Oh boy.
Do you like Eddie Murphy? Do you wish he did some more police action-comedy films? Well, this fine movie might help fulfill your desire for more Murphy.
Hawkeye is a pudgy Asian karate expert who comes from Texas, we learn that early and don’t have a chance to forget it through the entire movie. His old buddy and partner gets killed during some drug deal, actually the worst drug deal ever. He gets a new partner much to his displeasure, we’ll call him Neddy Gurphy. Hawk and Neddy are a couple of wild and racist guys that like to do whatever the hell they want.
Early on, maybe before Neddy and Hawk join forces, the likes of which have never been seen, Hawkeye is at a dojo in the desert. He is getting qualified with the “best in the country” for some kind of certification. The dojo is more of an apartment building and the desert looks like the suburbs of Phoenix. He is there beating the crap out of people when he gets called to a bank robbery. A bank robbery, kind of a big deal right? Not this one. Hawk shows up, after changing clothes and is the first one there. In a big city, bank robbery goes out on the police radio (or the roller-rink announcer), husky Hawkeye gets it on his beeper, does a costume change and still arrives before any other cops. Impressive. What is even more impressive is the poor editing and miraculous shooting displayed while the cops (more do show up) break up the heist on the front steps of the bank.
So Hawk gets a new partner, Neddy Gurphy, they but heads at first but then become good buddies. There is some good ol’ 80’s racism; black people like watermelon, Asian people can’t drive…good stuff. There are some fun fight scenes, some random lines. They are after two bad guys, a white guy and an Asian guy. The white mafia bad guy has an interesting crew of muscle men that hang around. One of them likes to take his shirt off for some reason. At one point Hawk goes to a gay bar and has no idea the men hitting on him are gay…he keeps using this line about packing shit with his buddies, its very weird. Maybe it is a line they actually use in Texas, I’ve never heard it. He and Neddy basically wander around questioning the bad guys and stirring up trouble. Hawk has an ego as fat as his face and his partner follows suit.
It gets a bit slow in the second half. The two different bad guys takes a lot of screen time. The white mobster seems to like unattractive women, there is a funny scene where he is sitting in bed engaged in some heavy-petting while talking to a couple of his henchmen. The police chief is always telling Hawk and Neddy they are on thin ice, and for some reason he seems to only travel with the Mayor and another guy. Eventually there is an ending, I think its the shootout on the strip…tough to tell. Good guys win though, that’s for sure.
Honestly, I could never quite get past the resemblance to Eddie Murphy…it’s either a impressive and consistent impersonation or just a phenomenal likeness. You should watch this movie, it’s funny.
3 out of 5 kamikaze t-shirts for Hawkeye
Morning Movie Review 