Movie Review: Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F

Coming almost thirty years after the last installment in the franchise was released – and nearly forty years after the series debuted – Eddie Murphy returns as Detroit Detective Axel Foley in the latest release from Netflix Films – Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. What is remarkably refreshing about the not-so-young cop’s new adventure is that it may be the best of the series since it started back in 1984.

Foley’s latest case has him returning to Beverly Hills after his longtime friend Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) is reported missing by Foley’s estranged daughter (Taylour Paige) and Axel heads to California to find out what happened to his old friend. Once in Beverly Hills, the case of Billy’s disappearance quickly becomes the tip of an iceberg leading Axel to uncover a conspiracy that may threaten the entire Beverly Hills police force.

Making his feature-length directorial debut, Mark Molloy does a fine job of embracing the comedic drive of Martin Brest’s 1984 incarnation of Beverly Hills Cop. The action is paced well and everyone involved seems to be having a fairly good time. But, what works best here is that, unlike in subsequent films, Murphy takes a backseat to several performers and instead plays off of them rather than trying to play over them. That leads to a more balanced piece than was present in either the second or the third film, which played more as vehicles to get Murphy from bit to bit rather than developing the characters around him.

This approach, courtesy of screenwriters Will Beall (Bad Boys: Ride or Die [2024]) and Tom Gormican & Kevin Etten (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent [2022]) makes for a far more entertaining and properly comedic film than the previous sequels. Whereas the second was a more action-driven vehicle at the hands of director Tony Scott and the third was far more slapstick than anything else with John Landis at the helm, the fourth entry plays to the strengths of the first film and builds on that from beginning to end.

Eddie Murphy in “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.” Photo by Netflix – © 2024 Netflix, Inc.

Murphy enjoys a return to form as Foley, which is aided by his willingness to let others share the spotlight. Taylour Paige’s performance as Foley’s estranged daughter allows Murphy’s character a chance to grow as the story of their relationship is shared between the characters. As in the previous films, Reinhold’s portrayal of Rosewood and John Ashton’s work as John Taggart also give the film a sense of comradery that hasn’t been this poignant since their first adventure together. Newcomers to the series, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Kevin Bacon are also afforded their own ample time to steal scenes and further the plot along in interesting and surprising ways.

As far as sequels go, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is not one of those that surpasses the original. But, it does surpass its predecessors to regain the charm and comedy chops of the first film of the series.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com

An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

@miketyrkus

Mike Tyrkus

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