Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Richard Donner

Writers (WGA):

Shane Black (characters)
Jonathan Lemkin (story) ...

Release Date:

10 July 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

The Gang's All Here.

Plot:

With personal crises and age weighing in on them, LAPD officers Riggs and Murtaugh must contend with a deadly Chinese crimelord trying to get his brother out of prison.

Plot Keywords:

Triad | Baby | Immigrant | Lapd | Private Investigator

Awards:

4 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Mel Gibson	...	Martin Riggs
Danny Glover	...	Roger Murtaugh
Joe Pesci	...	Leo Getz
Rene Russo	...	Lorna Cole
Chris Rock	...	Detective Lee Butters
Jet Li	...	Wah Sing Ku
Steve Kahan	...	Captain Ed Murphy
Kim Chan	...	Benny 'Uncle Benny' Chan
Darlene Love	...	Trish Murtaugh
Traci Wolfe	...	Rianne Murtaugh Butters
Eddy Ko	...	Hong, Chinese Refugee
Jack Kehler	...	State Department Man
Calvin Jung	...	Detective Ng
Damon Hines	...	Nick Murtaugh
Ebonie Smith	...	Carrie Murtaugh

Also Known As:

Lethal 4 (USA) (promotional abbreviation)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

127 min | Philippines:125 min | Portugal:123 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Cantonese | Mandarin

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Australia:M (cut) | Australia:MA (uncut) | Philippines:PG-13 | Iceland:16 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta) | Canada:AA (Ontario) (original rating) | Canada:G (British Columbia) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:R (Ontario) (video rating) | Finland:K-14 (cinema release) | USA:R (certificate #36137) | South Korea:15 (video rating) (cut) | South Korea:18 (original rating) | Argentina:16 | Belgium:KT | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:18 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 | Italy:T | Mexico:C | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:M | New Zealand:R16 (video re-rating) | Norway:18 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 (cut)

Filming Locations:

Bradbury Building - 304 S. Broadway, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The ending was still being written while the movie was in production.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the big car chase scene on the freeway, the table Riggs is on is missing the back right leg which is the same leg he eventually throws at the car, during subsequent scenes, the table sometimes has two legs and sometimes has three legs.

Quotes:

Lorna Cole: Nothing comes between a pregnant lady and a meal.

Movie Connections:

References Vertigo (1958)

Soundtrack:

Pilgrim

Lethal Weapon 4 - Great ending to a great series

This movie is the end of a series which spanned almost two decades.

This time around Riggs (Gibson) is facing three very personal problems. 1) Age is catching up to him, 2) his g/f is pregnant and he's facing being a daddy, and 3) he's facing the dilemma of wanting to remarry. Also, Murtaugh (Glover) is about to be a grand-daddy to a baby by his oldest daughter, and she is secretly married to Detective Butters (Chris Rock), which everyone is keeping a secret from him.

Add to this the fact that both they are now taking on one of the most powerful crime syndicates in the world, the Chinese Triads, in an effort to stop slave trading and money laundering. The task of a bad guy this time goes to Jet Li, who made his American debut (atleast from an American Film Company) in this movie. Yes, this is the movie which launched him here in the states, and he deserved it.

This movie is as good as the rest of them, though nothing beats part 2 in my opinion. Lethal Weapon 4 really hits home on a lot of subjects, such as facing responsibility, to coming to terms with who you are. And it ended the series in a way that makes you smile and love it even more.

I give it a 9 out of 10.