. This joke was not recycled for the films. Ted does create a couple of new inventions, which include: the Swiss-army shoe, the anti-graffiti wall and the cufflink dart. It's revealed in the second film that his wife is a transsexual satan-worshipper. He, Frank Drebin and Al (who only appeared in the first film) are the only characters who appeared in both Police Squad! and The Naked Gun Films and were portrayed by the same actor.[8]
Ronald "Tiny Ron" Taylor as Al a very tall colleague of Frank. Al was recurring character on Police Squad! but only made a cameo in the first movie. It's unknown why he didn't appear in any of the other films.
Falls from a great height (due to Ed running to help Frank and accidentally pushing him out the window) but bounces off an awning and walks away, only to be mauled to death by a lion.
Falls from a catwalk in a theater, but because he has a cord attached to his ankles, the recoil elevates him and is sent flying away through the roof and into Papshmir's overflying private helicopter, which explodes seconds later (he was holding a ticking bomb).
Notable cameos
Character
Portrayer
Film
Other Notes
man fixing a picture up onto the wall of his house[10]
Was the only actor to play the same villain twice in the saga, appearing as "Papshmir" in the first and last movies. His name is a play on the pap smear gynecological test.
Himself
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Has appeared in all three films—as himself in the first and last, and cameoing as a holdup man in the second.
^ ab In the films Hocken was portrayed by George Kennedy and Nordberg by O.J. Simpson, Johhny and Lincoln both didn't return in the films and Al only appeared in the first film.
